Tenant handbook - community services

Anti-social behaviour (ASB) is persistent and unreasonable behaviour that could cause alarm or distress to one or more people in another household.

We take all reports of anti-social behaviour seriously and will work with you to resolve problems and prevent them happening again.

We use a victim-centred approach and consider the impact of ASB, not just the seriousness of it.

If you are a tenant, you are responsible for your behaviour and the behaviour of:

• anyone who lives with you, including your partner, spouse and children
• anyone who visits or stays with you
• any pets belonging to you

Examples of ASB

We will establish whether a report is ASB based on the behaviour, the impact and context of each case.

Behaviours that we consider to be ASB can include:

Personal ASB

Behaviour targeted towards a particular individual e.g. violence, threats of violence, hate crime, abuse etc.

Community ASB

Behaviour that affects a number of people in the community e.g. noise, animal nuisance, drug or substance misuse, damage to property.

Environmental ASB

Behaviour such as littering, fly-tipping, dog fouling etc.

Domestic abuse

Domestic abuse is an incident or pattern of incidents of controlling, threatening, degrading or violent behaviour, including sexual violence, by a partner, ex-partner, family member or carer.

If you are experiencing domestic abuse, we can help you to access the support you need, and to resolve any housing-related concerns.

Taking Action

We have a range of responses available to tackle ASB and will take whatever action is proportionate to the issue.

Some of the things we take into consideration when deciding what action to take include:

• seriousness
• persistency
• harm caused to the victim or community
• vulnerability
• whether the perpetrator is co-operating
• whether previous action has been taken and how effective it was

Some problems can be solved through agreement or mediation.

Where we do intervene, verbal or written warnings may be given.

More serious cases may require legal action and we will consider all options available to us.

In the most serious cases and when there is no alternative, if the perpetrator is a council tenant, we may seek to evict them from their home.

Supporting victims

Suffering from ASB is an unpleasant experience.

We work closely with the police and other partners to give victims of ASB practical and personal support.

This may include:

• offering a variety of channels through which to report ASB
• managing expectations fairly and early in the case
• ensuring the complainant has a point of contact
• agreeing a realistic action plan
• conducting regular case reviews

Reporting anti-social behaviour

There are several ways you or your representative can report anti-social behaviour:

Phone 999 for serious incidents or if a crime is about to happen.

Email: asb@welhat.gov.uk

Telephone: 01707 357 000