Agenda item

Councillor Andy Hull, Executive Member Finance, Performance and Community Safety was present together with Jan Hart, Service Director Public Protection and Andrew March, Housing ASB. Jan Hart and Andrew March made a presentation to the Committee, a copy of which in interleaved.

During consideration of the report the following main points were made –

·         Jan Hart outlined the operation of the ASB service, including the out of hours service

·         There has been a continued increase in ASB calls to the Council, while calls to the Police decrease

·         The number of repeat callers has increased also and a new process to tackle repeat callers has now been introduced

·         The Community MARAC is continuing to be successful in dealing with vulnerable victims, with full partnership support

·         There is new Clinical Psychologist in post to help understand the drivers behind the complex ASB cases

·         There is a new approach to tackling street population issues – there had been a 300% increase and work is taking place as to how this could best be managed

·         In response to a statement from a Member It was noted that often complaints arose from residents about the ASB service, as ASB issue resolution is often passed on to other organisations where the Council did not have direct involvement. However, there were now 2 staff being employed in order to progress complaints and it was hoped this would improve the situation

·         There were 3 area based housing teams serving 29.000 council tenant and leasehold tenancies

·         It was noted that evictions had only taken place in 0.08% of cases of ASB reported

·         A Member referred to the fact that tenants were suffering from ASB as a result of criminality, such as drug taking and yet it appeared there is a lengthy process for action to be taken and eviction took place in a relatively small number of cases. It was stated that notice to seek possession is sought in about 17% of cases, however there were often measures put in place that did not lead to eviction

·         Members were also informed that mental health issues often played a part in complaints of ASB, and that such issues had to be dealt with sensitively, with the involvement of appropriate agencies, where necessary

·         In response to a question it was stated that the Council had decided to adopt introductory tenancies rather than opting for demoted tenancies

·         Reference was made to the need to ensure that the new housing database is able to contain more ‘smart’ information such as GPS and ASB hotspots and link in tenants’ history. It was stated that a system was being investigated whereby Public Protection and Housing could share information so that data could be combined

·         Discussion took place as to problems where there were vulnerable tenants and that often this took time to resolve satisfactorily

·         There were also difficulties with cases where a tenant moves between housing and supported housing and work took place with the NHS, Children’s Services and other partners in these instances

·         It was noted that the ASB and housing teams were co-located

·         In response to a question it was stated that often cases went to Court at short notice and it was often difficult to get information together, however discussions were taking place with the Court service to look at these issues

·         It was noted that if the Council needed to obtain an injunction because of threats of physical violence, this could be obtained usually within 48 hours

·         In response to a question as to how many families with children had been evicted, it was stated that this information would be notified to Members following the meeting. Members were informed that Children’s Services would be involved in such cases

·         It was noted that often ASB issues were resolved by tenants being told of the effects their actions were having on their neighbours and about 50% of ASB issues were resolved at an early stage

·         A Member expressed the view that the victims of ASB needed to be considered as well and that often appropriate action against the perpetrators did not appear to be taken. Often drug dealing and criminality did not appear to be punished sufficiently

·         Reference was made to the fact that if there is criminality this was an issue for the Police and that often drug use, such as the use of cannabis, is often carried out by teenagers/young adults and it had to be considered whether the family should be punished in these instances by eviction

·         It was stated that often the Council were blamed for not resolving ASB issues, however it had to be recognised that often these issues were passed on to Partners, Housing Associations or other organisations for resolution, however the Council were working with partners to improve the position

·         Members expressed the view that there needed to be more consistency in tackling ASB/criminality by eviction, if necessary, of those responsible for such behaviour as this has a profound impact on other residents

·         The view was expressed that the Noise app was an excellent idea and would be of great assistance to residents in keeping a record of ASB

·         In response to a statement as to street homelessness, it was stated that there is partnership work taking place with Haringey with a view to sharing costs and outreach teams did support individuals. However, it is often difficult to get individual homeless persons to take up the offer of assistance and there is a complexity of issues around street homelessness

·         Members were informed that street homeless were encouraged to take up offers of support, and if necessary enforcement action may have to be taken

RESOLVED:

(a)  That the views of the Committee that firm action should be taken against persistent offenders of ASB and criminality be noted

(b)  That the Committee be informed of the number of families with children that have been evicted due to ASB or criminality

The Chair thanked Jan Hart, Andrew March and Councillor Hull for attending