Highland Council’s closure of antisocial behaviour cases has halved
The number of antisocial behaviour cases in council homes across the Highlands that have been closed have halved since last year.
The Local Democracy Reporting Service has collated figures from across Highland Council’s area committees this year and found just 31 per cent of cases reported to the council are resolved on average.
Reports of behaviour can vary from noise disturbances to criminal accusations.
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The council are then obliged to deal with the complaint and come to a resolution, but recent numbers have taken a sharp drop.
In the second half of last year, 495 cases were recorded across the Highlands and an average of 66 per cent were resolved.
In the first half of 2024, around 192 cases of antisocial behaviour were reported to the council, but just 31 per cent on average have been resolved.
Higher population areas reported more cases, but also had a higher percentage of resolutions.
There is however an overall trend across all the regions highlighting a significant change in case resolutions compared to 2023.
The Black Isle and Easter Ross area is one of the best performing, with 58 per cent of their antisocial behaviour cases resolved in Q2 of 2024.
In contrast, Dingwall and Seaforth has seen none of the reported cases resolved this year.
Some areas, such as Skye and Raasay along with Badenoch and Strathspey have had no reported cases this year so far.
A report of antisocial behaviour to the council can vary wildly from dogs barking right up to criminal offences like drug dealing.
There may be some carry over from more complex cases still to be resolved from last year.
A council report stated: “Tackling antisocial behaviour is a key priority for the local housing team. The management of cases is often complex, involving other services and agencies.”
Speaking at an area meeting, principal housing officer Fiona Shand said: “Although you can see that these cases haven’t been resolved, that doesn’t mean they aren’t actively being managed.
“For example, if we have a drugs-related case, we would have to wait for action to be taken, so it means the length of time taken to resolve that case can be longer.
“Our officers do focus on the service they provide the victims rather than the speedy closure of the cases.”
Councillor Angela MacLean said: “Antisocial behaviour is a big issue in many of our communities.
“It would be good if we could improve it with our community planning partners and other housing providers.”
Highland Council has been contacted for comment.
