LAW

The Toolbox of the Modern Housing Officer



Table of Contents

Introduction1

Discussion1

Anti-Social Behavior among Tenants2

Types of Tenancies and Housing Acts2

The Case of Newport County Borough Council5

Crime and Disorder Act 20036

Changes in Legislation Since 20037

Responsibilities of Housing Organizations against Tenants' Protection and Well-Being9

Discussion with Relevant Housing Practitioners12

Conclusion13

References14

The Toolbox of the Modern Housing Officer

Introduction

Anti-social behavior, criminal or non-criminal, has always remained at the top of the political agenda since a long time now. Lately, this issue has been mainly associated with neighbors after the growing cases that came to the news papers like a storm. There were many cases of criminal activities and anti-social behaviors that filled the columns of every second newspaper, making it an alarming problem and concern for the law enforcement agencies. In this regard, it is important to see how far is the government taking this issue seriously and what are the strategies or legislations that deal with the issue. It is also noteworthy to depict any impact of such legislations in controlling or overriding the crimes in neighborhoods so that these are not repeated again.

Discussion

The initial response of the government in controlling anti-social Acts from the tenancy and housing sector came in the shape of the 1996 Housing Act which facilitated the social landlords in dealing with the problem effectively. These tools included some preliminary tenancies for local authorities, extensive reclamation grounds for any action or deed that is likely to cause disturbance in the locality by the tenant's family, provisions against arrestable offences in which a tenant may be involved, and the power to provide house injunctions for any speculation of anti-social behaviors (Sikand, 2006, p. 45-87). Little guidance has been forthcoming for more diverse strategies that would help tackle the core problems of tenants whose behavior is anti-social.

Anti-Social Behavior among Tenants

The U.K. Home Office describes antisocial behavior as any activity that impacts people in a negative way. However, any definition or classification of an act as being “anti-social” or “disturbing” can only be subjective, because different people are annoyed by different things. What may seem to be offensive for one neighborhood might be a normal occurrence for the other (Parpworth, 2004, p. 541-559). According to the Part 1 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998, anti-social behaviors may include offensive or rowdy behaviors that may take place in public areas, vandalism, graffiti, and dumping trash openly and unrestrictedly, dealing with drugs in public areas, abandoning cars and other vehicles, begging and anti-social drinking practices.

According to section 1 (1) of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998, anti-social behavior is defined as “conduct which caused or was likely to cause alarm, harassment or distress to one or more persons not of the same household as himself or herself and where an Anti-Social Behavior Order (ASBO) is seen as necessary to protect relevant persons from further anti-social acts by the defendant” (Mack, 2009, p. 116-117).

Types of Tenancies and Housing Acts

The landlord and tenant can sign a written rental agreement when hiring new premises or they may ...