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Public call for action against yob culture
ANTI-SOCIAL behaviour has been angering residents in Gainsborough – and they say they want something done about it.
Last week, police officers responded to an incident involving graffiti littering the wall of a public building on Riverside Walk and a vandalised park bench, but residents say that such incidents are only the tip of the iceberg.
Simon Nicholson, of Spittall Terrace, says anti-social behaviour along Riverside Walk has become so bad he no longer walks his dog down there.
"My daughter and I used to take the dog a walk down the river on Sunday morning," he said. "But we can't walk the dog down there at all now as we have to take it elsewhere to avoid broken glass."
"It's the first time in a year we've had to stop walking him. It's a shame because it's a lovely area for the town."
"These people seem to behave in whatever way they please."
One resident who wished to remain anonymous, added the problems were caused by the few, and not the many.
"It's shocking," he said of the recent vandalism. "Me and my friend come round here every day and we know most of the kids down here, and most of them are well-behaved."
"It's just some of them spoiling it for the others and not respecting the area at all."
PCSO Tracey Burnett, of the Town Centre Neighbourhood Policing Team, said the police were aware of the situation and were actively involved.
"We had an incident reported from a local resident on Wednesday (9th September) night," she said. "We've been having groups of youths that congregate down there."
"We interact with them, and if they have any alcohol down there we seize it, but this is the first incident of damage in a long time."
"Some of them are lovely, but some individuals ruin it for everyone else. Because it's a public space we have to move them off."
"We know the names of groups, so if we see the youths, we can talk to them about it."
"We are working with West Lindsey Council to upgrade the CCTV system, and we'll work alongside the anti-social behaviour teams," she added.
"But when groups of youths congregate, the public perception is they're all up to no good but they're not."
Earlier this month, a new anti-social behaviour tasking group was set up to deal with the problem in Gainsborough and its surrounding villages. It combines effort from West Lindsey Council, Acis Housing and Lincolnshire Police.
Group chairman Coun Geoff Wiseman said the group would identify individuals involved in anti-social behaviour, and had already secured early intervention interviews and several formal warnings.
"The clear message is that anti-social behaviour will not be tolerated and by working together our efforts to reduce it can be much more effective," he said.
"Causes of anti-social behaviour, including excessive drinking, drug abuse and lack of consideration about noise levels are all being tackled."
"In some cases it will only be possible to resolve the issues in a court of law and our case has got to be water-tight. This is a particular area where joint working can be effective as it is vital that all the agencies share information they have.”
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Weather for Gainsborough
Saturday 04 February 2012
Today
Light snow
Temperature: -4 C to 1 C
Wind Speed: 24 mph
Wind direction: South
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Sunny
Temperature: 1 C to 4 C
Wind Speed: 9 mph
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