Neighbourhood Action Team

What is a Neighbourhood Action Team (NAT)?

Neighbourhood Action Teams (NATs) are community meetings that are held in each of the 17 electoral wards within North Lincolnshire.  They allow people living in that community to influence, prioritise and resolve issues relating to community safety and the environment.

The NATs main functions are:

  • Receive information from the community about local issues which, primarily, affect community safety and the built environment.
  • Priorities those issues for action
  • Work with the local community and partners to resolve the issues
  • Ensure the wider community are aware of the priorities and action through effective means

What does a NAT deal with?

NAT's problem solve local issues such as (but not limited to):-

  • Large groups of people behaving anti-socially in your neighbourhood
  • Nuisance and illegal motor bikes
  • Criminal Damage
  • Hot-Spot crimes such as theft of pedal cycles
  • Bins being set on fire

To become a NAT issue it must require a multi-agency response. A one-off incident of Mrs Bloggs letting her dog foul the pavement outside your house can be dealt with by a call to the Council. People coming to use a local park or area to cause Anti Social Behaviour needs a multi-agency approach and should therefore be raised as a NAT issue.

How does the NAT get to hear about a problem?

If an agency such as the police, Safer Neighbourhoods, Council, local housing providers or Fire Service receive a number of calls about a certain problem they will investigate and if they believe it is a community issue then they will arrange for it to be raised at the next NAT meeting.

If you are a member of, say, a residents association or Neighbourhood Watch Group you can ask your co-ordinator to attend the NAT meeting and raise the problem. If you are not a member of such a group you can approach your local community police officer, or local councillor or any other member of a NAT and ask for the issue to be raised at the next meeting.

So who do I contact and when is the next meeting?

The frequency of a Neighbourhood Action Team (NAT) meeting is dependent on the amount of Community Safety or Environmental issues there are in that ward, but they must meet at least once every three months. The Neighbourhood Action Teams are chaired by an elected member and comprise of representatives from the following groups

  • Elected Members
  • Town and Parish Council
  • Community Groups such as Neighbourhood Watch and Residents Associations
  • Business Community
  • Schools
  • Local Neighbourhood Police
  • Safer Neighbourhood Officer
  • Housing Officers
  • Other professional representatives when invited (e.g. Fire Service, NHS, Council Environmental Health or other department etc).

Any issues discussed must affect a number of members of the community, continues to persist despite traditional policing methods and is something that can be resolved through partnership working.

To find out when your next Neighbourhood Action Team meeting is taking place please email: daniel.marsh@northlincs.gov.uk