Train public about conflict says report

A radical new approach to tackling anti-social behaviour is required to tackle the problem, the Royal Society of Arts report said.

Training should include self-protection and restraint, how to read situations to decide when it is appropriate to intervene or when to call the police, and skills in conflict resolution and mediation, it said.

Report author Ben Rogers said: “With the real prospect of traditional police patrolling being scaled back, now is surely the time to focus seriously on agreeing the core skills that active citizens need – individually or collectively – if they’re to step up to the mark.

The report, First Aid Approaches To Managing Anti-Social Behaviour, also suggested training for those “potentially influential within their communities”, such as shopkeepers, publicans and postal workers.