First lockdown saw 70% increase in antisocial behaviour in Hartlepool - with noise complaints also sky-high

From April to June this year antisocial behaviour reports to police in Hartlepool rose by 788 incidents, from 1,131 to 1,919, compared to the same period in 2019, an increase of 70%.

The figures formed part of a report from the Hartlepool Community Safety Team which went before the Safer Hartlepool Partnership on Friday.

Antisocial behaviour has been selected as one of the priority areas to focus on by the team in the draft Community Safety Plan for 2020/21.

Rachel Parker, Community Safety Team leader, said at the meeting last week this rise could be linked to lockdown restrictions and reports of possible breaches of them.

She said: “It is reasonable to suggest that some of the increase is as a result of lockdown restrictions which were imposed to slow the spread of Covid-19 in the first financial quarter of this year.

“There were a number of antisocial behaviour incidents reported which related to a possible breach of these.

“However, the increase was not unique to Hartlepool as antisocial behaviour incidents increased across all four of the local policing areas in Cleveland.”

However unlike police incidents, antisocial behaviour complaints received by the Community Safety Team reduced in this quarter compared to the previous year, from 133 to 92.

Officers noted this could be due to lockdown restrictions prompting residents to contact police instead, along with a reduction in complaints about antisocial behaviour in Rossmere Park, which had a ‘high number’ of issues reported last year.

Noise nuisance complaints received by the council’s public protection team did increase by 64% when compared to the previous year however, from 107 to 175.

Ms Parker added: “With lots of people spending significantly longer periods of time in their homes during this period, it is possible that this increase may be reflective of this.

“There’s a lot of us who are now working from home and we’re not usually in our properties for a large proportion of our day, so we do think that may have had an impact.”

However reports of antisocial behaviour to police throughout the second quarter of the year, from July to September, did decrease compared to the same period last year.

They reduced from 1,317 to 1,166, a drop of 11% when compared to the previous year, and a 39% decrease compared to the first quarter of 2020/21.

However, antisocial behaviour complaints received by the Community Safety Team increased slightly in this quarter compared to the same period last year, rising by 11 incidents to 139.

Cllr Shane Moore, council leader, said he hopes the difference in reporting trends between teams indicates residents have a better understanding of who to report different incidents to.

He said: “I would hope that’s showing people are getting a better understanding of what we can deal with and what the police can deal with, and now people are accessing the correct team.

“It does seem to show that’s the case, and I would hope that is the case, and we are able to progress with that and keep on with it.”

Noise complaints received during this period were also 20% higher than in the previous year and 2% more than the first quarter of the year, with a total of 179 received from July to September.

Officers also noted in 30% of all noise complaints received in this quarter music was cited as an issue.

Support your Mail and become a subscriber today. Enjoy unlimited access to local news, the latest on Pools and new puzzles every day. With a digital subscription, you can see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Click here to subscribe.