What happens after an initial report of ASB is made?

If you make a report to the  housing team, we aim to contact you within the timescales stated within our procedure. We initially assess each case on the information provided as high, medium or low. In cases we assess as high risk we aim to contact you within 1 working day, medium risk cases we aim to make contact within 5 working days and low risk cases we aim to make contact within 10 working days. Once we have made contact with you we will gather more details, assess the risk again, this may involve the completion of a risk assessment (often referred to as a HARA). We will agree with you what next steps will be taken and when you can expect contact from us again, this is tailored to your needs and the risks involved.

Is anyone else informed about my report?

All reports are stored on our internal case management system and can only be viewed by internal staff. We can record anonymous reports but this will mean that our housing officer will not be able to update you on actions being taken to resolve the report and we may not be able to progress with an investigation.

If we make contact with an alleged perpetrator (person(s) causing ASB), they may assume where the report came from, but we will never disclose your details.

If we are concerned for your safety or for someone else's safety, we have a duty to make the relevant services aware of this, but we will always attempt to discuss this with you first.

We regularly work with other partnership agencies, and where appropriate we may discuss details of any reports with them.

What actions do you take when I have a case open?

Your housing officer will speak with you first and agree initial actions such as further evidence gathering, door knocks to other residents, or speaking with relevant partners. to determine any immediate risks and capture any reasonable adjustments that you may require to be put in place for us to be able to support you. The actions after this will depend on the information we have gathered, the risk to residents at that time and how frequent the issues are happening.

If we have evidence that the ASB is taking place, your housing officer will try to resolve this by taking informal action. Legal action is always a last resort after all other attempts to resolve a case have been tried and failed, and the matter is so serious that legal action is agreed as necessary and proportionate. 

If the council decide to proceed to court we will need to demonstrate not only that incidents have taken place but how that is impacting on other residents, before a judge will decide if a possession order can be awarded. If we are taking legal action for possession based on ASB the case is far more likely to be successful if we have witness statements from those impacted by the ASB being caused because they demonstrate real-life impact on the community.  Whilst we can provide some anonymous witness statements they are far less impactive and only used if safety is a significant concern.

In the vast majority of cases our early interventions are successful and the ASB is addressed without legal action. It is always important to provide the person causing nuisance the chance to change their behaviour, and just by bringing it to their attention can often stop the behaviour.

Early interventions may include:

• Warnings (Verbal or written)
• Visits with partners, for example the police
• Acceptable behaviour agreements (ABA)
• Mediation or conflict resolution referrals
• Practical deterrents such as lighting

Legal powers we take may include:

• An Injunction, which may include excluding someone from entering a specific location.
• Working with partners for a closure order or a partial closure order on a property.
• Tenancy enforcement including possession proceedings.

We have an agreed policy and procedure where you can find more information on our tools and powers.

Homes First Antisocial Behaviour and Hate Crime Policy (PDF, 226 KB)

Will I be updated about the actions during the case?

We will agree a method of contact (email/ phone/in person) and how often you will have contact during the case, the frequency of contact will depend on the risks involved.  If further incidents occur then these should be reported to us (and the police where appropriate) as soon as possible.

Our approach will take into account your personal circumstances and establish if you have any protected characteristics or support needs that may require reasonable adjustments to be made to aid investigations.  We will look to identify any other agencies who can support you and check whether you are happy for them to be involved.

We will complete any necessary safeguarding referrals based on the issues at hand. If you feel that a safeguarding referral is necessary, and we have not discussed this with you already, please speak to us for further advice.

How long is my case kept open?

We will keep your case open while we are actively trying to investigate and resolve your ongoing reports.  Your case will also remain open for the duration of any legal proceedings, which can take a significant amount of time, but we will be in regular contact you. 

Where support is rejected by either the victim or the perpetrator, the ASB case will be reviewed to assess whether the case should continue, or whether alternative action is required.

When is my case closed?

Your case will be closed when we have resolved the ASB, we have reached a point where we are unable to progress with the case any further, the reports being made are no longer considered to fall under the criteria of ASB or when we are no longer receiving reports or any evidence. You will be contacted before your case is closed.

Does the council seek feedback about the way my case was handled?

On a quarterly basis we engage an external surveying company to carry out a satisfaction survey on our services, including ASB. This provides an opportunity to feedback your personal experience and for us to seek to understand any service improvements. We use our tenants satisfaction data to benchmark against other housing providers and seek best practice.

What happens if the ASB starts again after my case is closed?

We appreciate that you may be concerned about a problem starting again, but each case that is open on our system relates to that current incident or issue at that time. We cannot keep a case open continuously if all actions have been completed or the problem has stopped. Your case will remain on the system to view by internal staff even when it is closed.

We can assure you that even if a case is closed, you can always contact us again to establish if it is necessary to reopen our investigations.