Leeds residents accuse council of 'total disrespect' towards tenants plague by asbo neighbours on Drighlington estate

Kingsway in Drighlington is blighted by issues created by some of the tenants placed there by Leeds City Council, a committee meeting was told on Monday. The estate near Morley is home to a mixture of social housing tenants and privately owned properties.

One local councillor said legal action was under way to evict a problem resident, amid suggestions ambulance staff were blocked while trying to respond to an emergency on the estate last week. The council itself would not confirm whether or not an eviction process had been started, but insisted it investigated all cases of anti-social behaviour on the estate “thoroughly”.

Speaking at the council’s Outer South Community Committee, on which councillors from Morley, Ardsley and Rothwell sit, one resident said the issues had been going on for too long. He said: “It’s not just me that’s affected, but other people on Kingsway too, because it’s being used as a dumping ground by Leeds City Council. The police turn up, issue words of advice and then leave. We’ve had three years of this and some serious action needs taking now.

“Leeds City Council treat the tenants with total disrespect. They don’t keep us in the loop. They don’t keep us up-to-date and they let the perpetrators get away with everything. I needed an ambulance last week because I had surgery recently and it couldn’t get through because of the upstairs tenant.”

In response, Morley North councillor Robert Finnigan said he was aware of one individual behaving “unacceptably” on the estate. He said “legal action is going at pace” to evict them. “The tenancy shouldn’t have been given to this individual in the first place,” said Coun Finnigan, who leads the Morley Borough Independents (MBIs) on the city council. “Leeds City Council seem to have an obsession with making sure those with chaotic lifestyles are put in communities that aren’t appropriate for them, where they don’t have the support they need. The result is that we are, along with the police, battling against the harm they’re bringing to those particular communities.

“There’s a significant amount of legal work going on to try and deal with communities that were once quite harmonious, but now have significant problems. As ward councillors in Morley North, we’ll continue to pursue this until we get an outcome that is satisfactory for the residents of Kingsway.”

A spokesperson for Leeds City Council said: “Anti-social behaviour is not acceptable and will not be tolerated.We work closely through the Safer Leeds Partnership to address concerns of anti-social behaviour and recognise the impact anti-social behaviour can have on residents and communities. We are committed to managing tenancies to minimise the impact and incidents of anti-social behaviour, and we will use the various tools and powers available to put a stop to it where it is affecting residents. We can assure residents of Kingsway in Drighlington that all cases are investigated in a thorough and confidential manner.”