What is Anti-social Behaviour?
Anti-social behaviour is defined as conduct capable of causing housing-related nuisance or annoyance, as per the ASB, Crime and Policing Act 2014. Additionally, immoral or illegal use of our properties is considered ASB under our policy.
The statutory definition of ASB is subjective, varying with individual perceptions and expectations.
Our Approach
When you report an incident of anti-social behaviour to Broadland, you should expect the following:
- To be listened to and taken seriously.
- Neighbourhood Officer: You will have a dedicated Neighbourhood Officer to investigate your complaint.
- Response times: Our response will depend on what is reported to us. Please visit our webpage to find out more information about this.
- Action Plan: Your Neighbourhood Officer will complete an action plan with you.
- Support: We will support you as much as we can throughout the process and will make the relevant referrals to agencies.
- Communication: We will keep you informed throughout the process, providing regular updates at times and dates agreed with you.
- Open and honest: We will be open, honest and realistic about what we can achieve and the interventions we can take to resolve the issue.
- Reviews: Your case will be reviewed bi-monthly to ensure it is being investigated properly.
- Cooperation: We may need additional information or statements to resolve ASB cases effectively. Your cooperation helps us take action where needed.
- Work with partner agencies: In some cases, ASB issues require joint action with the police, local councils, or other support services. Your involvement in this process can be crucial in achieving a resolution.
- Log sheets: For ongoing ASB issues, keeping a record of incidents can help us build a case for appropriate action, including dates, times and descriptions.
- Noise App: Use the Noise App to record instances of noise disturbances. This app helps us gather accurate evidence.
- Evidence: Provide any additional evidence such as photos and videos.
- Understanding: Our tenancies are very secure, and, in most cases, we can only be granted possession of a property through the Courts. This requires a lot of evidence, and the process can be extensive. We understand that this can be frustrating and would appreciate your understanding throughout this process.
Partnership Working
ASB requires us to work with the Police, Environmental Health, Mental Health Services and Social Services to address the issues collaboratively.
| Organisation | How Broadland work with them |
|---|---|
| Police | The Police have specific legal powers to address criminal aspects of ASB, including issuing warnings, making arrests, and enforcing court orders. They can also assist with community initiatives and provide support for victims. If you suspect a crime is being committed as part of the anti-social behaviour, you should always contact the Police. |
| Environmental Health | The Environmental Health services enforce public health and safety regulations, including taking legal action against ant-social behaviour like noise nuisances.
They investigate complaints to determine if they meet the criteria for a statutory nuisance under the Environmental Protection Act 1990, which includes anything that unreasonably interferes with the use or enjoyment of a home or injures health. Common examples are excessive noise, smoke, fumes, dust, and waste accumulation. If statutory nuisance is found, they can issue an abatement notice to stop or reduce nuisance. |
| Mental Health Services | At times, the anti-social behaviour being perpetrated is linked to a mental health condition. Therefore, it is essential that we work closely with services to ensure that perpetrators and victims are getting the support they need. |
| Social Services | We work with Social Services to provide comprehensive support to both victims and perpetrators of ASB, particularly those with complex needs. This collaboration is essential and helps us achieve improved outcomes and address mental health problems or family conflict that may contribute to behaviour. |
ASB Case Review (formerly Community Trigger)
We always take complaints of anti-social behaviour seriously and will try to resolve issues that are reported to us. If you think that your case has not been dealt with in the way you wanted, you have the right to instigate a formal ASB Case Review.
The ASB Case Review gives victims the right to ask local agencies (such as the police and housing providers) to review how they have responded to a complaint. It is designed to ensure all agencies share information and work together to try and resolve any ongoing complaints about anti-social behaviour. Not all cases of ASB are suitable for an ASB Case Review. Normally, for the review to be conducted, you need to have reported at least 3 qualifying incidents of anti-social behaviour within 6 months.
To start the ASB Case Review you must make an application to the relevant local authority, for example:
FAQs
All ASB cases are unique and the types of interventions required resolve the case vary depending on the behaviour being caused and the circumstances of the individual. Due to this, we cannot have a set number of warnings we can issue before we apply to evict someone.
For example, if the ASB being caused is linked to mental health issues, we would have to show that we have tried to work in partnership with the mental health team before we could consider applying for possession.
We will not tell the person that you have complained, however, we still cannot guarantee anonymity. For example, the details of the ASB report may make it clear who is likely to have complained.
If the case progressed to court, your name and address would be disclosed as part of the proceedings. As part of the process, you would be required to attend court and provide a witness statement. We understand that this is not an easy thing to do. We would support you through this to make the process as smooth as possible.
We will take legal or non-legal interventions against the person causing anti-social behaviour.
| Non-Legal | Legal |
|---|---|
| Warning letter | Seeking an injunction from the court |
| Visiting the perpetrator | Apply to court for possession of the property |
| Offering mediation | Ending a starter tenancy |
| Acceptable behaviour contract | Extending a starter tenancy |
The action we will take depends on what the anti-social behaviour is, how often it is happening and what harm it is causing. For example, if we received reports that someone was playing loud music, our first action may be going to visit the perpetrator.
The time it takes to resolve an anti-social behaviour case can vary significantly depending on the complexity and severity of the issue.
Some cases may be resolved within a few weeks, while others can take several months or longer. Factors influencing the duration include the nature of the ASB, the effectiveness of interventions and the cooperation of the all parties involved. Also, if the perpetrator has any complex needs or disabilities.
ASB and Hate Crime Policy & Procedure
View below our policy and procedure for Anti-social Behaviour and Hate Crime.
What if we can’t help?
If we’re not able to help directly, we will always explain why no action is possible at this time. It may be possible that another organisation is better equipped to deal with the issue.
Please see our Tackling anti-social behaviour information leaflet:
