Memorial Field - Heated debate at Steyning Parish Council meeting
Increasing anti- social behaviour at the Memorial Field was the topic of many complaints and calls for action at the Parish Council meeting last night.
Local people attending the meeting complained that, despite the attention of the Neighbourhood Wardens, the actions of a few local youths were making their lives a misery, especially on Friday and Saturday nights. Drinking leading to bad language and abuse, using the area as a toilet, youths going into back gardens to collect footballs, and use of the children’s play equipment to stand on to look into back gardens were examples of the problems faced by Newham Lane residents.
The Police were viewed as not being a great help, as when they did arrive in answer to residents phone calls the youths saw them coming and disappeared before they could be caught and identified.
The Neighbourhood Wardens suggested varying their working hours to try to catch the major culprits. It maybe, however, that other more expensive measures (with possible implications for the parish precept), such as moving the play area to the other side of the Field away from houses, providing a high fence to protect back gardens or even employing another Warden to concentrate on supervising the Memorial Field and other open spaces will have to be considered.
Clearly more needs to be done to reduce this anti-social behaviour occurring in the first place, perhaps working with parents and schools, but this will take longer to achieve and people, quite rightly, want action now.
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