Living TogetherTenants Handbook 5 Living TogetherTenants Handbook 5 Living TogetherTenants Handbook 5

Contents

Community Safety

Community Wardens

CCTV

Shared Areas

Anti-social behaviour

Mediation Service

Harassment

Domestic Violence

Victim Support

Vandalism

Graffiti

Waste Management and Rubbish

Pest Control

Tenants Handbook 5

Living Together

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If you would like to use their services, please contact them at one of their offices. Details of these are found on their website and their telephone numbers are listed in the General Information section of this hand book.

VandalismVandalism can result in the safety of the public or residents being put at risk and can be unsightly, affecting the appearance of an area. Tenants and any of their visitors found responsible for vandalism will face action from the Council and this may result in police prosecution, which in turn, could result in their eviction. If you see any evidence of vandalism in the area where you live, this should be reported to the main Council Customer Services if it is Council property, or to the police on the non-urgent crime number.

GraffitiPlease report all graffiti by calling the Graffiti Hotline or via the online request form on our website, the contact details are in the General Information Section.

The Council will aim to remove offensive graffiti within 24 hours and other graffiti within two working days.

Waste Management and Rubbish Clearance

You should always make sure that you get rid of your rubbish properly. You should not dump rubbish or abandon property, including vehicles. This is likely to be unsightly, it can be unhygienic and attract vermin and possibly be dangerous in other ways. It can also make you liable to be served with a fixed penalty notice and possible prosecution through the courts.

The Council operates a weekly kerbside refuse and recycling collection service, based around the use of plastic sacks; black sacks for normal domestic refuse and clear plastic sacks for clean, dry recyclable items.

Further information regarding recycling in Gravesham is available on the Council’s web site.

Each area of the borough has a specific collection day which may change over public and bank holiday periods, if you are not sure of your collection day, there is information on the Council’s website and there is a contact telephone number in the General Information section of this handbook.

Sacks must be placed at the front of your property by 7am on the morning of collection, but must not be placed there any earlier than 4pm on the day before.

If you have bulky items, such as beds, furniture and large electrical goods (fridges, freezers) the Council operates a bulky waste collection service by appointment and further details can be given by contacting Waste Management by telephone.

The Council currently provides a supply of empty sacks, delivered to your property, if you require more than this amount, it is suggested that you obtain further quantities yourself or take your unwanted items to one of the many recycling points around the borough or to the Pepperhill Household Waste Site, near Northfleet, which is operated by Kent County Council.

If you witness fly tipping on the highway, contact Kent County Council’s Clean Kent initiative, contact details are in the General Information section of this handbook.

Pest Control

The Council provides a pest control service in respect of mice within the home and rats within the home and immediate garden. There will be a charge for this service.

Please contact the Council’s Environmental and Public Health Service for further information, their contact details are in the General Information section of this handbook.

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Living TogetherTenants Handbook 5 Living TogetherTenants Handbook 5 Living TogetherTenants Handbook 5

Community SafetyGravesham Borough Council Community Safety Unit is involved in many initiatives which help address the reduction of actual crime and the fear of crime and anti-social behaviour throughout the borough.

Some of the main areas of expertise of the Community Safety Unit include the Community Wardens, Closed Circuit TeleVision systems (CCTV), anti-social behaviour, graffiti and Police Community Support Officers.

Gravesham Borough Council Community Safety Unit works closely and in partnership with other agencies on matters of Domestic Violence, Youth Diversion, Communities Against Drugs, the Mediation Service and to help reduce environmental crimes such as criminal damage and graffiti.

Remember, in the case of emergency, always call 999 and ask for the required emergency service. Report crime or attempted crime to the local North Kent police using the numbers which are given in the General Information section.

Community Wardens Gravesham Community Safety Unit has a number of Community Wardens. The Community Wardens are a visible uniformed team and can be contacted by tenants if their assistance is needed. They are on duty seven days a week between the hours of 4pm and 1am.

If you need to contact the Community Wardens telephone them using the numbers which are given in the General Information section.

Community Wardens carry out the following duties :

act to prevent and resolve acts of anti-social behaviour

act as witnesses to anti-social behaviour

aim to become the eyes and ears of the community, acting as a referral point for residents

provide a recognisable point of contact for residents outside normal office hours

reduce the fear of crime by providing a visible presence

suggest workable solutions based on local area and community knowledge

report any environmental issues that they see, or that residents advise them of whilst on duty

undertake reassurance visits to elderly and vulnerable residents

act on behalf of residents who wish to pursue a better quality of life

ensure a safe environment for children and adults

CCTVCCTV can be a deterrent to crime and anti-social behaviour.

Throughout the borough there are currently cameras covering all the major access routes into and throughout the town centre, with other cameras in outlying areas.

Gravesham Borough Council is committed to an ongoing improvement programme of the CCTV equipment to capture clearer images and make the review of any evidence much simpler. The service now operates 24 hours a day on 365 days of the year.

Shared AreasShared areas are meant to be used for rest and quiet recreation.

This means, for example, that you should not use stairwells, shared landings, estate paths, shared paved or tarmac areas and grassed areas for:

playing ball games

drinking alcohol

using drugs or taking part in any other illegal activity

smoking when covered by the law banning smoking in public places

gathering in groups and frightening other residents

riding motorbikes and scooters (apart from on specific estate roads)

carrying out motor vehicle repairs

playing loud music

letting off fireworks

dumping rubbish and unwanted furniture

having a barbecue.

Shared areas can form part of a tenant’s fire escape route, so it is very important that you do not block these areas in any way, including using these areas for storage or displaying real or artificial plants.

If you live in a flat, do not leave rubbish on the stairs or in the hallways as this can be a safety hazard. You should also keep the hallways and landings clear of furniture as these can be a hazard in the event of an emergency.

If your block has a door entry system, you should help to keep the flats safe by:-

not letting anyone into the building that you do not know

not letting visitors in on behalf of other tenants

not asking neighbours to let visitors in for you

not wedging doors open or overiding the door locking system in any way

by reporting faults with door entry systems and locks as soon as you become aware to enable us to rectify problems

Anti-Social BehaviourAnti-Social Behaviour comes in many guises. It is officially described as “behaviour that is likely to cause alarm, harassment or distress to members of the public”.

In Gravesham there are officers who deal solely with this issue, working With victims and in partnership with other agencies, from the police, Kent County Council, Social Services, Education, the Youth Offending Team, Housing and Legal Services.

There is a need for tenants and residents to show respect and tolerance for each other. The tenancy agreement sets out your obligations in respect of this and legislation states that local authorities do not have to re-house persons who have been guilty of

anti-social behaviour when it is thought likely that the anti-social behaviour is likely to recur.

What should you do if you are experiencing anti-social behaviour?Unless the behaviour is violent or takes the form of harassment, you should first try to speak to the other person(s) to try to sort out the situation in a reasonable manner. The problem may have arisen due to a misunderstanding or because they don’t realise that their behaviour is causing you a problem.

If the other person’s response to your approach is unreasonable, then you should just walk away, do not get engaged in a confrontation, either verbal or physical. You should then let your Housing Officer know your concerns, preferably in writing and giving details of the nature and frequency of the anti-social behaviour.

Your Housing Officer will look at your concerns and arrange to interview you. The situation will be reviewed and you will be informed of what action the Council and yourself can take to resolve the problems that you have encountered.

Mediation ServiceIndependent mediation will be used as a method of dealing with disputes prior to moving onto more formal action. In the case of noise nuisance, Environmental and Public Health Services can take action to deal with statutory nuisance.

We have access to an independent service called Mediation in North Kent (MINK) which was set up to help resolve disputes in the local community using trained mediators. Contact details are in the General Information section of this handbook.

Harassment Harassment is a particular type of anti-social behaviour which is directed at individuals, their families or groups of individuals. It is offensive behaviour that interferes with other people’s quality of life. Often, though not always, the harassment is carried out because of someone’s ethnic background, gender, sexual orientation, religious or political belief, age or disability.

The most common types of harassment include:

violence or threats of violence towards any person

violent or threatening behaviour, including possessing a weapon or something that can be used as a weapon

using or threatening to use a dog as a weapon

abusive or insulting words or behaviour

damage or threats of damage to property belonging to another person

writing threatening, abusive or insulting graffiti

racist behaviour, including written or verbal abuse, malicious vandalism, malicious phone calls

deliberately playing music, TVs or radios loudly or revving of vehicle engines to annoy neighbours

If you are a victim of a racial attack or abuse, or if you witness an incident, you should report it to the police immediately. If an offence is committed and the offender is caught, the police can prosecute. Alternatively, you can take action in the civil courts to try and obtain damages or an order to stop the offender repeating the behaviour.

If you are threatened in your home or see anything suspicious nearby, dial 999 and ask for the police. You should also report any incidents to your Housing Officer because incidents of harassment can harm community relations.

Domestic ViolenceDomestic violence is not acceptable. Domestic violence can affect women or men and those in same sex relationships.

Domestic violence includes physical, sexual, emotional financial abuse or the threat of abuse, by:

a current or ex-partner (even if they do not live with the victim)

a family member; or anyone who would reasonably be expected to live with the victim.

You will be breaking your tenancy agreement if:

you are convicted of an offence involving violence or a threat of violence against a member of your household

or a court order has been made against you to leave your home temporarily or permanently because of your behaviour towards a member of your household

This may mean that we will take action to evict you from your home.

What you should do if you are a victim of domestic violenceWe have a policy of supporting victims of domestic violence. We work with the police and other agencies to give support and practical help to victims.

If you are suffering from domestic violence, you can phone 999 and ask for the police if you are in immediate danger of violence.

You can also speak to your Housing Officer for support and advice.

Victim Support (Kent)Victim Support Kent helps Kent residents cope with the effects of crime. They do this by providing confidential support and information to victims of crime and to witnesses attending local courts. Their services are free, independent of the police and courts and available to everyone, whether or not the crime has been reported and regardless of when it happened.

Their trained local volunteers offer:

someone to talk to in confidence

information on police and court procedures

liaison with other organisations on your behalf

information about compensation and insurance matters

contact with other sources of help

You can contact Victim Support directly for help and if you report a crime to the police they will also offer to put you in contact with them.

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