Neighbourhood Police Beats

The Neighbourhood Police Beat (NHPB) program was launched with the support of the Criminal Justice Commission in 1993. It is a Government funded policing initiative aimed at providing the people of Queensland with an effective policing presence in urban situations. Due to community support for NHPBs, they have been and are expanding throughout the State.

• Definition & objectives
• Roles & responsibilities
• Operational features
• Site selections
• Enquiries

Neighbourhood Police Beats are an integral part of the problem-oriented approach to policing and focus on individual communities rather than on individual shopping centres or business districts. NHPBs in effect bring the strength of 'country policing' - personal interaction, community involvement and proactive enforcement - to urban areas.

During 1993, the Southern Region of the Queensland Police Service (QPS) and the Criminal Justice Commission established a community policing pilot project in Toowoomba. The two 'beat' areas were defined within the City of Toowoomba, each of which had been assigned to a Beat Area Officer (BAO). The pilot project was designed initially to run for two years and was eventually to become the nucleus for the program.

Statistical evidence shows that Neighbourhood Beat Policing:

• Enables members or urban communities to 'put a face' to the QPS by personalising the delivery of policing services.
• Can free police from a reactive service format, thereby allowing them to spend more time to follow-up community concerns.

BAOs at Neighbourhood Police Beats assist the local community by detering criminal activity and anti-social behaviour, providing information and advice, and providing for the reporting and investigation of offences.