Neighbourhood and antisocial behaviour
Our neighbourhoods should be a safe and welcoming environment for all residents and visitors. This is why there are certain obligations included in your tenancy and licence agreements.
Here is a link to our leaflet on "being a good neighbour (PDF, 1 MB)" which contains more information on our expectations.
What you can do if your neighbour is causing problems
If you have immediate concerns for your safety, you should contact the police straight away. Record the log number you are given as this may be needed in the future.
Talking to your neighbour can be incredibly powerful and often stops a neighbour dispute escalating, this is often the quickest and easiest solution. We want to encourage residents to try, and resolve matters themselves as this will promote a good relationship between neighbours.
When approaching your neighbour, try to:
- choose a time that's convenient for everyone
- plan what you are going to say
- be polite and explain the problem and how it's affecting you
- listen to what they have to say
- be understanding of different ways of life
- be open to suggestions
- come to an agreement that suits everyone
When approaching your neighbour:
- do not approach your neighbour if you don't feel safe
- do not go to their house when you feel angry or upset
- do not be argumentative or use threatening behaviour or language
If you feel you cannot approach your neighbour yourself, consider whether you have a friend or relative who could act on your behalf.
Alternatively, you could write them a polite letter or use one of our 'Hello Neighbour' cards (PDF, 94 KB).
Antisocial behaviour
We understand that you may not want to speak to your neighbour directly or you might want further help and support as your neighbour is acting in an anti-social manner.
Antisocial behaviour is defined as behaviour that causes or is likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress to one or more people from another household.
Antisocial behaviour includes criminal and non-criminal behaviour.
This could be:
- threatening, harassing, hate crime or unruly behaviour such as drunkenness and loitering in public spaces
- illegal drug use or drug dealing - and the mess and disruption that can go with it
- vandalism, graffiti, fly-tipping and littering
- disruptive neighbours consistently playing loud music or excessive barking or noisy pets
Antisocial behaviour is rarely straightforward but we have a wide range of tools and powers to challenge antisocial behaviour and will decide on a case-by-case basis which tool and powers are the most appropriate to use, whilst considering your wishes.
In appropriate cases you may be encouraged to engage and communicate with one another and understand one another's point of view.
This will typically involve a referral for mediation.
When our interventions have failed (or are not successful) and harmful Anti-Social behaviour continues we may consider more formal legal measures.
Neighbour reports that are not considered antisocial behaviour
We recognises that sometime people behaviour is a certain manner and this can still cause a great deal of upset and frustration to residents.
Its important to understand that tensions often arise because of circumstances, rather than a genuine intention to cause someone else harm.
Examples can include:
- normal household noise, such as noise from household appliances, children playing inside, children crying, dogs barking, occasional door slamming, toilets flushing, or sexualised noises
- smells from cooking
- one-off parties, including BBQs
- DIY within sociable hours
- noisy plumbing or appliances
- parking disputes
- messy gardens
- minor behavioural irritations - such as 'dirty looks', 'staring', or 'non abusive' comments
- household lifestyle clashes
- complaints about CCTV
Whilst we would encourage you to speak to your neighbour if you are affected by your neighbours behaviour, we can help you by reviewing your concerns and discuss effective ways of communicating as well as seeing if additional support is required.
Reporting to us
To help with any neighbour reports or report of antisocial behaviour or harassment, we will need clear details of your report.
This includes the names or addresses of those causing the problem.
If your report relates to a crime we would ask that you first report this to the police
You can report to us using our Report nuisance, Antisocial behaviour or harassment form.
We will review your report and contact you to discuss it.
If we action your report, we can do this without revealing your identity, and will use any information you provide to deal with the issue appropriately.
If there is no breach of tenancy conditions and we cannot resolve the situation, we will give advice on the alternative options available.
Contact us
If the information above hasn't answered your question, you can contact us for help:
- fill in our online contact form
- email us at housing.supporthub@nfdc.gov.uk
- call us on 023 8028 5222.
Anti-social behaviour policy (Word doc, 113 KB)
Help and advice
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