Capable Guardians

The Capable Guardian scheme is an initiative that looks to bring together many agencies at a localised level to tackle issues of anti-social behaviour. Capable Guardians has been initially piloted in the Westfield Ward of York and as a result is going to be rolled out over a number of other wards in York. The Capable Guardians will encourage respect in communities, including stamping out anti-social behaviour, by:

• Supporting or challenging anti-social households
• Tackling truancy and anti-social behaviour in schools
• Strengthening local communities
• Stronger measures to tackle anti-social behaviour

Some of the actual initiatives of Capable Guardians include:

• Work with local schools to educate pupils around the impact of ASB on the community.
• Identify known 'problem' families and work with our partners to provide appropriate support and action.
• Work with the City of York (CYC) Council Street Environment Team, Youth Offending Team and Probation to ensure that the perpetrators of ASB receive reparative punishments within their own community.
• Identify repeat locations for ASB and work with the Architectural Liaison Officer and local communities to protect them from further ASB.
• Work with victims of ASB and Victim Support to protect them from further offences.
• Work alongside the Westfield community to identify key problems, formulate solutions and encourage communities to take responsibility for making ASB unacceptable.
• Work with the CYC Housing Department and other social housing providers to introduce the Respect Standard for Housing Management.
• Work with all relevant groups and agencies to develop comprehensive programmes of diversionary activities for young people.
• Work towards early intervention with those individuals who are in danger of being drawn into ASB.

The key partners at a local level that have been instrumental in implementing Capable Guardians have been:

• Safer Neighbourhood Teams
• Anti-Social Behaviour Task Group of Safer York Partnership
• Neighbourhood Watch Co-ordinators and Key Individual Networks
• Neighbourhood Management officer
• Licensing
• NY Fire and Rescue
• Youth Services
• Estate officers
• Drugs workers
• Schools
• Residents Associations
• Local Councillors
• Environmental Protection Officers
• Group Response
• Street Environment Officers
• Nature reserve officer