Scum turn neighbourhoods into hell

NUISANCE neighbours who are terrorising residents have come under fire from Hyndburn MP Greg Pope, who is demanding that council chiefs start using new civil law powers to tackle them.

There has been a "summer of discontent" in Hyndburn, says Mr Pope, with incidents including intimidation of the elderly, threatening behaviour, vandalism, petty crime and late-night noise. Hyndburn reporter PAUL BARRY reveals how some residents feel trapped in a spiral of decline as yobs and vandals turn their once-proud neighbourhoods into troublespots.

But the police - who are under pressure to deal with nuisance even though they often have no specific power to intervene - say residents can beat the troublemakers if they unite and work together with the authorities.

Neighbours too scared to speak out

ELDERLY and middle-aged residents in the Woodnook area of Accrington claim that nuisance neighbours are causing them misery and have called for MP Greg Pope to put a stop to their suffering.

But a community policeman said there had been successes in defusing neighbour conflicts.

People living near one rented house claim they are bombarded with vandalism, nuisance noise and verbal abuse by the people who live there.

An elderly woman who lives nearby said: "The behaviour of these people is becoming unbearable - they take drugs, vandalise things and shout abuse. They play loud music, bang on people's windows late at night and you can see them smoking reefers. "If you ask them to stop or if you call the police, they square up to you and make threats. There are elderly people here who just can't take it any more.

"People who rent can afford to move out, but the older people own their homes and can't afford to move."

Sergeant Stuart Bruce, one of the Woodnook area beat officers, said: "I know about the problems which have been reported from people who live near this house. The people who live there are acting without consideration for their neighbours.

"But as far as criminal behaviour goes, this household has not been particularly bad."

Sgt Bruce said there was a difference between criminal behaviour and nuisance behaviour, and that people who were on the receiving end should realise that the police could only deal with crimes.

He said Accrington police worked closely with Hyndburn Council, which has its own strategies for dealing with nuisance including "nuisance neighbour packs" which have been delivered to homes in the area by police.

"Residents must be prepared to give statements to the police about crime and keep records of nuisance behaviour for the council - otherwise the authorities have little to go on," he said.

Sgt Bruce said he understood that some residents were scared of retaliation if they contacted the authorities, but said the key to avoiding that was by getting householders to take careful action through residents' associations.

He said that local residents' associations had helped calm a difficult situation in the Belfield Road area. The associations' members worked together with the police and council to gather evidence of nuisance, before cautiously approaching the family concerned to tell them how many people they were upsetting. Sgt Bruce said that since the approach, the situation had improved and there had been no reports of nuisance.

Residents who want information packs or want to report nuisance behaviour should call Hyndburn Council on 01254 388111.

Decent folk suffer in wild wild west

THE West Accrington area, on and around Blackburn Road, used to be a sought-after part of town.

But residents who now live in fear of drug-dealers, vandals and burglars.

Its streets - including Persia Street, Russia Street and India Street - got their names from the exploits of a proud Accrington merchant who exported goods throughout the world.

But house prices have spiralled downward in recent years, and homes which might be worth £30,000 in other areas will now fetch as little as £8,000. Few people want to buy a home there, and empty houses are snapped up by private landlords who, in many cases, have their tenants' rent paid directly from council housing benefits.

Residents claim this has allowed criminals and troublemakers to move into the area - and local people say that so long as the council keeps paying the rent, the landlords seem happy to let their tenants stay.

Hyndburn MP Greg Pope yesterday toured the area with members of the newly-formed West Accrington Residents' Association. The group has been formed by local people who want other law-abiding householders to join them in stopping the rot. They want Mr Pope's support for their efforts. One man, who lives off Blackburn Road, said: "There are drug dealers and burglars living here and the private landlords do not seem to care who they put into the houses.

"Some houses seem to be stopping places for drug dealers who invite other criminals to come and stay with them. Other people play loud music and vandalise people's homes and cars.

"Decent folk who live here are frightened of reprisals if they approach these nuisance neighbours and ask them to behave."

The man, who was too frightened of reprisals to have his name published, said: "Some people want to leave the area, but they cannot afford to - they are being offered as little as £8,000 for their houses.

"West Accrington used to be a sought-after part of town. But people don't want to live here because the area has a bad reputation.

"The decent folk have got to get together and tell the authorities we want action."

Within Grove is doing without

WHEN Home Secretary Jack Straw toured Huncoat 10 months ago, he told residents they had to weed out troublemakers before they could improve their area.

Mr Straw called on residents to name and shame a group of anti-social youths on the Within Grove estate, so the authorities could stop them making people's lives a misery.

During his tour with Hyndburn MP Greg Pope, Mr Straw was shown some of the problems, including the results of vandalism and arson attacks.

He said: "People in this area need to have a lot of courage, sit down with police, youth workers and educational officers and give names to them."

Residents told Mr Straw that a lack of facilities for young people and for the community in general has made problems on the estate worse. Since then, residents in Huncoat, along with people in Great Harwood, have suffered the setback of having a £2million bid for government regeneration cash turned down.

The cash could have breathed new life into an area affected by crime, derelict housing and poor leisure facilities.

Ideas for regenerating the Within Grove estate included closed circuit TV cameras, a new community centre, tidy-up initiatives, selective demolition of houses and new youth facilities. Community leaders say they will battle on in their bid to build a community centre - with or without the Government's help.

The Huncoat Community Forum, which met on Wednesday to discuss the next bid for government cash, has said it will press on with the £450,000 community centre project - even if residents have to raise the money themselves.

People in Huncoat played a huge part in preparing the bid for Single Regeneration Budget money which was turned down by Environment Secretary John Prescott in July.

Residents told Hyndburn Council they wanted the money to help tackle crime, poor street lighting and a lack of community facilities.

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