City of York Council has evicted a husband and wife from their council flat after they caused severe nuisance to neighbours including a serious assault on a neighbour by the woman.

Richard Tait, 54, and 50-year-old Linda Tait have been forced to leave their ground floor flat at Aldborough House, Brook Street, The Groves near York city centre, after the council secured a possession order at York County Court on Wednesday of last week (January 8).

City of York Council's tenancy enforcement team had been working on the case for some time after complaints from neighbours about the couple's drink-fuelled abuse. The couple lived at Aldborough house since 1999 and had subjected neighbours to both physical and verbal abuse.

Both Mr and Mrs Tait had admitted problems with alcohol and the county court was told at last week's hearing that Mrs Tait, in particular, was prone to violence and intimidation of her neighbours when in drink.

In one incident in April of last year, a female neighbour was assaulted and verbally abused by Mrs Tait. Police were called and Mrs Tait assaulted the arresting officer. The incidents breached an injunction the council had already won to try to protect neighbours and Mrs Tait was later convicted of two counts of assault at York Magistrates' Court.

In agreeing to the council's application for a possession order District Judge Wildsmith said Mrs Tait had displayed 'explosions of unprovoked violence' which left residents in constant fear of disruption to their lives.

Neil McFarlane, the council's tenancy enforcement manager, said, "This has been a very protracted case for the tenancy enforcement team but the outcome clearly demonstrates the council's commitment to solving serious neighbour nuisance.

"It also has to be acknowledged that the support of the local community, and North Yorkshire Police, whose officers gave evidence in court, is critical to the process of dealing with nuisance neighbours. This case is an excellent example of what can be achieved through collective effort."

The council established yesterday that the Taits had vacated the flat within the court's deadline.

Councillor Ruth Potter, the council's executive member for housing, said, "This case demonstrates the council's willingness to tackle the difficult issues involved in neighbour nuisance. By working with other agencies in the city and most importantly with local people we can put a stop to these incidents."

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