Around the country, councils are looking at whether or where to bring in PSPOs – Public Spaces Protection Orders. These could be for anything from smoking in bus shelters to begging and drinking in public, and other sorts of anti-social behaviour (ASB), as this round-up suggests.
Blackpool Council in June began a three-month consultation to the end of August on PSPOs for parts of the town centre and Promenade, as well as in all of its parks. The council has proposed that the orders cover taking legal highs, selling “lucky charms” or heather, selling magazines or publications not for legitimate charities (this would not affect sales of magazine in aid of the homeless, The Big Issue, according to the council), and selling wristbands, besides issues in parks, such as graffiti, criminal damage,youth nuisance and substance misuse. Gillian Campbell, Deputy Leader of Blackpool Council, said: “One of the clear messages that we have heard from the community revolves around making sure that residents can feel safe, whether they are in their homes, in the town centre or at their local park.”
As of July 27 a PSPO in relation to dog control will take effect across the Dover district, pictured, and replace a number of out of date by-laws and create what Dover Council says is a more consistent approach to dog fouling, keeping dogs on leads and excluding dogs from specified areas. Any persons found guilty of breaching the orders can be fined; and the orders can be enforced by police officers, community safety officers and any officers designated by the council, for instance by a fixed penalty notice (on the spot fine of £100).
From August 3, it will be an offence to breach a PSPO covering Woodgate Valley Country park in Birmingham − covering taking drugs, being violent, causing damage, littering or riding a quad bike.
Civil liberties campaigners have complained of the vagueness of some orders, for instance in Birmingham against amplification by buskers and ‘speakers’, which Liberty says could breach freedom of expression by protesters.
Rosie Brighouse, Legal Officer for Liberty, said: “The people of Birmingham should not be criminalised for exercising their democratic right to demonstrate outside the city’s landmarks, or for using amplification when singing Christmas carols or holding peaceful open-air meetings and services – but that is exactly what the blanket ban proposed in this vaguely worded Order would do. If passed in its current form, this would be a shameful restriction on rights in a city with a long and proud history of political protest. We strongly urge the Council to abandon these misguided plans.” Likewise Liberty complained against Oxford City Council ‘s proposed PSPO to ban ‘persistent begging’, and sleeping in public toilets. Liberty opposed the creation of these orders on the basis that they are too widely drawn, with vague definitions of what can be criminalised and what the group calls disproportionately punitive sanctions. Liberty predicted that they would result in the fast-tracking of vulnerable individuals into the criminal justice system, rather than their diversion away from it. Oxford City Council said that it has been trying to balance the very real problems of nuisance behaviour in its city centre with the rights of individuals, and that its draft PSPO was in response to complaints from residents and businesses in the city centre.
Likewise the Leader of Wycombe District Council, Katrina Wood, at a July 20 Cabinet meeting defended the council’s position on PSPOs. She said that they are still relatively new ‘and there will be lessons to learn as councils around the country begin to roll them out’. “A public space protection order could be another way of helping us to tackle anti-social behaviour and keep our town centres safe and attractive places for residents and visitors to enjoy.” She stressed that the council had no intention of fining anyone for being homeless or for simply rough sleeping; and the council has not decided on PSPOs yet.
Range of orders
Among the proposed orders, Wirral Borough Council has a PSPO covering New Brighton Boating Lake and Marine Lake against ‘foul or abusive language’, and swimming there.
PSPOs are likened to by-laws. Many coming in cover general behaviour such as on-street drinking and anti-social behaviour (ASB). Bolsover District Council in Derbyshire for instance proposes a PSPO for the market place of Shirebrook. Likewise the London borough of Croydon is running an ‘engagement exercise‘ to August 19 for a PSPO for Croydon town centre; seeking views on which types of ASB should be considered for inclusion.
Colchester Borough Council has consulted on two proposed PSPOs for St. Botolph’s Circus in the town to ban drinking of alcohol in public. And in Nottinghamshire Ashfield District Council likewise proposed PSPOs against anti-social behaviour – such as dog fouling, and urinating in public – in areas such as streets, parks, market places, cemeteries and churchyards. In July Hull City Council ran a consultation on a PSPO for the Riverside area, to cover drinking in city centre streets. Alan Clark, Portfolio Holder for Neighbourhoods and Communities, said: “”Residents have told us that people consuming alcohol and behaving badly can prevent others in the community from using and enjoying shared public spaces as well as having a detrimental effect on the quality of life in the local area. This is not acceptable.” Also proposed is ‘authorised people’ confiscating alcohol being consumed in public spaces. And City of York Council, too is similarly proposing a no-alcohol in public PSPO for Union Terrace and The Groves.
And at Bassetlaw Council in Nottinghamshire, a PSPO is proposed at Celtic Point in Gateford, Worksop, to prohibit: shouting, swearing or acting in a manner as to cause annoyance, harassment, alarm or distress to any person; and under 16 year olds (who are not under the effective control of a parent or adult) gathering in groups of three or more. Stella Fitzgerald, the Council’s Principal Solicitor for Licensing and Regulatory matters said: “The introduction of Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime & Policing Act, 2014 streamlined the tools which the council has available to them to tackle anti-social behaviour. The new power of a Public Space Protection Orders gives the Council the power to target areas, in the district, where Anti-Social Behaviours is an issue by targeting groups and individuals and controlling the anti-social activities which they are engaging in. By working with both the local community and the police we are putting measures in place that will allow action to be taken against those causing nuisance and distress to others and allow local residents to live peacefully without threat of nuisance, harassment, alarm or distress.”
The law
A council has a two-part test for making a PSPO: it must be satisfied that the problem is detrimental to quality of life, and are persistent and unreasonable; and that the proposed restrictions are justified. As the orders are brought in, it may well be that several covering various sorts of anti-social behaviour run in the same place at once, such as littering and dog fouling. Any Designated Public Places Orders to restrict drinking in public from 2017 effectively convert to PSPOs.
