Antisocial behaviour (ASB) case review
What an ASB Case Review is
The Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB), Crime and Policing Act 2014 introduced the community trigger, which is designed to give victims of ongoing antisocial behaviour (ASB) the right to request a review of their case and bring agencies together to take a joined up, problem solving approach to find a solution. It is also called the ASB Case Review.
The relevant bodies and responsible authorities who undertake the case review are:
- councils
- police
- clinical commissioning groups in England and local health boards in Wales
- registered providers of social housing who are co-opted into this group.
The relevant bodies must publish the ASB Case Review procedure to ensure that victims are aware that they can apply to activate the procedures in appropriate circumstances. The information should be provided on the websites of all the relevant bodies, signposting the public to the lead agency’s website, a point of contact and the procedures for activating the process.
Who can apply to activate the ASB Case Review
An application may either come directly from the victims of antisocial behaviour or from a third party (with the victim’s consent), such as a family member, friend or local elected representative (a councillor or MP).
The victim may be an individual, a business or a community group.
When to activate the ASB Case Review
The ASB Case Review can be used if you have complained to West Suffolk Council, Suffolk police, health services and/or your housing provider:
- on three or more occasions about separate incidents of antisocial behaviour in the past six months, and
- reported each incident of antisocial behaviour within one month of it happening, and
- request a case review within six months of when you reported the incidents.
This is called the threshold. If the threshold is not met an ASB Case Review will not take place.
You have the right to request a review of your case if you have complained to West Suffolk Council, Suffolk Police or your housing provider and you feel that no effective action has been taken to resolve it.
The ASB case review is not an alternative complaints procedure and will not review concerns about service provision. Service complaints should be directed to West Suffolk Council, Suffolk Police or the relevant organisations complaints procedure.
How to activate the ASB Case Review
You can activate the ASB Case Review by:
- using the online form: Community Trigger Referral Form
- over the telephone 01284 763233
- writing to – ASB Case Review, Families and Communities Team, West Suffolk Council, Western Way, Bury St Edmunds, IP33 3YU
Information you need to provide
To request a case review and to fill in the form, you will need:
- your name, address and contact details
- the dates of each time you have complained
- who you reported the incidents to
- details of who you complained to (name, organisation, and/or incident reference numbers you were given)
- information about the antisocial behaviour.
What happens next
Agencies, including:
- local authorities
- the police
- local health teams
- registered providers of social housing
have a duty to undertake a case review when someone requests one and their case meets a locally defined threshold.
You will be told whether your case meets the threshold limit or not. If it does not, you may be given advice on what else you can do.
If your case does meet the criteria, the relevant bodies will carry out a review of your case. They will consider what actions have been taken and what further actions may be taken.
You will be allocated a single point of contact and you will be kept updated on your ASB Case Review application, including the outcome of the review, and if any recommendations for future actions are made.
Suffolk County Council have produced a flowchart of the process: Suffolk Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB) Case Review (formerly known as the Community Trigger). It is not accessible to screen readers so if you need help to understand the contents please contact us.
The ASB Case Review process does not replace individual organisations complaints procedures. You can also still complain to the Local Authority Ombudsman or Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC), if you are unhappy about the service you have received.
Once the case review is completed, you will be sent a copy of these findings. You will still reserve the right to appeal the case review report within 21 days (details will be provided on the report sent to you).
Antisocial behaviour ASB Case Review figures
West Suffolk Council has a duty to publish data covering the number of:
- applications for ASB case reviews received
- times the threshold for review was not met
- antisocial behaviour case reviews carried out
- antisocial behaviour case reviews that resulted in recommendations being made.
Our data for the period April 2019 to June 2021:
West Suffolk Council was formed on 1 April 2019 replacing the councils of St Edmundsbury Borough Council and Forest Heath District Council. Data for these two councils covers the period October 2014 and March 2019: