Unknown to many, Northamptonshire Police has an Independent Advisory Group (IAG). Thrapston is represented in this group by Carl Nelson. Carl has been a resident of Thrapston since 2014 and has lived in Northamptonshire since 2006.

The purpose of IAGs is to facilitate genuine partnerships with local communities to encourage more active involvement of, and with, people from the full range of diverse groups.

As an IAG representative, Carl attends regular meetings and interacts with IAG representatives from other Northants communities and Northamptonshire Police. A key task for each representative is to ensure their communities policing concerns are known to the Police. There are several ways you can make your concerns known:

1) The PCSO for Thrapston and neighbouring communities, Constable Tim Butter, makes himself available to the community on a regular basis. You can find Tim at many community functions, several times a year. These surgeries are publicised on the Thrapston Town Council website and other publications.

2) You can voice your concerns with members of Thrapston Town Council and its staff. Doing so makes them aware of residents' concerns so they can add emphasis to recurring concerns when they pass them along to the Police.

3) Anyone can apply to become a member of the IAG. Simply complete and submit the following anonymous survey directly to Northamptonshire Police. This survey can be completed at any time, it never expires. The IAG wants to have representatives from a broad spectrum of the community. Representatives of the BME community and younger persons are particularly encouraged to apply as other demographics are well represented - https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/NorthantsLocalPriorities

4) If you would rather voice your concerns to another member of your community, you can speak directly to any Neighbourhood Watch representative or to me as your IAG representative. We all have contacts with the Police at various levels.

Northamptonshire Police genuinely care about providing effective policing that addresses the concerns of their communities. They need and want to know what those concerns are. The IAG is an effective way of transmitting your concerns to them. Should you have questions or concerns that you want the Police to be aware of, please feel free to contact Carl at cengr57@gmail.com

Additional information about Northants Police IAG can be found at https://www.northants.police.uk/police-forces/northamptonshire-police/areas/northamptonshire-force-content/about-us/about-us/diversity-equality-and-inclusion2/independent-advisory-groups/