Alcohol policy
Civil injunctions and criminal behaviour orders can be a treatment opportunity, says Mike Ward
CorreCt move
IN MY PREVIOUS TWO ARTICLES in DDN( June, page 23 and September page 12), I discussed various legal powers which can be used to help people with chronic alcohol problems, including the Mental Health Act and the Mental Capacity Act – both of which are challenging to apply in practice.
A third group of legal powers that can be used are Civil Injunctions( CIs) and Criminal Behaviour Orders( CBOs). Unlike the other two powers, government guidance has clearly specified that they should be used for people with alcohol problems. The challenge is how to turn that into a reality.
These powers were introduced in 2014 and replaced the much better known ASBOs( anti-social behaviour orders). 1 The new orders are similar to ASBOs; they allow courts to ban behaviours( such as visiting a specified location, carrying an open drink container), but they also allow positive requirements, which encourage lifestyle changes that can prevent future anti-social behaviour.
The two powers are essentially the same, but CBOs are usually sought as part of an existing prosecution – whereas CIs require a separate legal process. The police are most likely to initiate an application for a CBO; the CIs are more likely to be used by local authorities and housing associations. Of the two, the CBO is by far more commonly used.
Most importantly, the guidance supporting the legislation states that these orders are appropriate for people whose anti-social behaviour is due to alcohol problems and that the positive requirements can include mainstream alcohol interventions, such as to receive support and counselling or attend alcohol awareness classes. This could equally apply to drug interventions.
In some ways, these orders are similar to Alcohol Treatment Requirements( ATRs) or Drug Rehabilitation Requirements( ie probation orders with a treatment condition). However, whereas the ATRs are usually offered as a choice instead of a prison sentence, the CBOs and CIs can be imposed without client consent. That does not mean that someone can be‘ forced to
have treatment’, but if they repeatedly do not comply with their order, this could lead to a prison sentence of five years.
Some people dislike this approach because of the danger of increasing someone’ s involvement in the criminal justice system. However, if all other strategies to protect the public from a person’ s anti-social behaviour have failed, then CBOs and CIs are an option which may ultimately protect someone from the most serious consequences of their behaviour.
***** OVER THE LAST YEAR, an Alcohol Research UK-funded project has been running to help community safety and alcohol treatment staff develop alcohol-focused positive requirements. More than 100 staff from local authorities across England and Wales have contributed, alongside three over-subscribed regional workshops. This project has been well received and there is real local interest in how these orders can best be used.
This article comes out of a more detailed report on this topic, which is available on the Alcohol Concern website. 2 This research evidence shows a positive impact from these orders for many clients. However, the key finding from the research is that further work is required to enable alcohol and drug treatment services to support these orders. For example, at times people have been given requirements to engage with services, without any consultation with the services expected to deliver the interventions. Therefore, more needs to be done to engage and include alcohol treatment services from the beginning of any CBO or CI process.
Anti-social behaviour is a serious concern, which causes alarm and distress to communities, often to the most vulnerable. We believe that senior police officers, police and crime commissioners and community safety managers should work with public
‘ CBOs and CIs can be imposed without client consent.’
health commissioners to design service specifications and contracts that support treatment service involvement in positive requirements.
The CBOs and CIs are not the only powers in the 2014 Act that can be used to help people with longterm substance misuse. Other powers include closure orders and the community trigger. For details on these interventions, see the guidance on the government’ s website. 1
To learn more about this research and for training opportunities, email mward @ alcoholconcern. org. uk
1
Home Office( 2017). Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014: Anti-social behaviour powers. Statutory guidance for frontline professionals. Available at: https:// www. gov. uk / government / uploads / system / upl oads / attachment _ data / file / 332839 / StatutoryGuidan ceFrontline. pdf, pp. 1-67.
2
Alcohol Concern and Alcohol Research UK( 2018). Tackling alcohol-related anti-social behaviour through Civil Injunctions and Criminal Behaviour Orders: A missed opportunity? Available at: https:// www. alcoholconcern. org. uk / tackling-alcoholrelated-anti-social-behaviour-through-civilinjunctions-and-criminal-behaviour-orders, pp. 1-19.
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