A brief summary of community safety related news and information I’ve spotted in the couple of weeks since my last Weeknotes. Remember that if you’re part of a group please share anything in here that you find useful with your network.
All previous editions of this news summary are online. And there’s now a new signup form here for adding an email to the mailing list.
Stay safe.
Community safety
VANEL has been up to quite a lot during 2025 related to community safety and supporting residents and our communities. Read our ‘review of 2025’ here.
Our Community Safety drop-in sessions for 2026 kick off on Tuesday 3rd Feb (11am-12noon) at 82 Grimsby Road. Supported by Sidney Sussex Neighbourhood Policing Team (NPT), our focus this month will be Personal Safety but please pop in and chat about anything.
Remember that your own NPT will be holding drop-ins or similar in your area too. Find out more via the Humberside Police website.
There have been a number of recent updates from the Police explaining more about ASB (Anti-Social Behaviour) and what it is (and isn’t). There are three types of ASB (personal, nuisance and environmental) and 13 different categories. Read the overview here which is very useful to start understanding what you and neighbours might experience and how the Police categorise it. The main information page on the Police website here contains lots of specific advice on types of ASB and how to report it or deal with it.
A final reminder that the public are being asked to have their say on Public Space Protection Orders (PSPOs) being introduced in Immingham. Story here. Info on PSPOs here. Link to the consultation here (closes 13th Feb).
Date for your diary. The Later Life Partnership are holding their latest Older People’s Support event at Immingham Civic Centre on Friday 6th March, 10am-2pm. VANEL and Neighbourhood Watch will be attending with our Community Safety stand. See you there.
Scams and Fraud
ReportFraud has officially launched to replace ActionFraud. New video to promote the new service. Official Press Release which inexplicably doesn’t contain a link to the service itself – which is here. Please share with others that ActionFraud is now ReportFraud.
ReportFraud is the official platform for anyone in England, Wales and Northern Ireland to report scams, online fraud, suspicious activity, or cyber incidents. It replaces Action Fraud and provides a clearer, more supportive experience for victims. www.reportfraud.police.uk or 0300 123 2040
So what has changed?
A brand-new ReportFraud Contact Centre.
A simplified online reporting tool
Improved intelligence sharing with police forces
Enhanced victim support through the ReportFraud Vicim Service.
Also, Reports of Courier Fraud are rising – Learn how to spot the signs
Policing
In December alone, Neighbourhood Policing Teams who cover Grimsby have conducted 566 patrols, that’s 290 hours on the beat, covering over 370 miles on their patch. A series of Police news articles sharing progress in our area:
Grimsby Specials assist NPTs with day of action
Mastering the reduction of ASB in Grimsby Town Centre
Ourwatch published a story about the national increase in local Neighbourhood Policing. Read it here. This initiative is already taking shape in North East Lincolnshire with additional NPT officers joining the teams. Keep an eye on the Humberside Police ‘in your area’ pages for where you live.
And finally, the Police and Crime Commissioner has invested to bring the Pol-Ed programme to the area. Working with Police and Schools this introduces community safety issues direct to young people through their schooling. Read about Pol-Ed here.
Fire
For January, HFRS are supporting the national Register My Appliance campaign to help keep households safe. This is both a practical and safety first approach to dealing with problem appliances before they have a fault.
Neighbourhood Watch
Did you miss the December Ourwatch newsletter? It’s full of useful information for Neighbourhood Watch Groups.
Ourwatch have formally now launched their new 5 year strategy. You can read all about it here. The new approach is “Neighbourhood Watch, Connect and Act”. Keep an eye out for further details in the weeks to come. Any questions from local Neighbourhood Watch groups, please contact Karl to discuss.
Footnotes
WeekNotes 19 Friday 23rd January 2026
By Karl Elliott, VANEL, NELwatch, HumberWatch
www.nelwatch.org.uk
www.vanel.org.uk
www.nelwatch.org.uk/neighbourstogether
part of Humber Watch Association
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