A phone line for the public to report anti-social behaviour was launched by Home Office minister, Hazel Blears, as part of a drive to increase community participation in tackling yobbish behaviour.
The It’s Your Call phone line, launched in the North East, will be available in 25 TOGETHER action areas around the country. The actionline will be introduced in each of the areas over the next six weeks. Local people in these areas are being asked to report the problems they see in their neighbourhoods, from graffiti to abandoned cars and nuisance neighbours.
Posters and phone boxes promoting the actionline number – 0845 605 2222 – will be displayed throughout participating areas and residents will receive flyers through their letterboxes. After complaints have been dealt with, feedback cards explaining the action taken will be delivered to houses in the neighbourhood.
What they say
Ms Blears said: “What we’re saying today is simple – It’s Your Call. Pick up the phone and make a difference. Together we can tackle anti-social behaviour.
“We have made significant progress in tackling anti-social behaviour and reclaiming our communities for the law-abiding majority. We have brought in tough new laws and an ambitious national action plan – providing the tools and the expertise for police and local agencies to tackle the yobbish minority who can blight communities and make people’s lives hell.
“But there is still more to do. We need the public to play their part too and take some responsibility for where they live. Engaging local people is vital to create strong communities and tackle the thugs who can destroy people’s quality of life and ruin neighbourhoods.
“It’s Your Call is a new drive to bring public services and local people closer together, putting power in the hands of local people to get things done. Twenty five areas have made a clear commitment to step up their response to anti-social behaviour and I want people in these areas to come forward, make a call that makes a difference, and help make our communities better places to live.”
