Neighbour Disputes & Anti-Social Behaviour

1. Purpose

1.1 The policy sets out how Heylo Housing Group Limited (HHGL) and Heylo Housing Registered Provider (Heylo) will manage reports of anti-social behaviour (ASB), to protect the quiet enjoyment of the property for our customers.

2. Summary

2.1 This policy fulfils our legal and regulatory requirement to publish our anti-social behaviour policy. It is intended to demonstrate to our customers that Heylo takes reports of anti-social behaviour and neighbour disputes seriously and will assist in trying to resolve these. All social housing landlords have a duty to publish policies and procedures to help us deal with reports of ASB. If a shared owner is experiencing ASB they should contact their landlord and ask how to report the issue and find out what action it can take. If shared owners are experiencing threats of violence or any other possible criminal activity, they should also report this to the police.

3. Policy

3.1 What is ASB:Anti-social behaviour (ASB) is a term which covers a broad range of issues. There are a number of definitions for ASB, but it is most defined as ‘anything causing a nuisance or annoyance'.

3.2 ASB examples:

Risk to residents’ quiet enjoyment of their home and neighbourhood.
Dog fouling, uncontrolled and noisy pets.
Inconsiderate or dangerous parking and abandoned cars.
Noise nuisance at high levels or unreasonable hours.
Environmental health issues such as rubbish dumping.
Vandalism and graffiti.
Drug misuse, alcohol-related nuisance, and prostitution.
Hate incidents motivated by someone’s age, disability, faith, sexual orientation, or race.
Harassment, including verbal and physical abuse and threats.
Acts of violence.

3.3 ASB covers a wide range of behaviours that have a negative impact on the quality of community life. The term ASB is used to describe actions that unreasonably interfere with or could interfere with residents’ quiet enjoyment of their home, garden or the direct neighbourhood. ASB is behaviour by residents, a group of residents, members of a household, or their visitors, which would be considered to cause annoyance, nuisance or disturbance to other people in the local area. The behaviour may or may not constitute criminal activity.

3.4 Examples of complaints that we do not consider to be ASB, include:

Everyday living situations or conflict in lifestyles which are not intended to cause nuisance or annoyance, such as shift working patterns.
Children playing or babies crying.
DIY during reasonable hours.
Cooking odours and household smells.
Car maintenance or car parking arrangements (excluding inconsiderate parking, or parking in unauthorised areas).
Overgrown gardens (providing there is no prevention of access to neighbouring properties or excessive encroachment)

4. Reporting Anti-Social Behaviour

4.1 Anyone can report ASB to us. ASB can be reported via the phone, in writing, email or via the online form. A member of the Portfolio Team will arrange for an initial discussion with the victim in response to all cases within two working days.

4.2 We aim to treat victims and witnesses sympathetically and empathically.

4.3 A member of the Portfolio Team will assess the circumstances, and where appropriate will offer measures of support for those considered to be at risk and we will signpost accordingly.

4.4 Where appropriate, we may ask for evidence. This could be in the form of photographs or sound recordings.

5. Obligations of residents and our expectations

5.1 Residents living in leasehold or shared ownership properties are required to adhere to the terms of the lease agreement. Failure to comply with the terms of the lease may result in forfeiture.

5.2 We expect our customers not to commit ASB.

5.3 We expect our customers to resolve minor disputes directly with their neighbours.

6. ASB Management

6.1 We believe that early and informal interventions can help to establish clear standards of behaviour. Informal enforcement tools can be an appropriate means of ensuring that a person changes their behaviour. Examples of early intervention may include:

Verbal warnings.
Written warning.
Formal interviews.
Mediation.

6.2 When investigating a complaint of ASB, we will:

Agree an action plan with the notifying person agreeing levels of conduct and timescales for completion of actions.
Treat residents sympathetically and deal with the complaint sensitively and empathetically.
Communicate early intervention methods
Work with the Police and other agencies to support victims as appropriate.

6.3 heylo will collaborate with partner agencies to achieve a co-ordinated strategy to prevent and combat ASB. Examples of partner agencies include: police, local authority, social services and community-based organisations.

6.4 When considering closure of an investigation, heylo will consider the following factors:

Has the ASB ceased?
Is a partner agency leading on the investigation?
Lack of evidence from witnesses, which prevents further action being considered.

6.5 Portfolio Managers will always seek to agree case closure with the party reporting the ASB.

7. Enforcement Actions

7.1 Where intervention methods do not have a positive impact on the anti-social behaviour of individuals or groups, we will consider legal action including:

Injunction Orders
Criminal Behaviour Orders
Possession proceedings including the use of the Mandatory Ground for Possession

7.2 The actions we take will depend on:

The extent and nature of the anti-social behaviour and its impact on others.
If the perpetrator is the resident or non-resident of Heylo.
The evidence available to us to support legal action.
Whether residents are willing to act as witnesses in Court.
Any advice and guidance from our legal representatives.

8. What to do if you are not happy with how your ASB complaint was managed?

8.1 You can follow our Complaints Policy or contact the local authority to see if they can review the case through the “Community Trigger” (introduced by the ASB, Crime and Policing Act 2014).

9. Information storing

9.1 All data is stored securely and in line with our Data Protection Policy.

9.2 We are committed to treating all information securely, with respect and in line with data protection law.

9.3 We may share personal information with other organisations, as well as we may give or receive information. We will only share information where we have sharing protocols in place and/or confidentiality agreements signed. We will also give information to other organisations where we are required by law to do so.