Incidents of anti-social behaviour taking longer to tackle due to “inconsistent and insufficient” information sharing between agencies, survey finds

Eight out of 10 councils have said that current information sharing agreements between agencies cause delays in taking action against perpetrators of anti-social behaviour (ASB), according to a new report.

The joint survey, commissioned by the Local Government Association (LGA) and charity Resolve, found that incidents of ASB are taking longer to tackle due to “inconsistent and insufficient” information sharing between agencies, in particular from housing providers to Community Safety Partnerships (CSPs).

Councils said that better information sharing arrangements with housing providers can “expedite action” on addressing instances of ASB – with 94% of councils believing that to a ‘great’ or ‘moderate’ extent, a closer relationship between housing providers and CSPs leads to improved outcomes.

The report authors noted: “When information is not shared by and with housing providers, it can mean that the agencies responsible for tackling ASB – largely councils and police – are not made aware at an early stage and unable to act swiftly. This lack of coordination can lead to delays in tackling ASB or a lack of action.”

Councils also highlighted a lack of standard arrangements on sharing data as a significant issue, with 85% reporting that they would support a single information sharing agreement, “standardising the process across the country, and bringing more organisations in to access the data”, said the report.

Other key findings from the survey included: 

• 83% of councils ‘very’ or ‘fairly strongly’ believed housing providers should get full access to Community Safety Partnerships, meaning sharing of all information both ways and help with informing remedies.
• Three quarters of councils said changing personnel within partner organisations was a barrier they faced when sharing ASB related information across different organisations.
• 83% said their council ‘strongly’ believes that housing providers should have full access to CSPs (40% fairly strongly, 43% very strongly).
• 81% support the creation of a specialist housing court for ASB cases. 
• 83% believe that victims of ASB should receive national victim support.

As a result of the report’s findings, the LGA and Resolve have called on the Government to standardise the sharing of ASB information.

Cllr Heather Kidd, Chair of the LGA’s Safer and Stronger Communities Board, said: “Tackling Anti-Social Behaviour is a key priority not just for government, councils and the police, but our residents too – this survey shows very clearly what councils want and need to be more effective in tackling ASB. 

“Often residents will first report incidents of ASB to their housing provider. Councils want this information more consistently shared with councils and the police so proportionate action can be taken. It does not help residents if we see a delay in taking action due to poor information sharing and duplicate reports to partner agencies that should be working together. 

“We urge the Government to learn from this survey as councils are an integral partner to meeting its ambitions to tackle ASB.” 

Rebecca Bryant OBE, Chief Executive of Resolve said: “This research highlights the importance of having efficient processes and mechanisms in place for agencies to access information when they are responding to anti-social behaviour. 

“We know speed is crucial when resolving anti-social behaviour, but without access to key information, it often becomes impossible for any agency to resolve a case quickly. As a result, the issue is left to potentially escalate, and further harm may be caused.

“This is a challenge that plagues almost all of Resolve’s members, the vast majority of whom are registered housing providers or local authorities. Housing providers are well placed to respond to anti-social behaviour, but in a recent survey of Resolve’s members, a staggering 97 per cent said they have experienced difficulty accessing information from other agencies, even when this information was needed to prevent harm or criminal activity.

“A single information sharing agreement, signed off nationally, would ensure that all agencies responding to anti-social behaviour can access the information they need, when they need it.”

The survey was sent to Heads of Community Safety or equivalent positions, and a total of 126 councils responded.

A Home Office spokesperson said: “Antisocial behaviour is a blight on our communities and this government is determined to fix this through our Safer Streets Mission.

“We want antisocial behaviour to be tackled as quickly as possible. That is why our Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee will deliver thousands of extra neighbourhood police and community support officers and we will continue to look at how we can address crime more quickly.”

Lottie Winson and Harry Rodd