Couple stand up to ASBO neighbour
NADV 1201261 Housing Award. (1201261AM)
A COURAGEOUS Harrogate couple have been presented with an award for standing up to an anti-social neighbour who was terrorising their community.
William and Christina Brown, of Pendragon Way, were honoured with a Yorkshire Housing Action Against Anti Social Behaviour award after they showed extraordinary bravery and civic mindedness and helped to make their neighbourhood a safer place.
Mr and Mrs Brown, who work together operating a fast food van on the Ripon bypass, intervened when one of their neighbours was attacked and were then brave enough to provide a witness statement making it possible for the housing association to have the perpetrator evicted and put a halt to any further violence.
“I didn’t hesitate for a second, because you can’t live like that,” Mrs Brown told the Advertiser.
“You’ve got to be able to feel safe in the place that you live in and you’ve got to know that once you’ve closed your doors that you’re OK.
“I just knew that I had to stop whatever was happening, we just did what we felt what was right, what needed to be done.”
Mrs Brown said she and her husband didn’t think twice for their own safety while breaking up the attack on their next door neighbour, and were only concerned with stopping the violence and making sure that the children in the vicinity were safe.
Rebecca Brown, Yorkshire Housing’s neighbourhood officer for Harrogate, said it was not just the intervention that had led to the award, but the courage the couple had shown afterwards, offering to give a witness statement when other people in the area had been too scared to come forward.
“We had gone to so many houses trying to get witness statements and everyone was saying they were frightened and I was really starting to give up hope, thinking ‘we are never going to be able to prove this’,” said Ms Brown.
“Then I came to Chrissy and she just said, ‘yes, this is what happened and yes I will give a witness statement’ and I just thought, ‘thank God’.”
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Friday 18 May 2012
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