Warden busy dealing with range of anti-social behaviour

FORRES’ community warden Dave Hayack went along to Forres Community Council to bring them up to date with issues keeping him busy in the town in recent weeks.

He ha been tackling a range of antisocial behaviour issues in the area ranging from disputes and vandalism to dog fouling, littering and vehicle abandonment.

Mr Haytack works on a five week shift pattern with four other Moray community wardens, and explained that around 75% of his work is carried out in Forres.

“The majority of my time is spent in Forres,” he said. “However, the Aberlour and Rothes areas also need attention.

“I often carry out plain clothes patrols and I am continuing to work alongside a number of partner agencies to tackle anti-social issues.”

The wardens work with housing partners on various issues and Police Scotland, youth and health workers on ‘Operation Avon’, targeting youth annoyance and underage drinking.

Several neighbour disputes were resolved over the last two months in Forres to the satisfaction of the Antisocial Behaviour Coordinator, Andy Jamieson.

These involved complaints about music being played too loudly, dogs barking and people shouting in the Califer and Pilmuir area. Mr Haytack visited the homes of those responsible and advised them to keep the noise down.

“We audited each incident,” said Mr Jamieson. “It was found that the warden had done everything he could to provide solutions including mediation and warnings.”

A complaint of youth annoyance was also brought to Mr Haytack’s attention by the Early Intervention Worker.

“Kids of secondary age were hanging around Pilmuir Primary School and making a nuisance of themselves,” he said.

“All the youths have now been spoken to (with their parents present) by the EIW and myself or have received letters from Police Scotland.

“There have been no further complaints.”

Mr Haytack is aware of previous complaints from Forres Area Soccer Sevens about unscrupulous dog owners using the playing fields at Grant Park as pet toilets.

“This is still been monitored by myself and Soccer7s,” he said. “An article in the ‘Gazette’ was well received and the area will continue to get a lot of attention from us.”

There were three new instances of dog fouling reported in the Plasmon Mill and Califer areas of the town.

“These were general complaints with no offenders identified,” added Mr Haytack.

The warden asked that more people report instances to Moray Council on 0800 5877197, otherwise he is solely reliant on catching lawbreakers in the act. If they are prepared to make a statement and identify offenders, a fine can be issued.

Around six dog owners have been issued with fines in Forres over the last five years.

Hotspot areas targeted for warden patrols and warning posters also include Clovenside Cemetery, Grant Park, Pilmuir and Mannachie Park.

Mr Haytack has not received any further reports of littering by school pupils at lunchtimes. Ongoing lunchtime litter patrols are carried out by the warden and occasionally a member of Police Scotland. Both advise youngsters whenever possible.

“This is an on-going issue and wardens are working together to plan various initiatives to target it,” said Mr Haytack.

“If a litterbug is seen, the head teacher is informed and a letter is sent to their parents from the antisocial behaviour office informing them of the incident.

“If a student is over sixteen years of age they can expect to receive a fixed penalty notice of £80.”

A litter and fly-tipping initiative from Moray Council will last until the end of May. It includes extra patrols from community wardens and promotion of the Green Dog Walker Scheme.

The fine for fly-tipping has increased with littering to £200.

“The increase in fines may not improve the situation straight away,” said the warden, “but hopefully it will make people think twice about how they dispose of their litter so that they do it correctly.”

Mr Haytack is also investigating reports of abandoned vehicles. A number of cars were classed as abandoned in Califer but removed by their owners after Antisocial Behaviour warning letters and car notices were issued.

“There is only one under investigation at the moment,” he said. “The owner has been identified and procedures are now in place to have it removed.”