09/12/2011 : BHP's ASB Team fights back
Housing Ombudsman rules complaints unfounded
Brent Housing Partnership's (BHP) Anti Social Behaviour (ASB) Team is celebrating after they were absolved by the Housing Ombudsman from fault relating to two complaints regarding the Dartmouth Road Estate.
The Dartmouth Road Estate in Willesden has had many issues of anti social behaviour (ASB) over the years and the ASB Team has worked tirelessly to deal with these. The problems on the estate have included drugs nuisance, banned dogs, illegal occupancies, noise nuisance and prostitution.
These ASB issues have resulted in many complaints from residents in the area. These complaints have always been dealt with promptly and effectively by BHP's ASB Team.
The team have implemented many measures to help reduce the problems. These included installing CCTV, taking out injunctions to exclude certain individuals from the area, door stoppers (adjusted door to reduce noise), increased cleaning services and requesting improvements within the block to reduce the complaints. The team have endeavoured to ensure that residents concerns were addressed in a practical way.
Another effective tool was to start a newsletter for the block and keep residents informed about what the ASB Team had been doing, and trying to get residents involved in tackling ASB.
Despite all these measures, there were still two cases where the ASB Team was taken to the Local Ombudsman. These complaints contained all the issues mentioned above as well as claiming that there was a lack of intervention and support by the landlord.
After conducting their investigation, the Ombudsman found that BHP and the ASB Team were not at fault. In fact, BHP is committed to listening to residents and resolving ASB issues.
Barbara Rowe, Manager of the ASB Team, said: "We do listen to our residents, it may take time to get evictions and injunctions where necessary due to legal processes, but we will not give up. We have demonstrated that we can produce results, we are persistent and do support witnesses throughout the complaints of anti social behaviour. Every case is different and we have to work in accordance with legislation to satisfy judges".
Gerry Doherty, Chief Executive of BHP, said: "BHP is committed to ensuring that our residents live in a safe and peaceful environment. Our ASB team works hard to deal with issues and will take serious action if necessary. We welcome our residents to challenge the service we provide, as it enables us to maintain high standards."