Drunken children making lives hell (From Stroud News and Journal)

Drunken children making lives hell

URGENT police action is needed to stop boozy yobs running wild and making resident's lives hell over the summer school holidays, according to community leaders in Cainscross.

Councillor Ron Smith warned fellow members of Cainscross Parish Council to brace themselves for six weeks of hell now that the school holidays have begun.

Cllr Smith told how he witnessed appalling drunken behaviour every night last week in Victory Park at the start of the vacation.

He told how he saw teenagers starting fires, smashing glass and urinating in public.

"It has been awful," he told the council.

"Everybody's intimidated - the girls are worse than the boys and we've got six more weeks of this hell.

"On the first night of the holidays there were girls bringing in alcoholic drinks to the park. They only looked about 12 and 14 years old. Then 20 minutes later they were urinating in the front door of the pavilion and laughing at us.

"I think we ought to call a meeting with somebody down at the police station and say 'look - we don't think you are doing your job," said Cllr Smith.

Chairman Graham Barton told the council how he had tried in vain to catch one youth after he saw him throw a bicycle at a lamp-post in the park.

He added: "It is an issue that doesn't seem to be getting any better and I would strongly suggest it is down to a rogue element.

"I do not want to tarnish all the kids around here because the majority are just in the park for somewhere to go," he said.

"We have exactly the same issue everywhere - teenagers and drink."

Inspector Nick Holmes, of Stroud police, confirmed that patrols had visited the area but stressed that they could not be there all the time.

"We have done high visibility patrols in these localities and it does make a difference," he said, "but when we walk away they all come out again - that is the difficulty."

He highlighted a successful crackdown on youths riding motorbikes in the park and the force's recent campaign to stop sales of alcohol to under-18s.