A business-led initiative in Northampton has marked five years of helping local shops and venues tackle antisocial behaviour and retail crime. The Northampton Town Anti-Social Behaviour Reporting Scheme, known as NTARS, allows businesses to share intelligence on local incidents, a model that has now been recognised with a national award.
The project was launched by Northampton Town Centre BID to help businesses report issues like street drinking, graffiti, and theft in real-time. By using a digital platform called DISC, information is sent directly to the West Northamptonshire Council case management team and the Northamptonshire Business Crime Partnership hub at Campbell Square Police Station.
According to Mark Mullen, the operations manager for the BID, the data collected by over 200 member businesses helped local groups successfully lobby for a significant increase in police resources. When the scheme first began, only two dedicated officers covered the town centre. Today, the area is supported by an inspector, two sergeants, 14 police officers, and six police community support officers.
This intelligence also formed the basis for a successful police operation in August 2024, which led to 60 arrests and resulted in longer-term changes to how the town centre is patrolled. Because of these improvements in safety, the scheme has been adopted as a benchmark for other towns in the county, including Kettering, Wellingborough, and Kingsthorpe. In February 2026, the programme earned a Gold award in the safety and security category at the National BID Awards.
The success of these safety initiatives has contributed to Northampton retaining its Purple Flag accreditation for seven years, which recognises the town for its safe night-time economy. Following a vote by local businesses in October 2025, the BID secured funding for another five-year period, ensuring the continued support for the reporting scheme through 2031.
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