Displaying items by tag: antisocial behaviour

A report by victims' commissioner Baroness Newlove warns that anti-social behaviour is being ignored by authorities across England and Wales. She said police, local councils and housing providers were downplaying the harm caused by crimes, and victims being repeatedly targeted were left to ‘suffer in silence’. Meanwhile police chiefs and local government associations said they took anti-social behaviour seriously; but their resources were under strain, and they needed more funding to tackle the problems. People are scared, whether in their homes or in the streets; syringes are buried in children's sandpits, and there are huge increases in 'petty' council fines. Victims say they often feel persistently targeted by their perpetrators, and ignored by those with the power to prevent and intervene. Anti-social behaviour such as vandalism, street drinking, prostitution-related activity, and nuisance neighbours is often treated as a series of isolated incidents, rather than taking into account the cumulative effect it has on victims; affecting mental health, sleep, work and relationships.

As knife crime rises, the many youth workers and organisations working with young people need our support and prayers. One of these is Ignite, a local grassroots charity working with 13- to 25-year-olds in Harrow to help them re-engage with education, find employment, or move away from anti-social behaviour, gang involvement, and exploitative relationships. It aims for long-term transformation in the lives of those who are at risk, marginalised, or facing barriers to success in life. This is done by activity and education-based programmes that challenge values and behaviour and by equipping young people with tools, resources and opportunities to make positive choices in their current situations.