Anti Social Behaviour

UK National Anti Social Behaviour Policy

Over the past decade, UK government concern has led to the development of comprehensive legislation and the dedication of resources to tackling the problems of anti social behaviour.

The 1998 Crime and Disorder Act defines anti-social behaviour as 'behaviour which causes or is likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress to one or more people who are not in the same household as the perpetrator'. Among the forms it can take are:

• graffiti, fly tipping and abandoning motor vehicles
• abusive and intimidating language
• noise nuisance 
• drunken or rowdy behaviour

However, the emphasis on tackling anti social behaviour and the constant search for tougher remedies has led to some stark anomalies across the country with some local authorities supporting frequent use of Anti Social Behaviour Orders (Manchester and Camden being two examples of the blanket use of these orders) whereas many others have strictly limited the use of ASBO's and have been more inclined to provide intervention and support services to divert people from anti social behaviour - see ASB Intervention Process Map.

With the demise of the Respect Task Force in October 2007 and the change in emphasis of the current government toward a separation of youth anti social behaviour - to be addressed by the new Youth Task Force - from general anti social behaviour (which one assumes will be once again broken down into its component parts such as criminal damage, noise nuisance, threatening behaviour/harassment etc) the concept of Anti Social Behaviour - as a specific description for a form of illegal activity may well be on the way out.

Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnerships and Anti Social Behaviour

Most CDRP’s have, since their inception, been committed to reducing anti social behaviour (ASB) and have identified this area of work as a local priority. In consequence many local authorities have joined with their partners to provide a holistic approach to reduce ASB through multi agency strategy implementation and, in some cases, joint enforcement services. It is now widely agreed that no one agency can effectively tackle these problems in isolation.

The principle of partnership working is now well recognised by the Government and local agencies alike and has been incorporated into legislation including the Crime and Disorder Act 1998, which created statutory partnerships and the Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003.

The problems associated with anti social behaviour are complex and so are their solutions but it is now generally accepted that left unchecked, anti-social behaviour brings misery to people's lives and damages communities. Its effects are most destructive in areas that are already fragile and where services are over-stretched.

Anti Social Behaviour Strategies

Many CDRP’s have developed ASB Reduction Strategies written with the aim of providing a co-ordinated partnership response and intended to be compatible with all the partners’ efforts and commitments to reducing anti social behaviour and realising the ‘Anti Social Behaviour National Strategy’.

These developments should be seen in the context of a range of other measures and initiatives, mainly arising from the Crime and Disorder Act 1998, Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003, and the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act aimed at ensuring a satisfactory and peaceful environment for local residents.

Sustainable Anti Social Behaviour Reduction

ASB strategies need to support a range of interventions if the reduction in anti social behaviour is to be sustainable. They will focus on effective prevention, intervention, enforcement. An unbalanced strategy will focus on one of these areas (such as enforcement) but will consequently not lead to a sustainable reduction in anti social behaviour but rather, at best, a temporary reduction.

Prevention - This focuses on ways of ensuring that anti-social behaviour can be prevented from occurring through work to guide, advise and educate people, effectively deal with behaviours which if allowed to continue would cause anti social behaviour (for instance mental health issues, neighbourhood disputes and environmental degradation) and social and economic alienation. Reduction programmes must include targeted youth activities and youth services, schools advice and guidance programmes and ‘community capacity building’ through active social and economic regeneration.

Intervention - has the perpetrator as the centre of focus to identify Perpetrators of ASB should be given the opportunity to change their behaviour. They should also be informed clearly of the consequences if their behaviour does not cease. Warnings backed up by credible and sustained intervention (often through the use of Acceptable Behaviour Contracts - see guidance below), work well to manage and further prevent individual acts of ASB. This should be backed up by work with young people at risk of being involved in higher levels of ASB and their families and carers. Additionally, intervention should include reducing the incidents of identified problems such as, enviro-crime, the ASB associated with drug use and gangs, prostitution in specific areas through targeted activity.

Enforcement - Ensuring that existing legislation is used systematically and consistently. Enforcement activity will include the active involvement of services to intervene in the lives of those causing ASB (as above) and will also involve the appropriate use of legal restraining orders such as Anti Social Behaviour Orders and injunctions. However, enforcement activity is far broader than and should include the overall enforcement activities of municipalities, the activities of social landlords, environmental and public protection services.

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  Anti Social Behaviour Service Links

Anti-Social Behavior   

A Home Office 'toolkit' giving the background to anti social behaviour, an analysis of the issues and local solutions.

Respect Task Force    

The website for the Government's now defunct Respect drive - tackling anti-social behaviour and its causes. The Respect drive is a cross UK Government strategy.

  Anti Social Behaviour - Practice Links

Acceptable Behaviour Contracts (ABC's): Home Office Guidance

  Criminal Damage

Criminal Damage : Home Office Mini-site

Background information and details of ways to tackle criminal damage.

ENCAMs - Environmental Campaigns

Home page of ENCAMS - the environmental charity which runs the Keep Britain Tidy campaign and which supports the reduction in criminal damage in the UK.

  Specialist Anti Social Behaviour Articles 

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