News Item - News - Surrey Police

ASBO success for Elmbridge borough

Submitted: 25/10/2004 10:37:07

Just one of the six Anti-Social Behaviour Orders issued within Elmbridge has been breached since the first order was obtained in August 2003.

A recent ASBO monitoring meeting or the borough has revealed that the consensus is that the orders are working well in the borough, with the conditions strictly adhered to in the main.

There are currently five bolt-on ASBOs and one stand alone ASBO operating in the borough.

North Surrey’s ASBO casebuilder Karina Van Dijk said: “Anti-social behaviour orders are a positive way of stemming anti-social behaviour of individuals living within a community. To date these Orders have been successful and only a minimal number of breaches have occurred. These breaches have been dealt with within the Criminal Courts.

All the agencies involved in the Elmbridge Community Safety Partnership have devoted hours of hard work into making this a success and will continue this way of working until the message gets home that anti-social behaviour will not be tolerated within Elmbridge borough."

Elmbridge Borough Inspector Craig Knight added: “The success of the ASBO procedure and legislation has been particularly important to ensuring Surrey remains the safest county in England and Wales. Elmbridge has approximately a quarter of all of Surreys current Anti-Social Behaviour Orders although other borough’s are rapidly following suit. These orders are made after careful consideration and partnership consultation and should be seen as a partnership rather than simply a police success. I would also like to praise the community of Elmbridge for coming forward in support of this legislation without whom few of these orders would have been possible. We are spending more time actively listening to and working with local people so that we can act on their concerns and increase our response to anti-social behaviour. The sanctions imposed are designed to curb specific behaviour and we have seen a dramatic reduction of such behaviour by the people who have these orders against them. Many are now actively engaging with partner agencies to continue this progress. Where orders are relevant my partners and I will continue to seek such orders and look forward to continued success.”

For further information please contact the Divisional Press and Publicity Officer for North Surrey

E-mail: 9277@surrey.pnn.police.uk