Think Tank

Can we help our tenants film their nuisance neighbours?

We have purchased a portable, covert CCTV camera and are thinking of lending it to residents to film nuisance and antisocial behaviour. What are the legal implications?

If you're a council, you should consider getting authorisation under the 2000 Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act from a senior officer of the council. This covers use of CCTV equipment where it is necessary and proportionate for the prevention and detection of crime or disorder and where adequate plans have been made to reduce intrusion into people's lives who may not be the target of the investigation.

The act does not cover the general public reporting incidents as part of their civic duty, but supplying them with the means to covertly watch neighbours may be seen as going beyond that civic duty. It may be interpreted as making residents the agents of the council.

You must also consider the effects of article 8 of the 1998 Human Rights Act. This allows interference with a person's right to respect for their privacy if it is proportionate and necessary on certain specified grounds, such as the protection of the rights and freedoms of others.

To prevent a complaint of breach of article 8, either get an RIPA authorisation or devise a checklist to make sure any filming is article 8 compliant and that you have some way of controlling how the camera is used and how the evidence obtained by it is used.

Sharon Heels, senior legal officer, Kirklees Council

Local authorities should obtain authorisation under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act for such surveillance and post-transfer registered social landlords should agree a protocol with their council for the council to authorise the surveillance.

Housing associations that were not formed by large-scale voluntary transfer from the council are not bodies that can breach someone's human rights and therefore do not need RIPA authorisation.

I would suggest, however, that on the lending of the equipment authorisation is obtained from a senior member of the housing association with a justification as to why the CCTV equipment has been lent. That should be regularly reviewed to decide whether authorisation should continue.

Those who are to use the cameras should be trained on how the equipment should be used, trained on the guidelines for their use and asked to sign a document confirming that they accept the guidelines and will abide by them. The information obtained should be stored securely and should only be passed to a third party under the provisions of the Data Protection Act.

Elisabeth Bradshaw, associate solicitor, Cobbetts

The information commissioner has developed a code of practice for CCTV schemes, which includes guidance on access to CCTV footage. From dealing with the information commissioner in the past, it is evident that any request for access to footage must be made in writing to the organisation that is responsible for the CCTV scheme.

The owner of the footage can however refuse this request for legitimate purposes such as crime prevention. In addition the issue of inadmissibility of evidence in individual cases is a matter for the office of the information commissioner. If you require further guidance on access to CCTV footage you can call the commissioner's office on 01625 545 745.

Joe Tuke, Deputy director, the Antisocial Behaviour Unit at the Home Office

When we shut a crack house, what happens to the tenancy?

As a local authority landlord, we are working with the police to close down a couple of crack houses under part one of the 2003 Antisocial Behaviour Act. What happens to the tenancies while the properties are closed? Do they remain secure? Can housing benefit be paid? And do the tenants or occupiers become "homeless" and in priority need?

The Human Rights Act allows for interference with a person’s right to privacy on certain, specified grounds

The tenancy will need to be terminated using the usual technique of a notice seeking possession (or section 21 notice for probationary tenancies) and then securing vacant possession at a court hearing.

As with tenants who are sent to prison for a long period of time, using the notice to quit route seems risky because returning to the premises during the banning order will be a criminal offence.

Adam Greenwood, director, Adam Greenwood Associates

Magistrates courts have the power to close down a property for three months, extendable to six months, where the police have produced evidence that a property has been associated with the unlawful use, supply or production of a class A drug, the premises has been associated with serious nuisance or disorder to the public and it is necessary to close down the premises to meet the problem.

Home Office guidance indicates that you should work closely with the police, if possible, before a closure notice (the first step in the process) and closure order are made. If the problem is not the tenant, could you ask the court to give him or her permission to stay but ban the hangers-on who cause the problems? That would avoid the problem altogether. If the tenant is part of the problem, the court may order that he or she does not return to the home.

The closure order does not end the tenancy. Unless the tenant voluntarily gives up possession or terminates, the landlord must seek possession through the county court. If they are a secure tenant, they remain a secure tenant. The precise method will depend on what type of tenancy is held.

Three months should be sufficient time to commence, if not obtain, possession. If longer is needed, the magistrates court could extend the closure order to six months.

Housing benefit is usually only payable for 13 weeks; if the tenant is absent longer and the landlord suffers financial loss, there is provision in the closure order powers in the 2003 Antisocial Behaviour Act to ask the court for compensation.

Home Office guidance speaks of the landlord needing to satisfy the court that it took reasonable steps to address the issue.

Any decision on future housing entitlement may well be affected by how responsible the tenant was for the problem initially or whether they themselves were vulnerable and in need of support.

Sharon Heels, senior legal officer, Kirklees Council

Why can't I get a job? More suggestions

The person who was having trouble finding work (Think Tank, 4 June, page 29) should apply for voluntary work with a local organisation. A local Council for Voluntary Services or Volunteer Bureau would have details of which organisations are looking for volunteers with his skills and qualifications.

Volunteer work can often provide the best work experience and open up opportunities for increasing skills, knowledge and confidence in the workplace.