Reporting nuisance/anti-social behaviour and how we deal with it
What is anti-social behaviour (ASB)?
Acting in a manner that caused or was likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress to one or more persons not of the same household.
How does ASB affect our tenants?
Any nuisance/ASB caused by or affecting anyone living on our estates is dealt with by our Housing Neighbourhood teams. If the nuisance/ASB you wish to report is not relating to our estates, please see Tackling anti-social behaviour in our Community safety section.
How do I report a crime?
Please remember if you witness a crime or an emergency you must always report to the police first by calling 999 in an emergency or 101 for non urgent incidents.
How do I report nuisance/ASB to the Council?
You can Contact us by phone, email or in person. You can complete an incident report form and send it to you Neighbourhood Officer. If you would like a copy posted to you please email htenancy@middevon.gov.uk or ask your Neighbourhood Officer.
What happens when I report nuisance/ASB?
Your report will be sent to the Neighbourhood Officer for your area, who will acknowledge your report. The Neighbourhood Officer will contact you to discuss how you wish to progress your concerns.
Want to know more about our processes?
For further information, please see ASB Policy and ASB Procedures. The Mid Devon Housing (MDH) Anti Social Behaviour Policy was adopted by Cabinet on 4th July 2023 after recommendation by the Homes Policy Development Group on 13th June 2023. The ASB Policy now incorporates the MDH Domestic Abuse and MDH Harassment Policies.
How we deal with nuisance/anti-social behaviour
Your Neighbourhood Officer will look into your report, take full details and then carry out an investigation. This involves taking detailed statements from you and any witnesses you may have. It may also involve contact with the other party. This should take no longer than 20 working days. However, if we need information from the police or other agencies, it might take longer. We will let you know if there is a delay.
We will respond to cases involving racial harassment, threats or actual violence within one working day – or on the same day if resources permit.
We will acknowledge all other reports of nuisance/ASB in writing or e-mail within 1-5 working days depending on the nature of the report.
All reports of nuisance/ASB are logged on our electronic database to manage the case but also to monitor performance and trends.
We use a straightforward approach to tackling nuisance/ASB, we will:
- investigate the report;
- evaluate the evidence; and
- take appropriate action to resolve the matter.
This initial investigation should take no more than 20 working days depending on the complexity or severity of the report.
Our commitment to you
- Accountability, leadership and commitment – we are committed to taking steps to prevent and tackle anti-social behaviour.
- Making the service accessible - by providing clear information, publicising and promoting our service.
- Protecting communities through prompt and proactive actions - by building strong partnerships and using the full range of tools and powers available.
- Adopting a supportive approach to working with reporting parties and witnesses – by identifying and minimising risks to protect our communities and providing support in a number of ways.
- Bringing communities together – by encouraging and developing resident engagement to make our neighbourhoods a safe place to live.
- Prevention and early intervention – by proactively engaging with our residents and partnership agencies.
- Offering a value for money service – by evaluating performance against resident satisfaction and cost.
Our approach to tackling ASB
Our intentions are to:
- deal firmly but fairly with the other party;
- deter nuisance/anti-social behaviour and prevent future occurrences;
- encourage reporting parties and witnesses to come forward.
We can help and support you in a number of ways. We can:
- provide regular contact by telephone or home visit
- refer you to counselling, victim support and witness support services
- arrange translation and interpretation services if English is not your first language
- liaise with appropriate support workers if you are physically or mentally vulnerable
- seek to provide appropriate support if you are hearing-impaired or visually-impaired
- provide free transport to and from investigation meetings, court and other venues
- assist with childcare costs so that you can attend meetings
- consider re-housing you on a temporary or permanent basis (in the most serious ASB cases)
- continue to provide advice and support following court proceedings
- monitor the behaviour of the other party following court proceedings to ensure that any order of the court is kept too
- carry out a “risk assessment” of your home and install appropriate support measures such as CCTV cameras, alarms, extra locks or spy holes in your front door
In many instances, especially those that may involve legal action, we will need your help to build our case against the other party. You may need
to:
- keep a regular diary of events
- allow noise monitoring or video equipment to be installed in your home
- allow professional witnesses, the police and/or MDH staff to use your home for surveillance purposes
- encourage other witnesses to come forward
- report incidents to the police
- attend meetings with other witnesses and with our legal representatives
- attend Court and give evidence to support MDH’s case
- monitor the behaviour of the perpetrator following court proceedings to ensure that any order of the court is kept too
We are committed to reducing ASB in Mid Devon and your help is appreciated.
We always try to resolve issues at an early stage, without the need for legal action. Eviction should be a last resort, but we will act firmly if a case needs it. Listed below are the actions we can take:
- issue warning letters
- mediation
- Acceptable Behaviour Contracts
- Community Protection Warning/Notice
- family intervention referral
- Injunctions and Exclusion Orders - with powers of arrest in certain circumstances
- possession proceedings and eviction
- demotion of tenancy
- legal action under the Environmental Protection Act or the Noise Act
- involvement of partner agencies
- referral to the police for investigation of criminal behaviour
- neighbourhood agreements
- property closure
- referral to a multi-agency problem-solving group (if the other party has mental health problems, disabilities or their anti-social behaviour impacts on the wider community)
Our Neighbourhood Officers are authorised to issue Community Protection Warnings and Notices where the Council is satisfied on reasonable grounds that, despite prior written warning, the conduct of the person is having a persistent or continuing detrimental effect on the quality of life of those in the locality and the conduct is unreasonable.
It is an Offence to fail to comply with a Community Protection Notice
A person issued with a community protection notice who fails to comply with it commits an offence.
A person guilty of an offence under this section is liable on summary conviction—
- To a fine not exceeding level 4 on the standard scale (currently £2,500), in the case of an individual;
- To a fine not exceeding £20,000, in the case of a body.
When I make a report will my identity be given?
At no time will your identity be given to the person you are reporting, although due to the nature of some neighbourhood disputes it is obvious who the report has come from. For example if your are reporting about a particular instance of verbal abuse then it may be apparent to the other party who has made the report. In these types of cases we will support you so that the situation doesn't escalate.
Can I make an anonymous report?
Yes you can remain anonymous, although we will be unable to provide you with regular updates on how the case is progressing. Please also note that we will have to decide on how to progress the report rather than you being able to help us to determine the appropriate action to take. Should you contact us again for an update we will be unable to do this as you have not divulged your identity.
Will I have to attend court?
Should your case make it to court, evidence from the people who have actually witnessed the incident(s) is much stronger and is more likely to lead to a successful outcome at court.
However, the Housing Act 1996 allows us to use professional witnesses, such as the police and neighbourhood housing officers, and hearsay evidence where people are too frightened to attend court. We can also say what the likely affect the behaviour would have on other tenants and residents.