As part of the seven-point Residents Charter outlined in the Social Housing White Paper the Government
have made a commitment to support tenants facing anti-social
behaviour (ASB) and crime and the new Tenant Satisfaction Measures
set out in the White Paper will include measures to hold landlords
to account for neighbourhood management including tackling
anti-social behaviour.
In paragraph 121 of the White Paper, the Government promises to
clarify the different responsibilities that police, local
authorities and social landlords have in tackling ASB and social
landlords are to be encouraged to inform residents of their rights
to make a Community Trigger application.
The Community Trigger (also known as an ASB Case Review) is a
statutory right provided to victims of ASB to request a
multi-agency case review where a victim of ASB has been the victim
of persistent ASB.
Each local area sets a threshold which must be met for the
trigger to be used. The threshold must include:
- the frequency of complaints
- effectiveness of the response
- potential harm to the victim or victims making the
complaint
The threshold is about the incidents reported, not whether the
agency responded. The threshold should be no higher than three
complaints, but agencies may choose to set a lower threshold
locally. If qualifying complaints are made, a case review must be
held to then determine the adequacy of the agency's responses.
Full details of the Community Trigger and how it operates can be
found on the Government
website.
ASB Helpis a
registered charity in England and Wales set up to provide advice
and support to victims of anti-social behaviour.
ASB Help have developed a pledge which can be taken by social
landlords to ensure that their ASB policies and procedures meet
best practice and public facing literature includes appropriate
information on the Community Trigger process and enable landlords
to demonstrate their commitment to victims of ASB.
Click here for further details of the ASB Help
Pledge.
Signing up to the ASB Help pledge is free and on completion
landlords will be able to display the ASB Help Pledge logo to
demonstrate commitment to victims of anti-social behaviour.
ARCH member council, Stoke on Trent City Council have recently
worked with ASB Help to work towards the ASB Help Pledge
Jim Nixon, ASB Manager at Stoke on Trent City Council
comments:
"The Community Trigger is such an important tool within the
ASB, Crime and Policing Act 2014 and it's important that our
processes are as robust as possible."
"Prior to engaging with ASB Help we were very happy with how
we managed the Community Trigger. However, when we held a review
meeting with the CEO Rebecca Brown, she was able to provide some
very practical ideas to further enhance our processes and the way
that we deliver the Trigger Meetings".
"I am also impressed with the package that assists the
Pledge, in particular the Chairperson Pack that I recently used
when Chairing a Trigger meeting for another Local
Authority."
"I would urge all local authorities/Police Services to
engage with ASB Help to review their own processes, it's so
important that you get this right! A better Community Trigger helps
more victims and assists in resolving ASB incidents
long-term."
Where councils have not already done so, Arch would encourage
all ARCH member councils to consider signing up to the ASB Help
Pledge. Doing so will not only ensure that victims of ASB are aware
of their rights to activate the Community Trigger but will help
meet the increased expectations on landlords set out in the Social
Housing White Paper and the Charter for Social Housing
Residents.