 Gresham residents want to impose a curfew on under-16s. |
Residents in the Gresham area of Middlesbrough are calling for a nightly curfew to prevent youngsters intimidating people. Groups of up to 30 youths congregate on Parliament Road in the town, according to Gresham Community Council.
The council's chair, Linda Mole, says they want children under the age of 16 banned from the streets after 9pm.
Cleveland Police say they are looking at the problem of anti-social behaviour very closely.
Middlesbrough Councillor Ken Walker supports the call for a curfew.
He said: "We have a minority of youths causing a problem in the area. It means decent people cannot go out onto the streets in the evening.
Curfews 'quite draconian'
"And sometimes thousands of pounds worth of damage is caused to cars on a weekend."
If a curfew is imposed, police would have the power to use a dispersal order to escort youths home.
Supt Steve Ashman from Cleveland Police stressed that a curfew would be a last resort.
He said: "Dispersal is not the answer to every problem, but it is something we are looking at very closely.
"It can be seen as quite draconian and we are reluctant to use it unless absolutely necessary."
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