Acceptable behaviour contracts and local authorities

Copyright © 2025 LexisNexis
Produced in partnership with Morayo Fagborun Bennett of Gatehouse Chambers and Laura Tweedy of Gatehouse Chambers
Practice notes

Acceptable behaviour contracts and local authorities

Copyright © 2025 LexisNexis

Produced in partnership with Morayo Fagborun Bennett of Gatehouse Chambers and Laura Tweedy of Gatehouse Chambers

Practice notes
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Anti-social behaviour (ASB)

ASB is a broad term used to describe day-to-day incidents of crime, nuisance, disturbance, annoyance and disorder. ASB includes behaviour such as littering, vandalism, Noise nuisance, loud music, aggressive dogs and abusive neighbours.

Local authorities may be required to deal with ASB in both a housing and a non-housing context. In a housing context, a landlord may be required to deal with ASB between neighbours and members of their households or involving uninvited visitors to estates. In a non-housing context, ASB may include street drinking, gangs of youths and prostitution.

Reform of anti-social behaviour powers (2014)

The Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 (ABCPA 2014) received Royal Assent on 13 March 2014. It has reformed the tools available for dealing with ASB. The aim was to consolidate remedies and to make the process simpler and more effective. In July 2014, the government issued statutory guidance ‘Anti-social behaviour powers: statutory guidance for frontline professionals’. This guidance is periodically updated.

In July 2022, the Home

Morayo Fagborun Bennett
Morayo Fagborun Bennett

Gatehouse Chambers

Morayo specialises in all areas of landlord and tenant and property law.

Recent cases include Charalambous v Ng [2014] EWCA Civ 1604 (tenancy deposit schemes), Coope v Ward [2015] EWCA Civ 30 (easement of support and measured duty of care) and Farah v Hillingdon LBC [2014] EWCA Civ 359 (intentionality and homelessness). She also regularly acts in disrepair and dilapidation proceedings, service and estate charge disputes and residential and commercial lease renewals.

Morayo’s public law practice includes community care, Court of Protection, deprivation of liberty, welfare benefits, homelessness, judicial review and discrimination law. Recent cases concerned the community care needs of life sentenced prisoners, a deprivation of liberty case on the interface between the MCH and MCA and a test case on the lawfulness of the current practice adopted by decision makers in Employment Support Allowance assessments.

Morayo’s commercial practice covers contractual disputes in the property and employment sectors advocating in the courts and tribunals. A speciality is cases involving multiple discrimination complaints. Morayo came to the law with a background in philosophy and theology, graduating from St Hilda’s College, Oxford in 2000 with a 2:1. Her Masters in Crime, Human Rights and the International Community achieved a Distinction.

She attained a commendation in the Common Professional Examination and was graded outstanding on the Bar Vocational Course in 2004.

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Laura Tweedy
Laura Tweedy

Barrister, Gatehouse Chambers

Laura specialises in all aspects of social housing including homelessness and anti-social behaviour; as well as property law including (residential and commercial), landlord and tenant (residential and business) and public law.

Prior to coming to the bar Laura tutored at Durham University in European Law and she continues to regularly lecture and advise.

She works with Arrival Education to support achievement and development for underprivileged children.

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Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom
Key definition:
authorities definition
What does authorities mean?

judicial decisions or opinions of authors of repute used as grounds of statements of law;

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