The Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003 (c.38) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which almost entirely applies only to England and Wales. The Act, championed by then

Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all national ...

, David Blunkett, was passed in 2003. As well as strengthening the

anti-social behaviour order An anti-social behaviour order (ASBO ) is a civil order made in Great Britain against a person who had been shown, on the balance of evidence, to have engaged in anti-social behaviour. The orders were introduced by Prime Minister Tony Blair i ...

and

Fixed Penalty Notice In the United Kingdom, a fixed penalty notice (FPN) is a notice giving an individual the opportunity to be made immune from prosecution for an alleged criminal offence in exchange for a fee. Fixed penalty notices were introduced in Britain in the ...

provisions, and banning

spray paint Aerosol paint (commonly spray paint) is paint that comes in a sealed, pressurized container and is released in an aerosol spray when a valve button is depressed. Aerosol painting is one form of spray painting; it leaves a smooth, even coat, unli ...

sales to people under the age of 16, it gives local councils the power to order the removal of graffiti from private property. It also specifically addressed truancy,

drug house A drug house (also called a trap house or drug den) is a residence used in the illegal drug trade. Drug houses shelter drug users and provide a place for drug dealers to supply them. Drug houses can also be used as laboratories to synthesize ( ...

s, false reports of emergency, fireworks,

public drunkenness Public intoxication, also known as "drunk and disorderly" and "drunk in public", is a summary offense in some countries rated to public cases or displays of drunkenness. Public intoxication laws vary widely by jurisdiction, but usually require an ...

and

gang activity A gang is a group or society of associates, friends or members of a family with a defined leadership and internal organization that identifies with or claims control over territory in a community and engages, either individually or collecti ...

Class A drug, supply, distribution or production premises closure orders

Until October 2014, Part I of the Act ("Premises where drugs used unlawfully") enabled the police to close residential premises concerned in the use, production or supply of

Class A drugs These drugs are known in the UK as ''controlled drugs'', because this is the term by which the act itself refers to them. In more general terms, however, many of these drugs are also controlled by the Medicines Act 1968, there are many other drug ...

and which were associated with serious nuisance or disorder to members of the public in the preceding three months. After such a notice had been served, within 48 hours a

magistrates' court A magistrates' court is a lower court where, in several jurisdictions, all criminal proceedings start. Also some civil matters may be dealt with here, such as family proceedings. Courts * Magistrates' court (England and Wales) * Magistrate's Cou ...

had to consider the application, and could make a closure order under Section 2, known as a "Class A drug, supply, distribution or production premises closure Order". The effect of such an order was that no-one could lawfully enter the premises whilst the order was in place, and it became a criminal offence to do so.

Antisocial behaviour closure orders

Between December 2008 and October 2014, Part 1A of the Act ("Premises associated with persistent disorder or nuisance") created the Part 1A closure order or antisocial behaviour closure order. Sections 11A-11L of the 2003 Act permitted the police or local authority to apply to magistrates to close premises where they were satisfied that within the preceding three months the premises had been associated with "significant and persistent disorder or persistent serious nuisance to members of the public." The order could be made in respect of business or residential premises. Similar to the Part 1 Order (

Crack house A drug house (also called a trap house or drug den) is a residence used in the illegal drug trade. Drug houses shelter drug users and provide a place for drug dealers to supply them. Drug houses can also be used as laboratories to synthesize ( ...

closure order), it became an offence to remain in or re-enter the premises for the duration of the order. Parts 1 and 1A were repealed on 20 October 2014 by Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 Sch.11(1) para 41(a).

Antisocial behaviour injunctions (ASBIs)

Part II ("Housing") amended housing legislation to require social housing organisations to adopt and publish policies on anti-social behaviour. It also strengthened the power of

registered social landlord In Ireland and the United Kingdom, housing associations are private, non-profit making organisations that provide low-cost "social housing" for people in need of a home. Any budget surplus is used to maintain existing housing and to help fin ...

s (RSLs) to take action against tenants who cause nuisance or annoyance to neighbours. One power was that secure tenancies could be 'demoted' by order of the County Court, which in theory at least, made eviction easier. A further important provision provided a mechanism for RSLs to apply for injunctions against people causing nuisance and annoyance to people in the neighbourhood of their housing stock. Section 13 of the 2003 Act amended Part V of the Housing Act 1996 ('Conduct of Tenants'), by repealing Sections 152 and 153, and inserting new Sections 153A - 153E. Where a person was invited into residential premises by the occupier, in breach of an s.153A injunction, they committed an offence. Section 153A of the Housing Act 1996 was repealed in March 2015.

Parenting orders

Part III ("Parental responsibilities") amends 'parenting orders', which were introduced by the Crime and Disorder Act 1998. These are intended to specify steps parents must take to control their children. It also introduces 'parenting contracts', which are mainly intended to cover child truancy.

Dispersal zones

Between January 2004 and October 2014, Part IV ("Dispersal of groups etc.") gave the police powers to disperse groups of two or more persons in any public place if their presence "has resulted, or is likely to result, in any members of the public being intimidated, harassed, alarmed or distressed". There was also a power for a police officer (or PCSO) to accompany any unaccompanied person of under 16 to their home between the hours of 9 pm and 6 am. Section 30 did not apply to lawful pickets, although the human rights implications had been considered by the courts on a number of occasions. The power for police to remove a child under s30 was permissive, not coercive. Part IV was repealed in October 2014 by Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 Sch.11(1) para 41(c).

Firearms

Part V ("Firearms") amends the Firearms Act 1968 to make possession of an airgun or an imitation weapon in public an offence. The sale of imitation firearms was further limited by section 36 of the

Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006 The Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006 (c. 38) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Origin The United Kingdom Government published a paper "Drinking Responsibly - The Government's Proposals" in 2005 setting out their proposals for ...

(VCRA) which made sale of realistic imitation firearms (RIF's) an offence. Various groups of people who legitimately use RIF's, for work or pleasure, can provide a seller with a defence against prosecution as provided for in section 37 of the VCRA. These groups are set out in regulations made by the Secretary of State, and can be changed at any time.

The environment

Part VI ("The Environment") contains a selection of miscellaneous provisions. It gives councils power to serve a closure order on premises causing public nuisance by noise. Councils also now have the power to serve a ''graffiti removal notice'' on the person in control (usually the owner) of any surface that is street furniture (street furniture is, usually a telephone box, letterbox, bus stop) where graffiti has been applied, this legislation does not apply to private property. There is a right of appeal to the magistrates court over such a notice, and one ground for appeal is that 'the defacement is neither detrimental to the amenity of the area nor offensive'. It makes the sale of aerosol paint to any person under 16 illegal.

Raves and travellers

Part VII ("Public Order and Trespass") amends the

Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 The Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 (c.33) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It introduced a number of changes to the law, most notably in the restriction and reduction of existing rights, clamping down on unlicensed r ...

in two main ways. First, the definition of a 'rave' is amended so that only 20 people, rather than 100 must be present. Second the powers of police to move unauthorised travellers' sites are strengthened. This Part also amends the provisions of the Public Order Act 1986 concerning public assemblies. The earlier Act gave the police power to intervene if a public assembly of 20 or more people appeared likely to cause 'serious public disorder, serious damage to property or serious disruption to the life of the community'. This Act reduces the number to two.

High hedges

Part VIII ("High Hedges") is in response to concerns about

hedge A hedge or hedgerow is a line of closely spaced shrubs and sometimes trees, planted and trained to form a barrier or to mark the boundary of an area, such as between neighbouring properties. Hedges that are used to separate a road from adjoi ...

s, typically of

Leyland Cypress The Leyland cypress, ''Cupressus'' × ''leylandii'', often referred to simply as leylandii, is a fast-growing coniferous evergreen tree much used in horticulture, primarily for hedges and screens. Even on sites of relatively poor culture, plants ...

plants, which can grow to 6 metres or more in height, sometimes cutting out light for neighbours. Such hedges are not controlled by

town planning Urban planning, also known as town planning, city planning, regional planning, or rural planning, is a technical and political process that is focused on the development and design of land use and the built environment, including air, water, ...

legislation (which normally limits the height of fences to 2 metres), and so there was formerly no way of preventing people from allowing such a hedge to grow. This part of the Act gives local authorities the power to investigate complaints made by people affected by such hedges, and, if necessary, to require their reduction. Councils can charge a fee for dealing with such complaints. Soon after implementation, some councils were charging no fee, while the highest in the country was Sevenoaks, which charged £650.

Miscellaneous

Part IX ("Miscellaneous") makes some changes to the mechanisms for serving and enforcing

s. Section 89 extended the powers of Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs). The key changes are that PCSOs have the power to stop a cyclist, and accredited support officers or rail community officers can issue FPNs in respect of a number of offences: * Use of insulting or abusive behaviour to cause harassment alarm or distress * Throwing fireworks in a thoroughfare * Trespassing on a railway * Throwing stones etc. at trains or other things on railways * Buying or attempting to buy alcohol for consumption in a bar in licensed premises by a person under 18 * Knowingly giving a

false alarm A false alarm, also called a nuisance alarm, is the deceptive or erroneous report of an emergency, causing unnecessary panic and/or bringing resources (such as emergency services) to a place where they are not needed. False alarms may occur with ...

to the

fire brigade A fire department (American English) or fire brigade (Commonwealth English), also known as a fire authority, fire district, fire and rescue, or fire service in some areas, is an organization that provides fire prevention and fire suppression se ...

* Wasting police time or giving a false report * Consumption of alcohol in a designated public place

Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001 The Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which gave extra powers to the police, with the aim to tackle crime and disorder more effectively. Key provisions include the introduction of on-the-spo ...

, s.13 * Using a public communications system for sending messages known to be false in order to cause annoyance.

Extent

* Part X ("General") limits the extent of the legislation to England and Wales only, apart from Part V.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * *

External links

Hedgeline: "advice and information for Hedge-Victims"Neighbours From Hell in BritainHome Office's ''Respect'' website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003 English criminal law United Kingdom Acts of Parliament 2003 Anti-social behaviour 2003 in England 2003 in Wales Graffiti in the United Kingdom