Your guide to dealing with... Anti-social behaviour

Everyone has the right to enjoy their home and community and live peacefully alongside their neighbours.

The Barnet Group is committed to helping its residents to be good neighbours and build tolerant communities.

Part of how we do this is to help residents tackle incidents of anti-social behaviour in their homes and around the community.

You can read about how we do this in full in our anti-social behaviour policy at barnethomes.org/asb

What is anti-social behaviour 1

How is anti-social behaviour defined?

The term anti-social behaviour includes nuisance and harassment (including hate crimes) but not domestic violence which has a separate procedure.

Our anti-social behaviour policy states three main definitions of anti-social behaviour:

Personal threat identifies incidents that are deliberately targeted at a particular individual or group

Public nuisance captures those incidents where an individual or group causes trouble, annoyance, inconvenience, offence or suffering to people in the local community in general rather than being deliberately targeted at specific individuals or groups

Environmental nuisance deals with incidents and inconsiderate actions that have an impact on our estates, for example graffiti, damage to buildings and structures

This category is about encouraging reasonable behaviour and protecting various environments – so people can enjoy their own private spaces as well as communal and public spaces.

What is not anti-social behaviour?

We would not normally consider behaviour which results from different lifestyles or may not be considered unreasonable by most people as anti-social behaviour. We would also not consider behaviours where there is no action that we can take as a landlord to change the behaviour.

These include:

• people walking across wooden floors whilst wearing shoes

• washing machine noise/vibration

• vacuum cleaner noise

• mowing lawns

• playing football outside

• children playing/arguing outside

• cooking smells

• family lifestyle e.g. talking in gardens, noise when children come home from school, differing lifestyles between younger and older residents, friction between day and night workers

• overgrown hedges and gardens

• DIY work

• occasional events – e.g. BBQs, celebrations, special occasions.

2How to deal with anti-social behaviour

Noise nuisance

Most neighbours cause no problem at all, but some annoy others in ways that they are unaware of.

Try and solve the problem with your neighbour in a friendly way, without involving the local authority in the first instance. Often your neighbours won’t know they are causing a nuisance and will probably be more considerate in future.

If all reasonable steps have been taken to sort the matter out privately, the next option is to contact Barnet Council’s Environmental Health department on 020 8359 7995 or their out-of-hours service on 020 8359 2000 when the noise is taking place. They will be able to witness the noise and if it is too loud, they may serve your neighbours with a notice instructing them to reduce noise levels, or face possible further restrictions

We are unable to do anything about general household noise, such as children playing or people talking, vacuuming or using a washing machine.

If you are living in a flat, you will hear a certain amount of noise from your neighbours as they go about their daily lives. We do not regard this as anti-social behaviour or harassment.

If the local authority decides not to intervene, or for whatever reason you do not wish to involve them, you can take

your own legal action. You must have already taken steps to deal with the matter privately before you can bring it to court.

We ask all residents to be considerate of their neighbours. Some people have different lifestyles as well as different working patterns. Please avoid banging doors especially at night.

We would not normally take any action if someone has a one off party but if you plan to have a party at some time it may be a good idea to tell your neighbours.

If your neighbours cause persistent and unreasonable noise nuisance and all attempts to resolve this informally have failed then we may be able to take action but you will be required to provide proof of the nuisance and this can be in the form of diary sheets and/or evidence of a breach of a noise abatement notice.

We are confident that if we work in partnership we can reduce anti-social behaviour on our estates.

If you are experiencing noise nuisance from your neighbour, please contact us for further advice.

Misuse of communal areas

We will ask you to work with us and the local police to try and resolve the issues. We may ask you to keep detailed diary sheets of all incidents. These can be used as evidence if we need to take action

We want to make sure that we give our residents the best possible advice on how to deal with incidents of anti-social behaviour.

Your guide to dealing with anti-social behaviour

under the tenancy agreement.

If we receive a number of complaints about anti-social behaviour in a block of flats, we may write to all residents seeking information and ask how it has affected them. It is important that you respond to our letters, giving us as much information as possible.

Depending on the severity and frequency of reported issues we may have to arrange a meeting with residents and agree a plan of action to help resolve them. We would like to work in partnership with you and the police to make your neighbourhood a better and safer place to live. We need you to help us do this.

Please note that neither Barnet Homes nor the police can remove people from the block if they are not committing any crime. Residents and their visitors have the right to use common areas to come and go at any time of the day or night.

Neighbour disputes

Without evidence of anti-social behaviour, it is very difficult for us to take action. In neighbour dispute cases Barnet Homes must remain impartial until such evidence is made available. In many cases of low level anti-social behaviour, people might not realise that what they feel are reasonable noise levels of everyday life may be causing you distress. We advise talking to the person in a tactful way and seeing if you can work out a compromise.

We would not normally get involved in a noise nuisance case unless you have spoken to your neighbour and tried to resolve any issues between yourselves.

However, if talking with your neighbour doesn’t work, we can provide you with practical advice and guidance. If appropriate we may use mediation to try to resolve nuisance issues.

Hate crimes and domestic violence

A hate crime occurs when a perpetrator targets/harasses a victim because they belong to a certain social group. Examples of such groups include but are not limited to: racial groups, sexual orientation, ethnicity, religious, gender identity and disability.

Racial harassment targets individuals or groups because of their colour, race nationality, ethnic or national origins and religious dominations.

Sexual/Sexuality harassment includes domestic violence – we have a separate domestic violence procedure and please see our website for more information.

Your responsibilities3

What you should be aware of and need to do before contacting us

Tenants

We have a clear policy on anti-social behaviour, and our tenancy agreement is very clear about your obligations, so please refer to it if you have any questions. We will use all available legal remedies to combat all forms of anti-social behaviour.

Leaseholders

Your lease clearly sets out your responsibilities on anti-social behaviour. Remember you are legally responsible for any breach of your lease, whether by you or anyone else living at or visiting your property. This means that, if you sub-let your property, you will be responsible for your own tenant’s behaviour.

How you can reduce anti-social behaviour

First try to solve the problem yourself. If you can talk to the person causing the problem without putting yourself at risk, this is often the best way and can stop things getting worse. When you approach your neighbour you should:

• stay calm

• explain how their behaviour is affecting you

• be tactful – it’s often wise to work out what you are going to say before you approach them

• be prepared to listen to what your neighbour has to say.

If none of the above works and you think your neighbour is still being unreasonable, you should walk away and contact Barnet Homes for further advice.

Call: 020 8080 6587 Email: talk2us@barnethomes.org

How quickly we deal with reports of anti-social behaviour4

High Risk

‘High’ risk incidents may include hate crimes, harassment, criminal activity, violence, aggressive behaviour, and repeat victimisation

What we do

The Anti-Social Behaviour Officer will complete with the complainant a full triage assessment to determine if an ASB case will be opened within two working days. Once a case is opened, an agreed action plan will be sent to you.

Low Risk

Isolated incidents that are not specifically targeted, where the person reporting ASB is not vulnerable and the impact is low, will usually be classified as ‘low’ risk. These may include noise nuisance and non-violent crimes, including nuisancerelated incidents late at night.

What we do

We will carry out an initial triage if this does not meet the criteria of anti-social behaviour you will be provided with advice and signposting.

If the incident does meet the criteria of low anti-social behavior this will be referred to an Anti-Social Behaviour Officer to respond within 5 working days

The Anti-Social Behaviour Officer will complete with you a full triage assessment to determine if an ASB case will be opened. Once a case is opened, an agreed action plan will be sent to you.

Our timescales and classifications when dealing with antisocial behaviour

When you report anti-social behaviour we will carry out an initial assessment. We will use this information to decide the level of risk and give the relevant advice at this time.

Working with you

How we work with you to deal with anti-social behaviour

Working together

Throughout any investigation we will keep you informed about what is happening. You must tell us about any further developments, keeping a record of incidents using diary sheets that we will provide. Everything you write in the diary will be treated in strictest confidence, however they may be used with your permission if a civil or criminal court case follows as the diary may become evidence.

Please remember that some incidents of anti-social behaviour are extremely difficult to prove and it may not always be possible to achieve a positive outcome. For this reason, it is important that you provide as much detail as possible and tell us about any other people who may have seen or heard what happened. These details can be used later as evidence in court, but remember that judges will only take into account incidents they think are unreasonable behaviour.

We are committed to tackling anti-social behaviour in our communities.

Sometimes residents feel that the only way to resolve the anti-social behaviour they are facing is by asking us to move them. Our policy is to deal with the anti-social behaviour and keep you in your home while we resolve the issues.

We will:

• take legal action that could result in eviction if this is appropriate and we have the evidence to do so

• only take action against the alleged perpetrator once the complainant agrees to it, unless the anti-social behaviour affects other residents or we have a legal duty to act.

We are committed to tackling anti-social behaviour in our communities

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

How can I report ASB?

If this is a new case, contact us on 020 8080 6587 or email us at talk2us@barnethomes. org. You can also log on to our website at barnethomes.org and go to the pages on anti-social behaviour. If this is an on-going case that is already registered with us, please contact the officer who is dealing with it.

I have a problem with my neighbour. What can I do?

Speak to your neighbour first. If you are unable to resolve the matter we will investigate your complaint. If we cannot prove your allegations and the problem continues, we will ask you to take part in mediation. If you refuse to do so, we will close the case.

Can I report ASB incidents anonymously?

Yes, but it may be unlikely that we would be able to take legal action without some form of evidence.

If I am a victim of ASB, will I be re-housed?

No, you are unlikely to be re-housed. Our aim is to deal with the alleged perpetrator and take the right action to remedy the problem.

Why should I bother to fill in the incident diary sheets?

We may ask you to fill in these sheets for noise disturbance or other reports of antisocial behaviour. If we do not have specific dates, times and details of the incidents, we cannot take any enforcement action. We will not be able to take any cases to court without this information.

When taking cases to court the Judge needs to know what the impact of the anti-social behaviour is having on the victim/s, if we are

unable to provide this information we will not be able to successfully evidence that the action we are taking is reasonable. Put simply, if you do not provide us with clear and detailed information we may be unable to progress your case and it will be closed.

Will you tell the person I am complaining about who I am?

No, we will not reveal your identity without your permission. However, with neighbour disputes it is often obvious who has made the complaint so we would ask that this is considered at the time.

If we progress the matter to taking legal action then we may have to identify you however we will always seek your permission before doing so. It is only in very serious cases of criminal activity such as drug dealing, and serious acts of violence where we will not identify the victim and use hearsay evidence instead of witness evidence. This is because in the legal system hearsay evidence carries less weight that actual witness evidence. However we will take all necessary steps to protect witnesses from harassment.

What happens if the person causing the anti-social behaviour is not a Barnet Homes tenant or leaseholder?

We will investigate the complaint. If there is enough evidence, we can take action such as an injunction but this would depend on the severity of the case. If it is a neighbour or boundary dispute, we would expect both parties to take part in mediation.

Your guide to dealing with anti-social behaviour

I’ve been a victim of hate crime. What can you do to help me?

Hate crime includes all forms of racial harassment, homophobic and disability harassment. It is important that this is reported to the police immediately as well as Barnet Homes. We can make a referral to our ‘security plus’ scheme to give you better security – this could mean door and window locks, a spy hole, chain etc.

Why does it take a long time to progress a case to court and to evict someone?

We cannot progress cases on our own. It is important that residents work with us, for example, by keeping incident diaries, giving us a witness statement and, when necessary, attending court.

Our aim is to resolve a complaint. Ideally, we do not want to take cases to court and evict tenants as our primary role is as a housing provider and we want to support tenants to sustain their tenancies and live in their homes without causing a nuisance or harassment to their neighbours. Before we take any cases to court, we have to use other ways of resolving problems between residents. If we do not do this, the judge will not look favourably on us as social landlords and the court will be less likely to grant an order in our favour.

Enforcement action is a lengthy process and it takes time to gather the required evidence and get a case into court. This can be further delayed by the courts’ internal processes. We will take cases to court only if we believe we have enough evidence to get the result we want.

My neighbour’s dog is constantly barking or is aggressive. What should I do?

One-off incidents, occasional barking or barking in the morning or evenings when the

dog is taken out are not antisocial behaviour. If a dog is constantly barking and may have been left alone for long periods of time, you can report it to the RSPCA who can give further advice. If the dog has bitten someone, contact the police. We will investigate and take action under the tenancy agreement if there is a proven nuisance. If the dog is purposely used to intimidate people then this should be reported to the police and Barnet Homes.

People gather in the stairwells and they are not doing anything. What can be done?

If they are not doing any harm, we cannot take any action. You can call the local Safer Neighbourhood Police Team and ask them if they can agree to patrol the area to deter the people from gathering. If, however, the people are disturbing you or your neighbours by causing a lot of noise and behaving in an abusive manner, we will need evidence from you and your neighbours. We can only take action if you can identify the alleged perpetrator.

I think that there is drug dealing at a neighbouring property. What can be done?

Contact the police first as this is a criminal matter.

There is a lot of dog fouling on the estate. What can be done?

If you know whose dog is causing a problem, please speak to the owner first. If this continues to be a problem, please contact us so that we can investigate the matter and contact the dog owner if you give us information about the problem.

Useful numbers

Environmental issues

Can be reported at barnet.gov.uk/environmental-problems/report-environmental-problem

Hate Crime

As well as reporting incidents directly to the police, you can report hate crime online using the True Vision website at www.report-it.org.uk

Police

In emergencies, always call 999 Non-Emergencies 101

Safer Neighbourhood Team please visit met.police.uk/a/your-area London Borough of Barnet Community Safety Team: barnet.gov.uk

Domestic Violence

Visit barnethomes.org or call 020 8610 3539 (Housing Options) or 020 8080 6587 (Customer Contact Team)

Citizens Advice

Please visit https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk

Address: 3rd Floor, 2 Bristol Avenue, Colindale, NW9 4EW

Tel: 020 8080 6587

Web: www.barnethomes.org

Social: @barnethomes