For six years, Zara* experienced antisocial behaviour by her neighbour. He would park outside Zara’s house and stare at her in the kitchen, corner her in her driveway and shout abuse at her, and even dented her car by reversing into it. Zara feared for her safety.

Zara already suffered from a fear of being in open or public spaces. Her neighbour’s actions only made her anxiety worse and she stopped going out altogether.

Despite asking him to leave her alone and reporting it to the police, her neighbour persisted with this threatening behaviour. Zara was left feeling stressed, anxious and scared in her own home.

Victim Support got in touch with Zara and supported her emotionally through a number of face-to-face visits and phone calls. We encouraged her to speak to her doctor who helped her manage her anxiety.

We also helped Zara prepare for the trial by explaining what would happen in the court room.

Thanks to Zara’s testimony in court, her offender was given an antisocial behaviour order, which has helped her to move forward with her life.

* Name changed to maintain anonymity