Life on the front line

1:42am Thursday 18th March 2004

HAVING written numerous stories about the youth problem that does evidently exist in places such as Epping, North Weald and Ongar, I felt I had a pretty good grasp of the situation.

However, after spending several hours on a Friday night patrolling the district with the Epping community police team I was left shocked at the sheer number of youths to be found wandering the streets at night.

Equally, I was left with sympathy for the children after hearing what they had to say to the police I was with.

New police powers, which have already been introduced in North Weald, see police authority to move on youngsters who may not have committed any crime.

Once an area is classified as being an anti-social behaviour area, police can move on youths who they suspect may be about to commit, or may have committed, an offence and they can also order large groups of youths to disperse if they are hanging around and intimidating residents.

These powers have been broadly welcomed by local communities but have left youngsters asking "where do we go?".

My patrol began at 5pm with a drive around the outlying areas of the district, from Matching and Sheering to Moreton and the surrounding villages.

PCs Rob Hance and Clare Thomas were checking out known hotspots for youths before heading into the larger towns and villages.

As darkness fell we arrived in Ongar and promptly saw a group of youths outside an off-licence with bags, apparently filled with beer.

The youths walked briskly off, disappearing down a narrow path, and although a bumpy drive across a field failed to find them, PC Hance caught up with them later in the evening and duly emptied their newly-bought cans of beers.

Officers will now follow up the incident with the off-licence.

The patrol headed to North Weald, where the new police powers will be first to hit and which, ironically, was very quiet. Tonight it was Epping where the "action" was.

On arriving at Stonards Hill we found a group of about 20 youths standing in the freezing cold near the Jack Silley Pavilion, a site which has endured numerous acts of vandalism in recent times.

We also found a large number on the other side of the playing fields. In the town youths were walking up from the High Street towards the playing fields and a number were also found hanging around outside the Co-op supermarket.

What struck me was that all of these children complained to PC Thomas that the only reason they hang around is because they have nothing to do. A lot said they just wandered about until late evening and then went home.

Now I am not naive, I certainly realise groups of youths like these are causing a nuisance to residents and I know from personal experience that they can be very intimidating and that some of them are committing vandalism.

But the fact remains that the majority genuinely just have nothing to do.

PC Thomas stopped outside the Co-op and took down the names of the children before moving them on, but even as we drove off they could be seen wandering back.

All in all about 60 children were found "hanging around" the streets of Epping on a very cold night.

Police action when youths are involved with vandalism, under-age drinking or aggressive behaviour, is important, but I feel residents perhaps need to realise a lot of these youths mean no harm.

Equally, the youths need to realise that while they are not committing an offence they are causing a nuisance and can be a problem, even if they don't mean to be, A lot of the children, who were aged between 11 and 15, told PC Thomas they would sit down with councillors if asked to discuss what they want.

PC Thomas said that the children needed to be listened to, but equally needed to take responsibility.

"They just want somewhere to go where they're not going to get moved on," she said. "I think we need to ask them, get them involved. It's about everybody working together, but it needs the children to take responsibility as well."

New powers may alleviate problems caused by many of these youths, and undoubtedly this will be a good thing, but the youths are still going to be here and we have to remember the majority of them are not yobs, but simply bored.

The attitude of "in my day" doesn't wash any more.

We have a problem and we need to address it, not sweep it under the carpet.