TWO Darwen families are so sick of their cars being vandalised, they are forking out £1,000 each and forfeiting their gardens to park nearer to home.

Next-door neighbours Reg Simpson and Alex Croxon, of Ash Grove, have suffered damage to their cars on several occasions in the past year.

Mr Simpson said: "Two months ago I suffered £2,000 damage and although the police came, there's still damage being done to people's cars. We had to take down our surrounding fence down and replace it with double gates.

"We are now keeping our cars on our front gardens, which were pebbled over. We will have to lay asphalt to make it permanent. I am losing half of my garden and next door are losing all theirs. It's ridiculous."

Mr Croxon, who has only lived there for a year, said: "Last week there were youngsters jumping up and down on someone else's car.

"We are having to pay half towards the asphalt which costs £2,000 and half to the gates at £500. And the council wants us to pay out a share of £3,000 to make a driveway across the grass verge to our gardens." Inspector Graham Ashcroft, of Darwen Police, said officers would visit the pair to discuss the problems.

He said: "We have a community beat manager and police community support officer in that area working very hard to deal with problems such as criminal damage and juvenile nuisance.

"They are also working closely with Youth Works, who recently moved into Ash Grove."