Four in 10 people subject to antisocial behaviour orders in Oxford have been back before the courts for violating the conditions.

There are 35 people in the city subject to full or temporary Asbos, and 15 have appeared before magistrates for breaching their orders, although one was not convicted.

Asbos are civil court orders, but breaching them is a criminal offence punishable by up to five years in jail.

Oxford defence advocate Stuart Matthews, of Reeds solicitors, said instead of helping people to stop offending, Asbos set them up to fail, because of the wide-ranging restrictions which made breaches likely. He said people who were vulnerable often ended up being named and shamed as a result of evidence that would not be accepted in criminal trials.

In a criminal case, wrongdoing must be proved beyond reasonable doubt, but 'hearsay' evidence can be submitted in Asbo hearings.

Mr Matthews said: "It's the modern equivalent of the stocks. How do you rehabilitate people who you have put in the stocks? You are essentially making that person a pariah."

He said Asbos simply served to alienate recipients from their communities.

"It's divisive rather than unifying, especially in relation to the young. A lot of the people involved live in areas where there's absolutely nothing to do." Anne Marie Ede, 38, whose 18-year-old son Christopher was given an Asbo on March 4 as a result of disorder in north Oxford, said Asbos did not tackle the underlying reasons for a person's offending.

She said: "I'm not in any way trying to justify what he has done, but what I need is help in order to help him address his behaviour.

"I worry about the stigmatization. I feel Chris is unemployable after this, which is sad. And I worry about the ongoing impact it has on his family, especially his brother, who is 10."

Ms Ede, who has worked at The Gap and The Bridge homeless projects, and for Oxfordshire Women's Aid, said peer pressure was partly to blame for her son getting into trouble. "Chris has had a good upbringing, and was brought up with values and respect. At 13 years old he had four paper rounds and had saved up £250," she said.

City centre beat officer Pc Paul Phillips, whose work has resulted in beggars receiving Asbos, said the orders were being used in tandem with efforts to get people into housing, and drug or alcohol treatment.

"It's not just a case of putting an Asbo on them and then saying 'we are going to hammer you now'," he said.

"We want to work with them to make sure they try to change their lifestyles. We are still working with those who are breaching and trying to offer options for them. "They need to take the advice and information on board or they are going to be in and out of prison. They can't say they haven't been warned."

Susan Brown, Oxford city council's executive member for crime and community safety, said people needed to take responsibility for their actions, and those who did not take the support offered could end behind bars for breaching Asbos.

She said people whose lives were blighted by nuisance neighbours would welcome the respite while offenders were locked up.

Graham Debanks, 40, who was given an Asbo after a string of incidents at Plowman Tower in Northway, was charged with breaching his Asbo but the case was dropped due to lack of evidence. A 14-year-old with an Asbo banning him from an area of Greater Leys was sentenced to eight months detention and training in September for offences including two breaches. The youth cannot be named for legal reasons.

Beggar Shay Monroe was jailed three times for breaching his Asbo last year. Monroe, 35, of Christchurch Buildings, The Hamel, was issued with an Asbo last May to prevent him begging within the boundaries of the city's ring road.