By Annie DavidsonA NEW initiative to tackle anti-social behaviour has been welcomed by a mother who helped police take her daughter to court.The Tendring district has been chosen as one of 50 areas in the country to take part in a Home Office pilot scheme to target anti-social behaviour, for which it has been given £62,000 funding.

By Annie Davidson

A NEW initiative to tackle anti-social behaviour has been welcomed by a mother who helped police take her daughter to court.

The Tendring district has been chosen as one of 50 areas in the country to take part in a Home Office pilot scheme to target anti-social behaviour, for which it has been given £62,000 funding.

It has become a Together Action Area with Essex Police, the district council, Tendring Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership and other agencies working with the community to tackle the problem.

John Hawkins, chief executive of Tendring District Council, said the district already had a good record for tackling anti-social behaviour and the new initiative would be building on work already being done.

Tendring district councillor Roy Caddick, who has been deputed to work with the Together Action Area partnership, said it would be working with other agencies such as schools and social services.

But he stressed the community needed to work together to tackle the issue. “This nuisance affects us all in society nowadays,” added Mr Caddick.

Behaviour deemed to be anti-social covers everything from dropping litter, hoax 999 calls, abandoned cars and loud music to being a drug dealer or user, prostitution, indecent exposure and rowdy behaviour.

The partnership is hoping to set up a telephone line for people to report instances of anti-social behaviour.

Tracy Timothy, who lives on the Percy King estate in Clacton, was the victim of a harassment campaign for three years at the hands of two teenage sisters.

Eventually Miss Timothy's 14-year-old daughter joined the sisters in their campaign of terror and moved in with them.

Miss Timothy, her friends and family were subjected to abuse and harassment from the trio and began to work with the police to solve the problem.

Eventually all three were issued with anti-social behaviour orders, which included restrictions that prevented them being together in public and meant they had to move away from the Percy King estate.

Miss Timothy said: “I think the victim helpline is a very good idea. People don't always want to be identified as being the person reporting these incidents.

“If there is a line where you don't have to disclose who you are, that will help. It would have made my life a lot easier.

“People don't want to get involved, but I was because of my daughter, so I stuck with it.”

Miss Timothy said the abuse had been “absolutely terrifying and made my life a misery”.

She added: “They abused my family and friends. I was threatened every time I went out the house, I felt like a prisoner in my own home. I am suffering from depression because of it all.”

Miss Timothy said her daughter had improved since being away from the sisters and that life on the estate was “much quieter and much nicer” since the court case.

annie.davidson@eadt.co.uk