Anti-Social Behaviour
If you experience anti-social behaviour, we will work with you to resolve your concerns.
Many anti-social behaviour (ASB) issues go unreported – making it difficult for CGA to help our tenants tackle it. This page includes everything you need to know about ASB, including what it is, the different ways you can report it and what happens when you do.
What is anti-social behaviour?
Anti-social behaviour includes both criminal and non-criminal behaviour that causes nuisance, annoyance, harm and distress to a person or neighbourhood. Examples include (but aren't limited to):
- Vehicle nuisance (including motorcycles, cars, e-bikes, e-scooters, quad bikes)
- Anti-social driving such as speeding, revving or stunts
- Dog fouling or poorly restrained animals in public places
- Hate crime
- Littering and vandalism
- Use of imitation weapons
- Substance misuse, drug dealing or drug use in public spaces
- Drinking alcohol on the street
- Call 0800 953 0213 (option 5)
- Email tenancy.management@communitygateway.co.uk
- Fill in our online form below
There are some anti-social behaviour issues that we aren't able to deal with. For more information on which issues would be dealt with by the police or local council, click the button below.
Reporting anti-social behaviour to local authorities
Local councils, the police and housing landlords have the responsibility to address anti-social behaviour. If you're experiencing issues, then it's important that you report them.
If you, or anyone in your neighbourhood, is in immediate danger or a crime has been committed, call the Emergency Services on 999.
Non-emergency issues can be reported in several ways:
- Call 101 to speak to your local neighbourhood policing team
- Call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111
- Log a report online with Lancashire Police
What we can deal with:
- Violent, aggressive, threatening or intimidating behaviour or language towards you, a member of your household, visitors to your home or an authorised person working on behalf of CGA
- Any type of hate behaviour that targets members of identified groups because of their perceived differences
- Acts of nuisance or ASB caused by the misuse of alcohol or illegal substances
- Harrassment
- If one of our properties is used for illegal or unlawful purposes, eg the production, storage and/or selling of illegal substances, the storage or stolen goods, prostitution
- Unreasonable and persistent noise nuisance such as shouting, banging or slamming doors, loud music
- Problems caused by pets such as persistent dog barking or fouling
- Reports of littering, graffiti or fly-tipping on Community Gateway land
- Incidents of inappropriate use of communal areas
What we can't deal with:
- Children playing, which may include ball games
- One-off incidents of noise, such as parties, gatherings, shouting or dogs barking
- Noise complaints which are considered to be normal living noises such as talking, footsteps or from everyday domestic activities
- We are unable to resolve issues when people are being generally unpleasant to one another, including name-calling and disputes on social media, such as Facebook, unless it amounts to harassment or hate crime
- Parking issues, in particular incidents that occur on a public highway
What happens when you report anti-social behaviour to us?
When you make a report of anti-social behaviour to us, we will:
- Contact you within one working day to carry out an early assessment of the report. We will ask you questions about the incident, identifying any urgent actions that need to be taken
- If we can help, we will agree an action plan with you that sets out how the investigation will be carried out, including what evidence we may need you to provide
- Provide you with a named officer to lead on your case
- Keep in regular contact with you during the investigation, providing you with support throughout
- Work with the police and other local agencies required to resolved your complaint
- Discuss our findings with you, including the options available
- Resolve cases quickly and efficiently. However dealing with anti-social behaviour can be a complex and lengthy process with each case taking different lengths of time
- Aim to resolve all cases of anti-social behaviour, however in cases where we cannot, we will discuss this with you directly
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We are continuously working to improve how we support tenants dealing with anti-social behaviour (ASB). Our recent Tenant Satisfaction Measures Survey revealed that some tenants who contacted us for advice and support on anti-social behaviour, had not formally reported this. As a result, we are introducing additional surveys for tenants who contact us for advice and assistance only (without a formal case being opened) to understand if we are providing satisfactory information.
Partnership working continues to be a key strength and focus for us, resulting in improved outcomes for our tenants. We have continued to build on our long-standing relationship with Lancashire Police, successfully negotiating increased visibility of Neighbourhood Policing Teams in CGA communities. As part of their induction, all new local area police recruits now spend a day with CGA to better understand our communities. We have also initiated joint training with the Police and Fire Service, strengthening understanding of each service’s roles and responsibilities.
A key project throughout the year has been a joint initiative with the Police in the St Mathews area. This area had one of the highest levels of ASB reports and the lowest satisfaction for feeling safe and secure. As part of the project, a dedicated Police Officer is being assigned to the area to work alongside Community Gateway to identify and reduce ASB. The Officer will also visit all new vulnerable CGA tenants to introduce themselves and provide a point of contact should they require support.
To further improve our response, we have introduced an extra triage layer with a focus on ‘Right First Time’ resolution. This approach places greater emphasis on understanding the impact of the reported behaviour on the individual reporting it, as well as their specific support needs. By prioritising tailored support, we aim to provide quicker and more effective resolutions.