When the Royal Borough receives a report of anti-social behaviour, we'll work with the police, partner agencies and the local community to take the most appropriate action to address the problem.

Injunctions and Acceptable Behaviour Agreements (ABAs) are two ways that the Royal Borough of Greenwich can help tackle anti-social behaviour.

What's an ABA?

An Acceptable Behaviour Agreement (ABA) is an individual written agreement where a person promises not to continue with specific acts that could be viewed as anti-social behaviour.

The ABA is entered into by a person with their local authority or housing association and the Police. It's not a legal agreement, but it can serve as an alternative to an injunction in cases which are not as serious.

What's an injunction?

An injunction can be made against any person aged ten or over who has acted in an anti-social manner. It's a type of civil law remedy and isn't intended to punish the offender.

An injunction is a court order to prohibit a person from:

• continuing to carry out specified anti-social acts
• entering defined locations, in order to protect the public in those areas
• being in the company of certain individuals in public.

Injunctions can also require the person to do something, such as engage with the Youth Offending Service or take part in an alcohol rehabilitation course.

Who decides who gets an injunction?

A court decides whether to grant an injunction. However, the police, the Royal Borough of Greenwich and other relevant partners will make the decision to apply to court for an injunction.

If the Royal Borough decides to apply to court for an injunction, we must provide a sufficient level of proof that a named individual has caused either housing related nuisance or annoyance or persistent harassment, alarm or distress.

We assess each case according to the level of evidence and take into account all other factors before applying to court.

What happens if an injunction or ABA is breached?

A person can breach an ABA by continuing to act in a manner that causes harassment, alarm or distress to people in another household.

Where an ABA is breached, it can be used as evidence in support of an injunction application.

If a person breaches an injunction, then the court can apply penalties. The penalties depend on the age of the person.

Under 18s can be given a supervision order or a three month detention order. Adults can be given a fine and up to two years' imprisonment.

Report a breach of an injunction

If you witness someone breaching an injunction and are able to make a call while the breach is occurring, call 999.

To report the breach after the event, call 101 to contact the local police or your Safer Neighbourhoods team.