Anti-social behaviour
‘Anti-social behaviour’ is the actions or behaviour of others which affects your quality of your life, causing alarm, harassment or distress.
It can include:
- People taking drugs in a public space
- Rowdy or drunken behaviour
- Abandoned cars and off-road nuisance
- Noisy neighbours and loud music
- Urinating in public
- Throwing objects at people or buildings
- Vandalism
- Hoax calls to emergency services
- Uncontrolled pets
- Bullying, swearing, threats and intimidating gestures
- Dropping litter and dumping rubbish
How it can affect you
Any experience of anti-social behaviour can be unpleasant, but if you are the victim of persistent incidents, this will understandably cause you a great deal of distress.
If you think you are being deliberately targeted and the incidents continue, then you could be a victim of harassment or stalking.
You may also be affected by:
- Hate crime
- Criminal damage and arson
- Harassment and stalking
Reporting it
Contact your social housing provider or local council
You can report anti-social behaviour such as noise problems to your social housing provider or local council.
In an emergency: dial 999
An emergency is when a crime is being committed or has just been witnessed, there is a risk of injury, or a risk of serious damage to property.
In a non-emergency: dial 101
Use this number to report a non-emergency incident or make a general inquiry.
Report anonymously
Contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. Crimestoppers is a charity which is entirely independent of police and never share details with police of people who have got in touch.
Disputes with your neighbours
If you have fallen out with your neighbours, it can make for a miserable time. Some local authorities and housing providers offer a free mediation service to help find a long-term solution to the problem. Find out more:
'Community Remedy'
The Community Remedy, introduced by the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014, makes sure that if you are a victim of anti-social behaviour you have a say in the out-of-court punishment of offenders.
The Community Remedy is a list of appropriate sanctions that can be used by the police and authorised investigating officers, sometimes in conjunction with other more formal out-of-court disposals.
Restorative Justice is a process which gives victims and survivors the opportunity to have a say in the resolution of offences committed against them and offers them the chance to come face-to-face with their offender.
Where appropriate, Restorative Justice should be considered on its own or in conjunction with one of the other remedy options below when dealing with certain types of offending and anti-social behaviour:
- Reparation to the victim e.g. repairing or cleaning up any damage and mess caused.
- Reparation to the community e.g. by doing local unpaid work.
- The offender signing an Acceptable Behaviour Contract where they agree not to behave anti-socially in future, and understand that if they do they will face more formal consequences.
- Participation in structured activities funded by the Police and Crime Commissioner as part of his efforts to prevent crime.
- Paying compensation to the victim e.g. for any damage caused, where appropriate.
- Measures that will assist in the rehabilitation of offenders e.g. through an alcohol education or recovery scheme.
- Apologising to the victim, face-to-face or through a letter of explanation or apology.
Structured activities and measures to assist in rehabilitation of offenders will be determined locally, depending on capacity and availability.
'Community Trigger'
The Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 says that each local area needs to have an anti-social behaviour case review procedure, sometimes known as a ‘community trigger’.
The trigger is designed to act as a safety net for people who have made complaints about anti-social behaviour, to help avoid individuals being passed between agencies (such as police, local councils, and social housing providers) without their issues getting resolved.
Requesting a case review
If you have made a number of complaints about anti-social behaviour, and are dissatisfied with the response you are getting, you can ask for an anti-social behaviour case review. This will be granted dependent on a number of factors, including when you made your complaints.
If you do not meet the criteria for triggering a case review, the review panel will also look at:
- the persistence of the anti-social behaviour
- the harm or potential harm caused by the anti-social behaviour
- the adequacy of the response from agencies In your area
Find out how to request an anti-social behaviour case review in your local area:
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