We take complaints about neighbours and anti-social behaviour (ASB) very seriously. You can report issues or problems with your neighbours at the bottom of this page.
We recognise anti-social behaviour as:
- An action or behaviour that has caused, or is likely to cause, harassment, alarm or distress to any person
- An action or behaviour that is capable of causing nuisance or annoyance to an occupier of a neighbouring property
- An action or behaviour capable of causing housing-related nuisance or annoyance to any person
What is considered anti-social behaviour?
- Intimidation of neighbours and others through threats or actual violence
- Harassment, including racial harassment
- Verbal abuse
- Excessive noise
- Dumping rubbish (fly tipping)
- Animal nuisance, including dog fouling
- Vandalism, property damage and graffiti
- Criminal behaviour
What is not considered anti-social behaviour?
- Lifestyle differences
- Neighbour disputes where there is no substantial evidence
- Day-to-day living sounds from neighbouring properties, such as:
- Footsteps
- Doors closing
- Chair scrapes
- Dropped items
- Vacuuming
- Washing machines
- Toilet flushing
- Children playing in, or near, their home
- Dogs barking
- Ball games
- Children falling out with each other
- DIY during reasonable hours
- Putting rubbish out on the wrong day
- Parking unless blocking access, causing damage or posing a safety issue
Where we do not consider the matter to amount to antisocial behaviour, we will provide appropriate advice and information, encouraging tolerance and/or ask our customers to resolves the matter themselves.
What action will be taken again perpetrators?
Often, early intervention by addressing the issues through informal action such as face-to-face contact, letters and mediation will resolve cases.
You can learn more about anti-social behaviour through the Four Million Homes webinar, here.
Where we have to we'll work with partners to use the following remedies to resolve unacceptable behaviour from neighbours:
- Acceptable behaviour agreements
- Injunctions
- Possession action
- Criminal behaviour orders
- Community protection notices
- Closure orders/notices
- Demotion orders
- Eviction – this will always be the last resort and where appropriate, we’ll look to work with the perpetrators to understand the reason behind their behaviour
You're responsible for...
- Your behaviour and the behaviour of those living in/visiting your home - this includes inside and around your home. Find our handy Good Neighbour Guide here
- Not allowing those living in/visiting your home to make loud, persistent or repetitive noises that cause (or have the potential of causing) annoyance, nuisance or disturbance to others in the neighbourhood
- Not allowing your home to be used for cultivating, making, selling, supplying, storing or possessing ‘controlled drugs’ (defined in Section 2 of the misuse of Drugs Act 1971)
- Not allowing the handing or storing of stolen or counterfeit goods within your home
- Not allowing the storage or manufacture of unlicensed firearms and/or offensive weapons within your home
- Not allowing those living in/visiting your home to use, or pretend to use, a licensed/unlicensed firearm, or an item that could reasonably be considered a firearm, within the property or area surrounding the property for any purpose- including to intimidate or injure a person, property or animal
- Not committing, or allowing those living in/visiting your home to commit, harassment, threat of harassment or physical, verbal or written abuse (including on the grounds of race, colour, religion, age, sex, gender reassignment, sexual orientation or disability) that may interfere with the peace or cause offence to others in the neighbourhood or to any of our customers, employees or contractors
We're responsible for...
- Ensuring we adhere to our policies and procedures to deal with anti-social behaviour and take enforcement action where necessary