Forces step up ASB action as new powers approach
Police forces across England and Wales are renewing their commitment to tackling anti-social behaviour this week as part of ASB Awareness Week, with the National Police Chiefs’ Council pointing to a series of targeted operations that have produced local reductions in criminal and nuisance behaviour.
The NPCC says forces collectively record more than one million ASB incidents annually, and that the problem continues to affect community safety, mental health and quality of life for large numbers of people.
As part of the government’s Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee, announced in April last year, dedicated ASB leads have now been appointed in all 43 forces in England and Wales. Each force has also published a public-facing ASB action plan, setting out how it intends to address the issue locally.
T/Deputy Chief Constable Catherine Akehurst, the NPCC lead for ASB, said improved partnership working was central to the approach. “ASB is not something policing can tackle alone,” she said, adding that the goal was to use local intelligence more effectively through stronger multi-agency relationships.
New enforcement tools are also on the horizon. The Crime and Policing Act 2026 will introduce Respect Orders, a mechanism intended to enable swift action against persistent offenders, though the NPCC said it was working with the Home Office on implementation timelines.
Policing Minister Sarah Jones said 13,000 additional officers were being placed in neighbourhood roles as part of the guarantee, and described anti-social behaviour as something that “chips away at pride in our neighbourhoods.”
ASB Awareness Week runs from 29 June to 5 July and is coordinated by the charity Resolve.