To think that the council shouldn't put problem families together

[dimondjedi9]

Either side of me I have lovely neighbours, they care about their children and just generally want a nice peaceful life.
Going further down and there are many problem families, police attending regularly and kids left to run riot.
I live in a new estate and to begin with it was lovely, now it has an awful reputation.
I don’t like my son playing out because of bullying and when you try to discuss it with the parents you get a lot of abuse.
I don’t understand why the council put all these families in the same place, it creates such an awful environment.

Every builder has to build a % of affordable homes on each development. These are normally sold to housing associations who then let them to tenants who have the most points/highest banding or whatever your local area does. So you might end up with a great mix of families or a more challenging blend!

Challenging is the right word! Just last night one of the younger kiddies perhaps 6 or 7 was getting on car roofs and the older ones climbing on top of the bin shed whilst the parents take no notice.
So many of the part ownership families are already selling up as they’ve had enough.

How would you solve this?

In councils where housing is at a premium (that's most of them), the homes have to go to those with the most points. If that's problem families, so be it.

How would the council ‘know’?

6/7 year olds were likely cutesy little 3/4 year olds when parents obtained the tenancy!

Any suggestions as to how to solve it would bring down a tonne of abuse. We are at a point in society where the prevailing attitude is that we must allow any anti-social behaviour whether perpetrated by rich or poor.

The middle class mother who allows her two clean and priviledged children to trash a branch of Gail's and who sneers at requests to keep the noise down or maybe pick up the shredded croissant from the surrounding area is just the same as the kids jumping on the local cars in the "problem family"estate. The attitude is "I can do what I like"

When something bad happens it is someone else's fault. There is no responsibility. People no longer think they have to consider others or obey the rules if it doesn't suit them.

It will come full circle, probably via some sort of extreme control but at the moment I don't hold out much hope tbh

Maybe there is nowhere else to put them I imagine life isn’t all that great for these kids either yet they cannot get away from it.

I hear you, but have no idea what the solution is. I live in what was a lovely area, now full of drugs, violence and mess. It's awful, I'm on the list to be moved away as it's destroying my health.

But for all I want to rattle these families, the kids are just kids. Not their fault no one loves them enough to see them safe in bed at a decent time. Not their fault their Mam drags them out in their jammies to argue in the street or pick up drugs. The kids need a safe, steady home. We can't just say "No more tenancies for you", cos then what'll happen to the kids.

Well I would install cctv (which they are in the process of doing), see if the local PCSO could patrol the area once or twice a week to identify the problem families.
As a housing association I would create a 3 strikes and you are out! Initially before the tenancy was given I would require references that way these sorts of families could be split up into different areas therefore preventing all this rivalry.
It is true that so many people think they can do and say what they want and sod everyone else, it creates a very depressing environment to live in even though the houses are beautiful.

You can put in a complaint to the ha about anti social behaviour.
As part of their tennnecy your not allowed to let other people be a nuisance.
Try to get a psco involved.
We had a similar problem with some neighbours further up.
As soon as the ha and pcso got involved and told them by allowing their child to continue with the behaviour they were breaking their tennnecy and risking eviction it stopped.
The main lad we had an issue with is now an adult and couldn't be more different we even say hello!

Good luck op

I can sympathise OP, we live on a Council estate (a lovely one in the most part, I’m gutted to be leaving) and two families in particular are making life miserable for everyone else.
We are selling up because my autistic son has been battered, spat on, verbally abused and consistently threatened even in our own back garden by kids who’s parents couldn’t give a shiny shite. The fact the police do nothing is just another irritation and let down. The same families burgle homes on the estate with abandon, beat people up and make threats and again the police do nothing. Most of our neighbours are lovely, there’s a real community round here and I’m sorely gutted to be leaving, but the bottom line is I have to protect my child from bullies. Since the police and social workers won’t act, I have to and so we’re having to leave the only home my kids have ever known because the system is broken and some parents don’t actively parent.

I should add this is an 18 month campaign of targeted bullying against my wee boy.

Also the worse you behave the more you get. The points system rewards poor tenants rather than socially responsible people.

Both completely wrong and very offensive! What extra points do you get for being badly behaved? If anything any past antisocial behaviour would count against you.

And since when did being poor mean that a) you were a trouble maker and b) that you're not socially responsible?

Nasty stereotypes and a total lack of understanding as to how Council homes are allocated.

mirai is right, we spent the last few decades telling people they are special and have free will and stopped schools being able to offer punishments (that now seems to be doing a slight U-turn) etc. that those kids from the 80's/90's are now special adults that still think they can do no wrong.

Didnt see mirai second comment though, dont agree with that one.

Both completely wrong and very offensive! What extra points do you get for being badly behaved? If anything any past antisocial behaviour would count against you.

Sadly not in my experience, the kids who have been attacking my son regularly now go to clubs like ice skating and football rather than being charged with a disability hate crime, they wear their ASBOs (or whatever the equivalent is now) like a badge of honour and find it hilarious that the worse they behave, the more treats they get.

And since when did being poor mean that a) you were a trouble maker and b) that you're not socially responsible?

I fully agree with this too, irresponsible parenting crosses all classes and socioeconomic groups.

And I'm not lacking in sympathy with the OP. I live on a large council estate which is notorious for anti-social behaviour. I don't know what the solution is but sweeping generalisations and poor bashing isn't it.

Just keep reporting, to both the police and the council. It's not a quick fix but I think in a situation like this it's all you can do.

When I was a kid I lived on a council estate that was notorious for the council moving the "problem families" from other estates onto. The police would only come onto the estate in the full riot van rather than the cars and taxis and delivery drivers refused to come on at all after dark.
We were lucky because my mum went to school with one of the so called "problems" so we're left alone for the most part but I imagine it was hell for others. I don't know what the answer is but that estate was cleared and levelled to the ground after A few years.

I live in a HA house, all the houses in my road are HA but we have no trouble here, no noise, no badly behaved children or anti social behaviour.

Op, I feel really sorry for you as I would hate to live somewhere where there was so much anti social behaviour and lack of respect for others. Complain as much as you can to the council and to the police (if kids were climbing on my car roof I would be calling the police). Sounds like you just have a couple families on your estate that are ruining things for everyone else by not controlling their children.

Notreallyarsed

Yes, but the council don't allocate extra points for it. You don't get bumped up a list for smashing windows or smoking weed in the street.

Complete sympathy though- like I said my area isn't great. I don't leave after dark. It's crap but I know that out of over 200 homes on the estate it's probably less than 20 causing the problems.

I think poor was meant as in bad, not unwealthy

There's a really simple solution to it. If you're evicted from a HA/Council property, then that's it. Game over. No more accommodation.

@DaisysStew

Fair point you’re right there. I do think that in general (not just on Council estates because it’s not a Council estate issue it’s a societal issue) there should be more focus on treating people with respect, anti-bullying work, and community groups which help people to feel part of something. Without meaning to sound very old fashioned, it seems to be areas with a strong sense of community spirit that are the least affected by anti social behaviour.

Flip side of all of this, the estate down the road from us is hell on earth, literally nobody gives a shit and a lot of people feel like the Council, the government and anyone else in power has forgotten about them and they’re right. The estate has been left to get run down, the school don’t give a shit, the houses are in shit state and the communal areas and pavements are covered in dog shit.

Also the worse you behave the more you get. The points system rewards poor tenants rather than socially responsible people

You don't get extra points for being a bad tenant. If you make yourself intentionally homeless through anti social behaviour the council no longer have a responsibility to house you.