Anti-social behaviour is any act that causes or is likely to cause harassment, alarm, or distress to one or more persons not of the same household and covers a range of issues, including intimidation, persistent noise and rowdy behaviour, vandalism and graffiti and using a property for criminal or immoral purposes.
Addressing problems with neighbours
Most problems between neighbours can be sorted out privately.
Before you make a report to us, try to resolve the issue by talking with the other person(s) in the first instance. Our
Good Neighbour Guide (PDF, 132 KB) has lots of advice on dealing with anti-social behaviour informally. If this isn't possible, or doesn't work, please report the behaviour to us.
Please note: We will not necessarily become involved in all disputes between neighbours. Under certain circumstances, when there is no case to answer, no action will be required.
We will not investigate:
- disputes over non-allocated parking
- people being unpleasant to each other, including staring, exchange of unpleasant facial expressions, ignoring another person and minor name calling
- people with lifestyles that offend others, such as issues about parenting, different working patterns, who people socialise with, how they dress and what they do in their own homes (unless the behaviour is a breach of tenancy)
- everyday household and everyday activity noise, such as washing machines, children playing, opening, and closing doors and moving furniture
- young people gathering socially (unless they are being directly intimidating or being anti-social)
- civil disputes between neighbours, such as shared driveways and boundary fencing.
If you're unsure about whether the situation can be resolved informally, call 01895 556666 and we will advise. Don't put yourself at risk.
Evidence of anti-social behaviour (ASB)
In order to take action against ASB, we need evidence, so we ask residents to keep a record of incidents, by:
Reporting ASB involving council tenants leaseholders
If you are experiencing anti-social behaviour issues with council tenants or leaseholders, contact us by one of the following ways:
What we will do
We have a dedicated team who (working with partners and other council services) investigates cases of ASB perpetrated by tenants and leaseholders and we will take action where there is clear evidence of a breach of tenancy allegedly perpetrated by a tenant or leaseholder.
We take all reports of ASB seriously. We consider the needs of both the victims and the alleged perpetrators, and ensure any action taken is appropriate, proportionate and does not directly or indirectly discriminate against them.
We will ask you some questions to help us assess the problem. Depending on the case, we may then carry out a further investigation and take any necessary action to resolve the situation.
When we receive your report, we will make contact with you to agree an action plan. We will try to do this as quickly as possible, but within
- 1 working day for high-risk incidents (potential risk of harm, threats/actual violence, and hate crime)
- 5 working days for medium/low risk incidents.
We will confirm details of your report and agreed steps in writing. We will also agree a timescale with you for keeping you informed of progress and for you to provide certain information, such as diary sheets and supporting evidence.
All reports will be dealt with promptly and sensitively and we will need your consent to approach the alleged perpetrator to progress your report (where it is safe to do so).
We'll discuss your report with you in confidence and won't reveal your identify to your neighbour or anybody else (unless you agree to this). In most cases, the first step we take will be to contact the person causing you a problem. They would need to be made aware of their behaviour and the problems that it's causing, so that they have an opportunity to change their behaviour.
After we've spoken with the person(s), we then monitor the situation to see whether their behaviour has improved or got worse. In order to do this, we'll need you to help us by:
- writing down the dates and times when problems happen
- telling us how it has affected you and made you feel
- letting us know if anyone else has witnessed the problem as well
You should use the
ASB incident diary (PDF, 238 KB) to keep a record of everything that happens, providing as much detail of as possible of all anti-social behaviour. Keeping the diary sheets up to date helps us work out what we can do to help resolve the matter. These details will also be used if legal action is required further down the line.
We try to sort out disputes as quickly as possible. However, in more serious cases, we may need to take legal action. This is considered to be a last resort and in order to do this, the court would require good supporting substantiated evidence.
Possession/eviction is only carried out for extreme unacceptable behaviour that continues over a period of time. Possession/eviction action is a lengthy and complex process.
Mediation
Sometimes, relationships between neighbours can break down for a number of reasons. We believe that with some mediation support, we can help to make the situation better for both parties by agreeing a way forward. So, when we receive reports of neighbour disputes, we will always request residents consider this as an option to bring matters to an amicable resolve.
Mediation will be encouraged, as appropriate, in cases where there is a potential breach of tenancy or where there is not enforcement action that can be taken. If you feel that you could benefit from mediation, please let your case officer know and they will discuss this further with you.