Introduction

This chapter approaches the issue of tackling anti-social behaviour from the perspective of practitioners and policy makers operating at a local level. It focuses on three aspects:

• • practice and policy as applied in one local authority area (Leeds, the second-largest English local authority);

• • the key issues for practitioners around the country (as identified by research undertaken by the National Community Safety Network); and

• • new moves to address the causes, as well as the symptoms, of anti-social behaviour (the government's Respect Agenda and the Positive Approaches group).

The first section examines the strategic approach to anti-social behaviour adopted by Leeds and the establishment and operation of policies and interventions to address anti-social behaviour through a dedicated unit and multi-agency problem-solving panels. It describes briefly the experiment in multiple Anti-Social Behaviour Orders (ASBOs) of Operation Cape and its mutation into smaller, rolling multi-agency programmes (latterly promoted as ‘weeks of action’ by the government for its 44 ‘critical partnerships’).

The second section examines the findings of the National Community Safety Network's research (Anti-social behaviour: Key issues and recommendations – a practitioners’ perspective). This considered the difficulties ‘on the ground’ concerning: priorities and target-setting; resources and costs; definitions and information gathering, analysis and sharing; and the consistent management of anti-social behaviour (ASB).

The third section looks at the proposals coming out of the Positive Approaches alliance, which argues for resources and emphasis to be placed on prevention and early intervention, and the development of Respect and its combination of support, intervention and enforcement.

Tackling ASB at a local level – the Leeds approach

We must preface this section by being clear that we are making no particular claims for Leeds either having a superlative approach to tackling ASB or being especially representative of other authorities around the country. On the first count, there will always be some area that has progressed at least one of the elements of its strategy to a significant degree; on the second, making comparisons with other districts is always very difficult. Having said that, we suggest that there are similar approaches adopted elsewhere in England. And, as everywhere else, we are always trying to improve what we do and to respond to new initiatives in what is a fast-developing field of policy and practice. So by the time you read this chapter, it is inevitable that changes will have happened, in Leeds as elsewhere.