Page 405 - 6. 2016 Diary 1st half New 26-05-21 No Table

Issue
Sons of two neighbouring families were responsible for persistent noise nuisance which
caused neighbours great distress for over a year. The children of families X and Y, aged
between 10 and 15, lived in first- floor council flats where they played rowdy games outside
their flats. Family X had a secure tenancy while family Y had a short-term tenancy. Residents
frequently complained to the housing office or to the local police community support officers
(PCSOs).
Approach
Police and the housing office worked closely together on the case and discovered a pattern of
nuisance. PCSOs and the estate manager mediated between families X and Y and their
neighbours. When mediation failed, joint visits were made to warn the families of the
consequences of their continued antisocial behaviour. Formal warnings followed, outlining
the consequences of the boys’ actions in terms of potential ASBOs and possible loss of their
parents’ tenancy. When all warnings had failed, a multi-agency team obtained an interim
ASBO on the five boys to put an immediate stop to the nuisance.
Evidence provided by PCSOs and the estate manager was used at the hearing, and interim
orders were granted.
Minor breaches over the Christmas period were reported to the police by witnesses between
the interim and full hearing, and
405
169,
Simon Cordell’s Skeleton Argument (2) Pdf
Children and young people
these strengthened the ease for the ASBOs at the full hearing.
Witnesses who were previously fearful of giving evidence were willing to do so at the full
hearing where the ASBOs were granted, and an ISO was attached to each ASBO to tackle
some of the underlying causes of the behaviour.
The conditions of the ASBOs on the five boys ordered them:
- not to cause nuisance within the vicinity of their dwellings.
- to stop knocking on doors and windows; and
- not to play games on the balcony. Outcome
The main benefit of the ASBOs was the relief that they brought to the neighbours, who felt
they had been supported through the process by police and the housing office.
The ISO, devised and facilitated by Norfolk Youth Offending Team, consisted of four hour-
long sessions aimed at helping the boys develop an understanding of how their anti-social
behaviour, their constant shouting and banging, impacted on themselves as a group, on their
immediate family, and on their neighbours.
The first session defined the ground rules for the group, including showing respect, listening
with only one person talking at a time, no shouting, and with each member
being allowed to voice an opinion. The second session got the boys listening to what people
were saying around them. The third session introduced elements from a social skills game
that focused on the boys’ finding different ways of asking each other something without
resorting to shouting. In the fourth session, a worker from Positive Futures helped the boys
think about what leisure activities were available as alternatives to playing on the balcony.
The youth worker kept the boys’ parents up to date on what was happening in the sessions.
Family X, who were relocated away from family Y, kept their tenancy and no further
problems were reported. Similarly, family Y succeeded in stopping their anti-social
behaviour.