Anti social behaviour
In recent years people have become much more aware of the issues of anti-social behaviour and the things that can be done to address this type of problem. The Community Safety Team works with local people, communities, and various organisations to address anti-social behaviour problems by working in partnership to use the most appropriate interventions to stop these problems and support victims.
Anti-Social Behaviour is defined in the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 as acting "in a manner that caused or was likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress to one or more persons not of the same household as himself and which is not reasonable in all circumstances".
Anti-Social Behaviour does not have to be a criminal act. It can include a range of problems; noisy neighbours, abandoned cars, vandalism, graffiti, litter and intimidating groups such as drunk and rowdy people. Often, taken in isolation, individual issues might not appear severe but it can create an environment where problems can take hold and affect people's everyday lives, and the impact on people's quality of life can be very upsetting for those experiencing these problems.
The police, local authorities and housing associations have been given powers to tackle this problem to help make neighbourhoods safer. These powers have not been created to stop someone hanging out with their friends in public places or to control the sort of clothes people wear. They will be used to stop abusive, intimidating and problem behaviour and ensure that your neighbourhood is a safe place to be. You may be aware that the Coalition Government is currently proposing changes to some of the legislation that has come into being in recent years. It is anticipated that the proposed changes will take effect in spring 2012; until then it should be noted that all existing pieces of legislation are still current and will remain so until the changes are confirmed - this applies to legislation such as Anti-social Behaviour Orders (ASBOs), Dispersal Orders, Designated Public Places Order, etc. Please check back on this website for updates on the proposed changes.
The Community Safety Team at Huntingdonshire District Council manages the response to complaints relating to ASB taking place on District Council owned land and complaints of ASB by people living in privately owned or privately rented housing (if a perpetrator lives in a property owned by a Registered Social Landlord then the complaints should be made to the housing association - see Contact details under Linked Documents on the right for the list of housing associations). We also work jointly with a wide range of organisations and the community to combat many other incidents of anti-social behaviour. The employs an Anti-Social Behaviour Caseworker, Tracey Guinea, whose role is to mange and monitoring complaints or directing callers to the right agency, as well as working in partnership with other agencies and organisations to ensure that the most appropriate and effective solutions are in place.
Tracey Guinea can be contacted on 01480 388388.
Other Organisations
There are a lot of different organisations who have a role to play in directly dealing with and helping to resolve Anti-Social Behaviour. The most obvious of these is Cambridgeshire Constabulary, and it is particularly important that local residents are aware that the Police do take anti-social behaviour problems very seriously. It may also be appropriate for a person experiencing anti-social behaviour to contact one of the registered social landlords if your complaint is about a one of their tenants who is causing problems in and around their home. There are also many other agencies who can help in different ways. A contact list is included in our Self Help Guide (see below) and can be found under 'Linked Documents' on the right.
There are also a number of different organisations, such as Youth Offending Service and Probation (who are both part of Cambridgeshire County Council) who work directly with offenders, and support services such as Addaction and Drinksense who can help those who have been involved in anti-social behaviour to change their lives. Contact details for these organisations can be found in the Yellow Pages.
Anti-Social Behaviour Self Help Guide
We have put together a Self Help Guide to aid you in resolving problems of anti-social behaviour. You can view the guide (and the sample letters, forms and any separate Help Sheets that make up part of the guide) by looking under 'Linked Documents' on the right. Or, you can contact the Community Safety Team on 01480 388388 for a copy.
Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003
In 2003 the government introduced the Anti-Social Behaviour Act, which gives police, local authorities and other agencies such as registered social landlords more power to combat anti-social behaviour.
You can look at the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003, by looking at the HMSO website under 'External Links' on the right.