Calls for anti-social behaviour crackdown in St Helier

Retailers in Jersey are calling for tougher action to tackle anti-social behaviour by young people. The management company for the Liberty Wharf shopping centre says the same group of teenagers has been causing trouble for over a year, including several incidents of vandalism, fires being started in the toilets and at least one assault. Gary Bryant from Morganfinch Management Services says the police do attend whenever shopkeepers call them, but the group keeps returning.

Shop owners are now worried that the behaviour, coupled with the damage to communal facilities, might deter customers from coming in.

The States of Jersey Police has noticed a spike in reports of anti-social behaviour in the past 12 months. Community Policing Inspector Huw Williams says a group of around a dozen young people, aged between 12 and 15, are responsible for the bulk of the complaints.

The Courts in England and Wales have different tools to tackle the problem, under the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act of 2014.

They can issue Civil Injunctions, Community Protection Notices or Criminal Behaviour Orders (which replace the old Anti-Social Behaviour Orders, or ASBOs).

They might ban a youth from a town centre, or ban them from gathering with other young people. They can also be forced to repair damage they've caused. Breaking these orders is punishable with a fine or time in youth detention. Jersey's Home Affairs Minister says he will look into bringing similar legislation to Jersey if necessary, but he believes looking at the root causes of the behaviour is important. He wants to work with the Youth Service and other agencies to intervene in these teenagers' lives earlier. The Children's Commissioner, Deborah McMillan, is conducting a review of youth justice, compiling data about youth crime and assessing Jersey's system against comparable jurisdictions. The results will be made public in the coming weeks.