Teenage tearaways terrorise residents

Vandals are targeting College Road on the Penland Wood estate, which is made up mainly of bungalows, favoured by the elderly or frail.

Neighbourhood Watch co-ordinator, Harry Hillman, said youngsters on bikes, skateboards, or walking through the estate to and from the Ravenside retail centre, are wrecking the carefully tended front gardens.

Plants are being trampled down or uprooted and litter tossed into flowerbeds.

In the last two weeks three dry-stone walls have been destroyed and a firework thrown through a letterbox. The explosion blew the letterbox off the front door.

The elderly residents say they are too afraid to tackle the teenagers for fear of reprisals.

Some have been threatened that the culprits will return and wreak vengeance.

Mr Hillman, who has lived in College Road 19 years, said: The low dry-stone wall in my garden was knocked down two weeks ago and the bricks scattered all over the pavement.

Two other bungalows in the road were targeted the same evening and their low walls also wrecked.

One resident has only lived on the estate six months and the other only three months. It gives newcomers an awful impression of Penland Wood.

Mr Hillman said although police were aware of what was going on, it was difficult to catch the vandals, especially as many pensioners were too scared to report incidents.

He said: I have seen teenagers throwing litter and vandalising the gardens. When I or other residents have tackled them they have said they will be back. We then find something else has happened in our gardens, like more rubbish tipped, or plants damaged.

It seems to be the work of youngsters on bikes, skateboards or walking through the estate to Ravenside, where there is a bowling alley, swimming pool, burger bar and music shops to attract them.