We spoke to Safer Communities Officers, Rebecca Hunter, Jessica Ashenhurst and Shona Palmer at Karbon Homes, to get some examples of the support they offer.
Rebecca: ASB has a huge impact on residents. For example, a group of residents and Karbon colleagues were experiencing regular verbal abuse from one of their neighbours.
While evictions are sometimes necessary in these situations, we do take steps to try and change behaviour. In this case, we placed an injunction on the resident. This is a court order designed to prevent a person from engaging in ASB. While this did make an improvement for some time, eventually he breached the injunction, and this became grounds for eviction.
Jessica: I’ve been working as a dedicated Housing Officer for the last year. I’ve been able to identify some of the common issues and work with residents and the police to act.
One resident was creating a lot of disturbances, including shouting, having arguments in the street and playing loud music late at night. We worked with the police and neighbours, using tools such as the Noise App and iWitness to gather evidence and put together a case to address the issues.
The Noise App is a quick and easy way to record noise which is causing an annoyance or nuisance. Download the app on your smartphone and start recording the noise that is causing the problem straight away.
iWitness is a specially trained, independent and accredited team of officers who respond to your reports of disturbances immediately and provide accurate and credible witness statements.
Shona: Sometimes residents can be scared to report ASB due to feeling anxious about repercussions. We had a case of criminal activity and drug use at a property. The council made us aware as it was having a negative impact on the community.
We’re able to offer anonymous ways for residents to report cases. We also offer additional safety and security for their homes, such as CCTV, letterbox restrictors and alarms for windows and doors.
Thanks to a collaboration between the council, police and these anonymous reports, we were able to evict the tenant and start tackling the wider issues affecting the community.
Rebecca: ASB cases can take time – it can be months or even years – sometimes they’ll need to go through courts or other agencies to get involved to find suitable solutions.
Shona: The sooner people report issues, the sooner we can start investigating and taking action.
Jessica: I’ve been a Safer Communities Officer for a year. It’s a challenge, but it’s also a massive opportunity to create more sustainable communities. I think now that people know there is someone there who will challenge ASB, they feel better supported.
Shona: Taking action on people who are having a negative impact can have a hugely positive impact on the community as a whole.
It’s not part of the job
Rebecca: We also have a zero tolerance policy for any bullying, harassment or violence towards our colleagues and contractors.
Jessica: It’s a great feeling to know that both colleagues and residents are supported and that we will stand up to anti-social behaviour.
Shona: It reinforces that there are consequences for people’s behaviour. It can also mean that someone else gets the opportunity to move into that property and make a positive impact.
To find out more about how our Community Safety Team can support you – including how to access iWitness and the Noise App – visit www.karbonhomes.co.uk/community-safety
