A COURT has ordered that a council house in Ridgway Hill Road, Farnham, be sealed against anyone entering, following almost three years of complaints from neighbours about drugs use and disorder. The application for the 'crack house closure' at 21 Ridgway Hill Road was made by Surrey Police and Waverley Borough Council at South West Surrey Magistrates Court in Guildford on Wednesday. As well as statements from the police, evidence was provided by the borough council, which owns the property and acted as professional witnesses on behalf of council tenants too frightened to give direct statements. The previous day, a man had been arrested during an early morning raid at the house involving a team of 10-12 officers and a sniffer dog. Search warrants were executed at the property just before 7am on Tuesday. Representatives from Waverley Council, including the anti-social behaviour officer and a dog warden to deal with a dog at the premises, were also present. A 20-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of possession of cannabis and later cautioned. But a search of the property uncovered evidence of use of class A drugs including drugs paraphernalia. Traces of class A drugs were detected at the scene and on the occupants through the use of an ion track machine. In conjunction with the warrant carried out under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, a closure notice was authorised by West Surrey Neighbourhoods Superintendent Chris Moon. This prohibited anyone, except those habitually residing at the address, from entering until Wednesday's court hearing. The order granted by the court has immediate effect and means no one will be allowed to enter the property. It will be sealed for three months, which will give Waverley Council the time to obtain an eviction order against the tenants while also giving immediate help to the surrounding residents who have suffered from ongoing anti-social behaviour at the property. Contractors have begun work on boarding up the premises. A team of officers have been putting the application together based on information which suggested the registered tenant was using class A drugs, particularly heroin, and that class A drugs may have been supplied from the premises. They discovered that a high level of anti-social behaviour, including numerous visitors to the address at all hours, was also occurring, causing distress and nuisance to neighbours. Complaints received since July 2005 have included discovery of drugs paraphernalia, possible drug dealing and numerous visitors to the property, noise, damage to property, police and paramedic attendance, rowdy behaviour, domestic disturbances, vehicle noise, rubbish, smells, and noisy, unruly dogs. An Anti-Social Behaviour Injunction was obtained in February against a man who had been sleeping on the sofa at the address, which prevented him from entering the premises and the surrounding area. On March 26, residents reported that the man had breached the injunction and said they were concerned for their own safety. Officers, including the area's safer neighbourhood team, neighbourhood specialist officer Pc Simon Anderson and Police Community Support Officer Karen Phillips, have been patrolling the area to reassure neighbouring residents and to check that visitors are not still attempting to gain access to the property. Waverley Borough Council's anti-social behaviour officer Julie Shaw explained: "The culmination of this course of action is the result of several months of intensive family outreach support to try and assist people to change their behaviour. "Unfortunately, despite the efforts of several agencies, the life choices made by individuals associated with this property have impacted heavily on the surrounding community." She said the council had decided that the needs of the community outweighed the needs of those who had been repeatedly warned about the consequences of their actions. For a 'crack house closure' application to succeed, it must be proved that a premises has been involved in the production, dealing or use of Class A drugs (the Ridgway Hill Road application was made on the basis of 'use'). It must also be demonstrated that disorder or serious nuisance is associated with the use of the premises and that closure is necessary to prevent further disorder. Supt Chris Moon said: "These powers allow us to take rapid and effective action against a specific form of drug activity which causes great harm to local communities. "We are not afraid to take this action to curtail suspected criminal activity, particularly when it is causing so much misery to neighbouring residents. "Surrey Police continues to invest in local policing and this excellent result reinforces the value of having local officers working closely with their local communities. "The quality of evidence provided by the officers and supported by the community was commended by the court. "Our successful application is also a direct result of the excellent partnership we share with Waverley Borough Council, with whom we have worked closely throughout." Supt Moon added: "We would urge the public to continue working closely with us to eradicate anti- social behaviour which blights the lives of so many communities."
