A TEAM of two dedicated housing officers have been entrusted with the task of putting Blackburn's pioneering strategy into action.

One of them is staying undercover because of the nature of his surveillance work.

But tenancy service officer Paul Crowther has responsibility for half of the council's 1,100 properties and describes himself as part policeman, part social worker and part housing officer.

Paul has had to take courses in housing law, self defence, investigation techniques and negotiating skills to be able to carry out his demanding job.

He also has to liaise closely with police, social services and health workers.

Most of the cases he has to deal with are caused by problems with drugs, constant loud music and parties and threatening behaviour. He said: "We always stress that the problem with nuisance neighbours is not just on council estates.

"Life has changed a lot in this country over the last 20 years and people are becoming more aware of the problems facing society.

"While there is a lot of poverty around, things like drugs, cars and loud hi-fis have become a lot more easily available."

When Paul gets a complaint from a tenant he talks to other residents and neighbours to see if there is a serious problem.

The officers try settling problems by getting people to compromise and they only take legal action in extreme cases.

Five tenants are currently facing eviction from an average workload of 40 complaints a week.

But Paul regularly uses his surveillance training to gather evidence, which can be used to evict troublesome tenants.

People evicted will be refused the offer of another house in the borough and names are also passed on to neighbouring councils as well as housing associations and landlords.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.