Partnership working to tackle anti-social behaviour
If left untackled, anti-social behaviour (ASB) can have a devastating impact on communities and individuals. We know it is a serious issue for customers, and we are keen to protect communities from perpetrators who can make the lives of those they target a misery.
Anti-social behaviour is defined as “acting in a manner that causes, or is likely to cause, harassment, alarm or distress to one or more persons not of the same household”.
When you report ASB to us, we may ask you to also report it to others - like the police when a crime has been committed, or to your council if the alleged perpetrator isn’t a Plus Dane tenant. We may also ask you if we can share your report with other agencies who could help.
This partnership approach is essential, as no single agency can tackle ASB alone. Partnership working means bringing together councils, police, charities, and victim support services, as everyone has a role and should be accountable for tackling ASB.
Tackling The Root Causes of ASB
As well as protecting victims, we have a responsibility to make sure support is offered to those being accused of anti-social behaviour too, to look into any reasons for their actions.
Research has identified seven risk factors that are root causes of ASB, which include poverty, mental health issues, substance misuse, trauma, unstable home environments, poor engagement with education, and peer pressure.
While it’s not our role as a landlord to directly address all root causes, we can alert specialists who can work with our tenants and other family members to address behaviour that causes ASB.
We do have our own teams including our in-house Floating support team and our Welfare Teams who look at benefit maximisation and debt advice too.
It takes co-ordinated, multi-agency intervention; and collaboration with agencies like the police, probation, and social services allows us to share information and agree on joint action while considering how we can best manage risks to victims.
If you are affected by ASB, you do not have to suffer in silence and there is help and support available. The charity ASB Help is a great source of information, and they recommend talking to Victim Support on 0808 1689 111 or Supportline on 01708 765200 if you are not online.
You can report ASB to us via our website or calling 0800 169 2988.
