Anti-Social Behaviour in Hackney

Overview

Hackney Council is consulting with residents, businesses, visitors to Hackney and other key stakeholders on its approach to public space Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB), to determine whether they think the approach is correct and whether there are opportunities to do things differently.

ASB covers many types of behaviour. However, this consultation is focussed on those types of ASB that are often linked to support needs, for example, some types of on-street anti-social drinking, begging or ASB associated with sex work. The Council already thinks carefully about this, working in partnership with the police, support services and the third sector to tackle not just ASB but its causes.We want to ensure we are getting the balance right between effectively responding to ASB (and the impact it has on victims) and supporting vulnerable individuals and getting them the support that they need.

Following the consultation, the Council will develop a Public Space ASB Enforcement Strategy that will guide how the Council prioritises the deployment of its resources and the measures we adopt to reduce ASB and the impact it has on residents, businesses and visitors.

Why your views matter

Hackney Council is committed to tackling ASB and to ensuring that our public spaces are safe and pleasant for all our residents.

The Council’s enforcement services are currently being restructured and a new integrated enforcement service will be incrementally implemented over the summer. We therefore want to review our current approach to ASB in order to produce a new Public Space ASB enforcement strategy.

ASB covers a wide range of different activities and different circumstances that require different responses. In this consultation however, we are focussing on those types of ASB that are often linked to other underlying support needs, (for example, substance misuse or mental health). The focus on these behaviours is not to suggest that other types of ASB aren’t equally important (or that ASB is only associated with underlying support needs). We want to ensure that we are effectively responding to ASB, rather than pushing problems elsewhere or underground, whilst making sure we are not causing greater harm. Addressing the underlying causes of ASB also means that we can be more effective in protecting residents from ASB in the long-term.

We already think carefully about this – but we think it is important to involve you in that discussion, to hear your views and learn from your experience and perspective.

Please read the attached consultation summary before completing the questionnaire.