Anti-Social Behaviour

Tackling ASB

North Hertfordshire Homes is committed to ensuring that all tenants and residents enjoy a quality of life that is unhindered by a smallminority of people who fail to recognise their obligation to their neighbours and to the wider community.

What is anti-social behaviour?

The Government defines anti-social behaviour (often referred to as ASB) as “any aggressive, intimidating or destructive activity that damages or destroys another person's quality of life.”

Tenants are obliged under the terms of their tenancy agreement to make sure that they or members of their household or visitors do not cause nuisance or annoyance to other people in the neighbourhood, including other tenants, residents, employees or contractors of North Hertfordshire Homes.

We recognise that everyone has a right to their chosen lifestyle but this must not interfere with the quality of life of others.

We aim to deal quickly and effectively with all reports of ASB. We will do this by assessing the situation and taking appropriate action. In some instances this may include legal action to protect those individuals that are the target of the ASB.

Examples of ASB could include but are not limited to:

• intimidation and harassment on the grounds of age, gender, religion, race, colour, sex, appearance, disability, sexual orientation, ability, cultural background, domestic circumstances, illness or lifestyle
• violence or threats of violence to any person (including domestic violence)
• abuse or insulting words or behaviour (to tenants, staff, contractors, or any other member of the community)
• making unnecessary or excessive noise
• damage or threat of damage to property belonging to another person including damage to any part of a person’s home
• writing graffiti and in particular graffiti that is abusive, threatening or insulting
• using or allowing premises for illegal and immoral activity, such as prostitution, using and selling drugs and handling or storing stolen goods
• nuisance or annoyance caused by pets or other animals including dogs barking or fouling
• untidy and overgrown gardens
• dumping rubbish and abandoning vehicles
• carrying out frequent major vehicle repairs on land around the home or on the roads. Also inconsiderate parking that may cause an obstruction
• groups of people causing a nuisance in common areas, such as unreasonable noise, ball games damaging property and intimidating behaviour.

Let us know – reporting ASB

The simplest way to tell us about ASB is to call in to your nearest neighbourhood office, write to, or phone us, or ask a friend, relative or your councillor to report the problem for you. We will contact you to confirm that we are looking into the matter.

You can also report incidents to our 24 hour ASB Hotline

01462 705499

Please leave a message and we will contact you within one working day. All complaints are taken seriously and treated with the utmost confidence.

Dealing with your concerns

The first steps

We are able to deal with some issues very quickly. For example if you tell us about an overgrown, rubbish-filled garden we can simply go round and check. We will tell the person responsible to get it cleaned up, and take whatever action is necessary if they do not. However, most cases are not quite so simple. If the ASB is not so obvious to everyone or if it is aimed directly at you – harassment and abuse for example – we will need to speak to you before we can start a full investigation.

The next stage

In most cases we will need to meet you to talk about the problem. We can do this wherever it suits you – at your home, in the neighbourhood office or somewhere appropriate.

We will ask you questions to help us get a picture of the problem: who is affected; how they are affected; where it happens; when it happens; and why you think the person is acting in an unacceptable manner. We may want to speak to other people in your household who might have been affected.

The action plan

At the end of a meeting we will send you a letter confirming our discussion. This will detail a plan that describes what you should do and what we will do to get the problem resolved. The case is now a partnership – we are working for you, but you must help us by keeping to your side of any agreed actions. The action plan may also recommend involving other agencies like the police or social services.

Talking it through

If the case does not involve threats, violence or harassment, the plan could start with a suggestion that you talk the problem through with the other person. There is always a better chance of solving a dispute if you try to see each other’s point of view. Sometimes a neighbour just needs advising that their behaviour is upsetting you. If the other person is unreasonable, just walk away. Do not get involved in an argument.

Mediation

If you feel uneasy about approaching a neighbour on your own we can set up a meeting for you. We can be there to help you talk through the problem together or we can arrange for all of you to attend mediation.

Gathering evidence

We cannot take action against someone simply because another person has complained about them – we need evidence. It is important that you keep a keep a log of all that happens. An example of a nuisance diary can be found in our Tackling Anti-Social Behaviour leaflet.

We may need to collect other evidence; but if the incident happens suddenly it may be best if you do it too. We will speak to other people who have witnessed the problem – your neighbours for instance. It could be difficult to take the case any further without these other witnesses. Your neighbours could fill in their own nuisance diary sheets as supporting evidence.

Taking Action

When we have collected evidence we will decide if the behaviour reported is unacceptable. If so, we will take action. In very serious cases where the other party has put you or another person in danger we will go straight to legal action. In other situations we will take a step-by-step approach to try to get them to change their behaviour. We will need to interview the other party. You can ask us not to do this, but it could then be difficult to take the case further.

We will tell them to change their behaviour and warn them that we will take action including legal action against them if they don’t.

Your responsibility as a tenant

We will develop specific approaches to deter and deal effectively with incidents of ASB. We also expect all our tenants to adhere to the terms of their tenancy agreement.

As a NHH tenant you are responsible for

• your own behaviour
• the behaviour of any person who lives in your home
• the behaviour of any person who comes to visit you
• the behaviour of any pets belonging to you, occupants or visitors
• You or your occupants, visitors and pets must not cause a nuisance or annoyance to any other person living in, visiting or carrying out a lawful activity in the locality of your home

For further information please refer to your Tenancy Agreement and your Tenancy Handbook.

Noise Nuisance - what can I do?

Most ASB complaints we receive are about noise. All households make noise, whether it is from their pets, their cars, cleaning and washing, people playing music or children playing. It is important that you get to know your neighbours and are able to speak to them about noise, as in most cases if you can hear them, it usually means that they can hear you too. Many complaints start because either one or both sets of neighbours are unaware of the noise they make.

For example: If your neighbour works shifts, and may need to sleep during the day, you can try to come to some agreement about noise which may mean that you both have to make some adjustments. In the long term this could benefit both of you, as, in our experience, neighbour disputes can escalate out of control and make all of your lives a misery.

In some cases, neighbours have taken a “tit for tat” approach with both parties becoming unreasonable and causing a nuisance. Occasionally we end up taking action against both households.

Here are some practical ways to minimise noise:

• Carpets and curtains help to absorb sound.Make sure your children are aware of the effect their noise can have on others
• Make sure noisy household appliances such as washing machines and vacuum cleaners are used at a reasonable time and never between 11pm and 7am.
• Keep the volume down on TVs and stereos.Arrange speakers away from partition walls and the floor. If you are putting them near the floor, make sure they go on stands that will insulate the sound. Also make sure you turn the bass down. As a guide, if you close the door of the room where the music is playing and the music can still be heard in the adjacent rooms, it is likely that your neighbour will also hear it.
• Tell your neighbours if you are having a party and give then some idea of when it will end. Ensure that you keep the noise down after a certain time.

If you are being disturbed, try and speak to your neighbours and explain why the noise is bothering you. Try to stay calm (even though you may not feel like it). If your neighbours approach you about noise try to deal with them positively and respectfully.

If you feel it is difficult to try and resolve these problems, then please come and talk to your Neighbourhood Officer.

Supporting victims and witnesses

• A victim is a person who has experienced ASB or nuisance.

• A witness is a person who has seen something or was present when an incident of ASB occurred.

Witnesses are important when dealing with ASB whether they are directly suffering from ASB or witness unacceptable behaviour. We need witnesses to report incidents, to provide evidence and to help with any action that we take against the person or persons causing the nuisance.

Any information passed to us will be treated confidentially and your safety will not be compromised if you come forward.

How we will support you: