The area behind Tesco Express, Baileys Court, is the latest hotspot for anti-social behaviour in Bradley Stoke, according to local police and residents.
The problem has been agreed as a police priority after a worker from one of the businesses in the block behind Tesco Express raised the matter at a recent Bradley Stoke Safer & Stronger Community Group meeting.
That meeting heard that youths aged 15 to 16 gather in the area at around 12-1am and frequently upturn rubbish skips belonging to Tesco Express and scatter the contents around the site.
It was also reported that the shop windows of the smaller businesses at the site (including Burke & Co., Ocean & St Peter’s Hospice) have been smeared with yoghurt, blackberries and eggs.
The police have been called out frequently and some of the activities have been captured on CCTV.
Police Community Support Officer (PCSO) Jason Green has been tasked with examining the CCTV footage and advising on the installation of new security equipment. Patrols in the evenings will be increased and Tesco will be asked to properly secure the bins.
Elsewhere in town, anti-social behaviour in Manor Farm Crescent, an earlier hotspot, now appears to have lessened. Police say they have received only one call-out to the area since April.
Burnt panels in the fencing at the Manor Farm Crescent pedestrian entrance to the Willow Brook Centre site, the result of an arson incident involving a stolen moped several months ago, have now been replaced.
Centre Manager Scott Lahive apologised for the delay and promised that “any future damage will be picked up in a shorter timescale”.
The next meeting of the Bradley Stoke Safer & Stronger Community Group will take place at 7pm on Tuesday 27th October at Baileys Court Activity Centre.
