Guidance on completing Anti-Social Behaviour diary sheets

3 min read

Incident diaries are issued to residents who are suffering from antisocial behaviour (ASB) in their community. The diaries are a log of what is occurring, how often it is happening, how it is affecting residents and identification or description of any perpetrators.  

They are an essential record of events and their impact. Action against perpetrators cannot be taken without community intelligence, and all identifying detail is confidential.

How to keep the incident diary

Incidents of ASB can routinely be solved without taking serious action. However, if a situation continues and there is sufficient evidence, the Antisocial Behaviour Team may intervene. Legal action requires a written diary/log describing each incident in detail and a court will only accept an incident diary if it is written in this format. A diary is a personal record of what you see or hear. It cannot describe what other people (including other household members or neighbours) have witnessed; they should complete their own diary of events. 

How to complete the diary: 

• Describe everything you see and hear in explicit, descriptive detail – Include who, what, when, where and how. A general summary is not clear evidence. Word for word evidence, and providing any coarse language used, is far more effective than, “they used abusive language.”
• Where possible, record a timeline of events immediately after each incident.
• Complete one form for each incident.
• If a second incident occurs on the same day or night, start a new form.
• Place your signature and date at the bottom of each form.
• Return to:  Antisocial Behaviour Team, Reading Police Station, Castle Street, Reading, RG1 7TH