The Scottish Executive has made antisocial behaviour a priority for this term of parliament. Shelter welcomes that priority, given the serious nature of the problem in Scotland. We agree that the problems facing some neighbourhoods, especially the most disadvantaged neighbourhoods, are intolerable. Finding lasting solutions to antisocial behaviour will be a major challenge for the government, and will require a strategic approach that strikes a balance between prevention of the problem and effective responses.

This paper responds to the consultation paper 'Putting our communities first: a strategy for tackling antisocial behaviour', and sets out Shelter's views on specific proposals in the strategy. Many of the Executive's proposals are in areas that are not directly within Shelter's sphere of expertise and we do not comment further on those. But some suggestions directly impact on the way in which households access and retain housing. Further, we have some observations about the overall approach to antisocial behaviour in the paper. This paper sets out Shelter's view that effective solutions, and not punitive legal measures, should be at the forefront of any strategy to deal with the problem.