Convicted drug dealer banned from council home

Dale, of Westfield Road in Newcastle, received a seven-year prison sentence for her role in county lines drug dealing that saw large quantities of heroin and cocaine brought onto the streets of the North-East over several years.

Your Homes Newcastle (YHN) manages council tenancies on behalf of Newcastle City Council and pursued legal action on behalf of the local authority to ensure Dale will never be able to return to the address where she carried out her crimes, reassuring residents that their community is safe and sending a clear message that crime and anti-social behaviour will not be tolerated.

Working in partnership with Northumbria Police, Your Homes Newcastle used the evidence presented in the original criminal trial to demonstrate that Dale had been the perpetrator of anti-social behaviour and had contributed to wider social and criminal damage through her role in bringing illegal drugs to the streets of Newcastle.

Dale initially appealed the legal action but following a lengthy legal process Your Homes Newcastle was successful in gaining a legal order from Newcastle County Court on 9 August 2022 that means their former tenant will not have any rights to return to the property she previously called home.

Jen Vinton, Group Director of Housing at Your Homes Newcastle, said: “One of the core reasons Your Homes Newcastle exists is to provide safe homes and communities for our customers and we are prepared to do whatever it takes to make sure local neighbourhoods are safe and welcoming places to live.

“We need to be able to provide lots of evidence to support our case to enable us to act against perpetrators, as even with a conviction, the process of legal action can still be complicated and expensive.

“We will not tolerate crime and anti-social behaviour and by working in partnership with our colleagues at Northumbria Police and Newcastle City Council we are prepared to do whatever it takes to ensure perpetrators like Carol Dale are not able to continue living in the properties we manage.”

Cabinet member for a Dynamic City, Cllr Irim Ali, who is responsible for housing and regulation, said: “I welcome this action by YHN and the council as I am sure residents do too.

“Everyone has the right to live in a safe and peaceful neighbourhood free of anti-social behaviour, and my heart goes out to all the residents whose lives were affected by criminal activity at that address.

“I’d like to commend Your Homes Newcastle for sticking to the course and achieving this order. It sends a strong message that if you use your council house for criminal activity we will seek to take that house away from you.”

Superintendent Jamie Pitt, of Northumbria Police added: “As a Force, we are determined to do all we can to protect our communities from the corrosive impact illegal drug supply can have.

“Our role is predominantly to disrupt the supply chain, topple the organised criminal groups behind it and help achieve real, long-lasting change in our communities.

“Drug supply is a complex issue, which is why we continue to work with our partners, such as Your Homes Newcastle and the Local Authority as part of Project Adder to help ensure vulnerable drug users are given the support they need, and those involved in criminality, making money from misery are identified and brought to justice.”

Newcastle residents with any concerns about anti-social behaviour or criminal activity can report it to the Police by calling 101 or using their online reporting tool in a non-emergency.  For issues relating to a YHN customer or property, residents can contact YHN’s Safe Living team on 0191 278 8600 or safeliving@yhn.org.uk.  In an emergency, residents should contact the Police on 999.