ANNEX B: Summary of Powers to Tackle Anti-Social Behaviour to Be Replaced by the Provisions in Parts 1 to 4 of the Act The anti-social behaviour injunction
The Anti-Social Behaviour Injunction (“ASBI”) was established under section 152 of the Housing Act 1996. The injunction under section 152 was recast in broader terms when it was repealed and replaced with section 153A of the Housing Act 1996 (introduced by section 13 of the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003). Section 153A was subsequently amended by section 26 of the Police and Justice Act 2006).
The ASBI is used to prevent anti-social behaviour being committed by a tenant, and can be applied for by registered providers of social housing, housing action trusts and local housing authorities. It is a civil order applied for in the County Court, and the individual must be over the age of 18. The test is that conduct is capable of causing nuisance or annoyance to a person in the premises or the locality of the premises; and that the individual has used or threatened to use violence and there is a significant risk of harm if the injunction is not granted. The injunction can also be granted if the individual’s behaviour directly or indirectly relates to or affects the housing providers’ management functions. The civil standard of proof applies, namely the balance of probabilities. There is no statutory minimum or maximum term for the Injunction. A power of arrest can be attached to one or more of the provisions in an ASBI if the individual has used or threatened to use violence and there is a significant risk of harm. Breach of an ASBI is not a criminal offence, it is a contempt of court heard in the County Court. Contempt of court carries an unlimited fine and/or up to two years in prison.