We want you to feel safe and secure in and around your home. We take a zero tolerance approach to antisocial behaviour (ASB) and work with the police and other agencies to resolve complaints. Any resident or household found to be committing antisocial behaviour, or allowing their visitors to, could face legal or non-legal sanctions and even lose their home.
Is it antisocial behaviour or nuisance?
Sometimes behaviour will be annoying or disturbing, but not reach the threshold of ASB under our definition. See below for more on our definitions of ASB and nuisance.
What is antisocial behaviour?
It is important our residents act responsibly. Everyday noise and lifestyle differences are to be expected when living close to other people, but anti-social behaviour is not acceptable.
The ASB, Crime and Policing Act (2014) defines ASB as:
- conduct that has caused, or is likely to cause, harassment, alarm or distress to any person;
- conduct capable of causing nuisance or annoyance to a person in relation to that person‘s occupation of residential premises; or
- conduct capable of causing housing-related nuisance or annoyance to any person.
We consider ASB to be behaviour that fits within this legal definition, where we can take action for breach of tenancy or lease. The types of behaviour we consider to be ASB includes:
- Hate crime
- Domestic abuse
- Physical violence and serious threats of violence
- Sexual offences
- Gun or knife crime
- Arson
- Vandalism
- Verbal abuse, harassment, intimidation or threatening behaviour
- Criminal behaviour in or around our property
- Gang related ASB
- Use of illegal drugs and drug dealing
- Prostitution
- Misuse of communal areas
- Drunk and/or rowdy behaviour
- Vehicle nuisance such as joy-riding or reckless driving
- Fly-tipping
- Dangerous dogs
- Noise nuisance*
This list is not exhaustive; we will assess each report individually. We give consideration as to whether the ASB might be deliberate and targeted due to a person’s ’protected characteristics’ (which could constitute a hate crime).
*Noise, particularly between 11pm – 7am, may be considered ASB. We will work with the Council’s Enforcement Team to deal with noise that is louder than statutory limits. Noise under the statutory limit will only be considered ASB if it is persistent, occurs regularly and continues for a period of time that is unreasonable. It is not enough for the noise to be annoying or disturbing. Noise will normally be initially investigated as nuisance first.
You can report noise through our new noise app. See here for a guide to how it works, or watch the video here. Please note you can submit a maximum of 15 recordings per day.
What is nuisance?
We recognise sometimes behaviour will be annoying or disturbing, but not reach the threshold of ASB under our definition. We will take steps to try to resolve the situation, but it is extremely unlikely we will be able to take enforcement action against a tenancy or lease for this behaviour.
Behaviour we consider nuisance includes:
- Inconsiderate parking
- Lifestyle differences, such as different times of going to bed
- Noise that does not meet the ASB definition
- Neighbour disputes
- Garden or boundary disputes
- Pet or animal nuisance
Reporting antisocial behaviour
You can report antisocial behaviour using the details on this page or by filling in the form below.
If you have already reported this issue but need to give us additional information you can use the diary incident form.
By providing this information you give consent for Lewisham Homes to use this information to process your request which will be done in accordance with the data protection guidance.