A PILOTS initiative to tackle housing and environmental concerns will be launched in an east Durham community.

The Community Action Team (Cat) is a multi-disciplined task force set up to help communities resolve issues in their neighbourhoods and improve the health and wellbeing of residents.

Led by Durham County Council’s environment, health and consumer protection team, it involves a range of partners, including the council’s housing, planning and neighbourhood warden teams, area action partnerships, police, fire and rescue service and community groups.

The Cat will be launched in Horden, near Peterlee, on Monday and residents are being asked to help set the priorities they would like to see tackled.

These could include concerns associated with housing and empty properties, littering, flytipping and underage sales of alcohol and cigarettes.

A residents’ meeting will be held at Horden Social Welfare Centre, on Seventh Street, Horden, at 6pm on Tuesday, September 25.

Once the priorities have been set, four weeks of action will take place, from October 1, where those issues will be tackled.

Drop in sessions for residents will be held each week during the action weeks at the Social Welfare Centre. They will take place on Tuesdays between 5pm and 7pm and on Wednesdays between 11am and 1pm.

The launch in Horden follows a successful Cat pilot initiative in West Cornforth, which has received positive feedback from local people.

The Cat initiative will take place in 11 communities across County Durham.

Following the launch of the initiative in Horden the scheme will move to No Place, Co-operative Villas.

People can find out more by visiting www.durham.gov.uk/cat, emailing communityactionteam@durham.gov.uk or calling 03000 261 016.