Barnton News

Having a Say with Barnton Bobbies

BARNTON residents want local CATs to pounce on nuisance youth problems.

That was the message from the crowd of around 40 residents who went along to the first Community Action Meeting (CAM) in the village last week (Jan 16).

Northwich Community Action Team (CAT) officer PC Rob Stopford is running the meetings and he will now work with his colleagues to address the priority area using techniques such as high-visibility targeted patrols and the use of seizure powers.

CAMs are part of a project which sees police join forces with partner agencies and residents to identify and solve quality of life issues.

PC Stopford said: “The project involves meetings, surveys and fact-finding tours on foot which are used to identify physical signs of disorder such as graffiti and litter.

“The results from all these elements help paint a picture of what life is really like in a community. We can then identify any problem areas and work with residents to prioritise them. Once we have a priority identified, the police and their partners work together to solve it.”

Progress made in tackling the problem will be monitored and reported back to members of the community at a second CAM. Residents can then decide if they wish to set a new priority or continue working on the old one.

“This process enables members of a community to have a real say on what they want the police and their partners to tackle in their area.

“Residents have an input during every stage of the process and after so many months, the process starts again,” said PC Stopford.

Although just one priority area is selected during the CAM, details of all concerns are recorded and taken into consideration.

The information is also shared with other agencies if they are best suited to deal with an issue.

PC Stopford explained: “We encourage residents to make us aware of all issues which are affecting their quality of life. For some people this may be nuisance youths, for others it may be poor street lighting.

“Obviously, as a police force, we cannot help with things like repairing street lights or noisy neighbours. We can however make our partner agencies aware so they can look at the problem.

“This is what we strive to do and over the coming months I’m looking forward to working together with both residents and organisations in the community to deliver improvements.”

To find out more about the CAM process leave a message for PC Stopford on the CAT voicemail facility 0845 458 6392. All messages are regularly checked and returned.

Next Meeting: 10 April, 7pm., Barnton Memorial Hall