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Council housing - nuisance/threatening behaviour

We have listed below some of the different types of problems tenants may encounter:

• Noise and nuisances
• Harassment
• Anti-social behaviour
• crime including burglary
• domestic violence

Noise and nuisances

Nuisance can be defined as behaviour or actions, which cause disruption, distress and/or interference to neighbours. In these cases the person(s) causing the problem may have no intention of causing harm.

Examples could be:

• A 'one off' party
• Barking dogs/failure to control dogs
• Persistent playing of loud music
• Repeated disturbances at night
• Children causing disturbance or damage in communal areas

What should you do?

1. Try talking to the person causing the nuisance - they may not be aware they are causing a problem.
2. If this action is not successful - contact the Housing Section on: (01746) 713201
3. Give clear details of the complaint with names and addresses of the people causing the problem.

What we will do

1. With your agreement we will then write to, or visit the tenant causing the problem, within a specified number of days dependant on the seriousness of the issue. We will not reveal your identity
2. If the problems continue we will issue diary sheets for incidents to be recorded over a period of three weeks
3. On receipt of the completed diary sheets, one of our officers will visit the tenant causing the problem and/or you, depending on the evidence supplied on the diary sheets
4. If the nuisance continues and sufficient evidence is available, we will decide an appropriate course of action
5. In some instances we may involve other agencies such as Social Services or a mediation service. In extreme cases we will take legal action
6. If there is no breach of tenancy conditions and we are unable to resolve the situation we will give advice on alternative courses of action available to you

Harassment

Harassment can be defined as someone deliberately inflicting fear, violence or aggression on another person or group because of their race, gender, sexual orientation or disability. The problem must fall under these categories as harassment of this type is a criminal offence.

What should you do?

1. Contact the police and get a crime log number
2. Contact the council giving full details of harassment.

What we will do

1. We will endeavour to visit you within five working days to complete a confidential report and provide you with diary sheets.
2. After the report has been completed we will visit the tenant who is harassing you
3. If the problem continues, and there is sufficient evidence available, we will take action under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997

Anti-social behaviour

The definition of anti-social behaviour is rarely straightforward; what constitutes a nuisance or annoyance to one person may be of little concern to another. Therefore we feel it is more appropriate to define anti-social behaviour as events on estates - such as those involving criminal behaviour, drug dealing and unprovoked assault. This is not a comprehensive list but gives an indication of the type of behaviour within this category.

What should you do?

1. Contact the council giving details of the events
2. If you have suffered physical assault or damage to your property you should contact the police immediately
3. If the police have been involved make a note of the log number as this may be needed to provide evidence
4. Keep diary sheets and make an accurate record of events
5. You may be required to attend court and give evidence

What we will do

1. We will contact the tenant causing the problem within five working days. We will not reveal your identity
2. Liaise with the police if appropriate
3. Issue diary sheets and monitor the situation
4. In extreme cases of intimidation we may employ professional witnesses
5. If there is sufficient evidence we will take action either under Housing Legislation or the Crime and Disorder Act 1998

 The Council works with tenants and residents to keep estates looking respectable, one of the ways this is done is by carrying out regular Estate Walkabouts. Working together we can spot problems, potential problems and eyesores and work together until they are resolved.

Contact us for any help and advice:

By telephone

01746 713201

By email

housing@bridgnorth-dc.gov.uk

By letter

Housing Management Services
Bridgnorth District Council
Westgate
Bridgnorth
WV16 5AA