The suspected crackhouses are close to Reading's Oxford Road

Steel shutters were put up on the two homes in Howard Street in Reading, Berkshire, on Friday.

The action comes after town police used a court order for the first time to close two crackhouses on George Street and Ivydene Road earlier this year.

All the properties are off the Oxford Road, which is at the centre of an ongoing crackdown on drugs.

We are committed to doing everything we can to combat the use of drugs in our properties Nick Harborne, director of RSHP

The landlords of the properties, the Reading Single Homeless Project (RSHP), worked with the police to vacate and secure the properties.

Thames Valley Police say the houses had been a "cause for concern" for several weeks and had been searched for drugs several times.

Superintendent Dilip Amin said: "We have listened to the concerns of residents who wanted the blight of these crackhouses removed from their doorsteps and we will continue to listen to each and every person who takes the time to contact us with information."

Nick Harborne, director of RSHP, said: "As soon as we identify we have a problem, we inform the police.

"We are committed to doing everything we can to combat the use of drugs in our properties, especially to protect our tenants, who have nothing to do with drugs, and our neighbours, whose lives are often made a misery."

At the beginning of the month, the council, police and other community groups signed the Reading Commitment - a document outlining how drug-related crime was to be tackled.