A DRUG den in a block of Southend flats has been closed after major issues with anti-social behaviour, drug use and drug dealing.

Earlier this month, the Echo reported that officers from Southend Council, Essex Police and South Essex Homes served a closure notice at 106 Quantock, in Chichester Road.

The flat was issued the notice due to a string of reports and evidence of drug activity in the flat, and the communal hallways and staircases.

On Wednesday, the council were successful in securing a closure order under the ASB Crime and Policing Act 2014.

Martin Terry, councillor responsible for community safety and customer contact, said: “It is great to see positive action with the closure order placed on this property.

“We have received many complaints about drug dealing and drug use from concerned residents, and this outcome will be very much welcomed by residents.

“We are dedicated to keeping our residents safe and well, and when residents do not feel safe in their own homes, appropriate action must be taken.

“If anyone has any information regarding the sale of drugs, please contact Essex Police by calling 101.”

The closure order lasts three months and means that only the council, police and South Essex Homes officers can enter the property in this time.

The tenant is excluded from the property during this time.

While the property is closed, an application for possession action will be sought.

Anyone seen entering the property can be arrested and faces up to 51 weeks in prison, and unlimited fine or both.

This action was taken with evidence supplied by South Essex Homes, SEPS Security and Essex Police detailing the significant impact on residents.

After serving the notice, Essex Police’s Operation Raptor team tweeted: “Notice of intended court action has been served by South Essex Homes and Southend Council on a tenant within Quantock flats. The property is linked to class A drug use and antisocial behaviour.”

The block of of flats has proved controversial and has regularly been linked to crime in the past.

In September last year a vulnerable person was saved from exploitation after a court order banned people from a different flat.

Again, the property had been linked to drugs and drug dealing and police and the council served the closure order on the property in a bid to safeguard the resident – a vulnerable adult – from ongoing antisocial behaviour.