A couple living in a small Merseyside town said they've been the targets of antisocial behaviour on a daily basis.
After moving from Liverpool to New Ferry on the Wirral in 2020, Sam said: “We just thought when we moved here it would be quite a nice area. We didn’t think it would be no trouble but we thought it was going to be more normal. We’ve just found it’s the same.”
Sam said they have had groups of youths outside their door wearing balaclavas after reporting the issues to the police.
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He added: "The main impact is my wife (Alex) is afraid to go out in the evening while they are outside. We have got a level of noise that is massive and then damage to the property."
Sam said people bang on the shutters of his shop, have broken a windowsill while playing football and he is worried they could break a window. He said the problems start at half past four and go on until midnight on a daily basis.
To tackle issues in the area, Merseyside Police between March 24 and March 26 introduced a dispersal order in New Ferry on the Wirral after a rise in antisocial behaviour with buses, businesses and people being targeted.
This meant an increased police presence, and over the weekend, a 15-year-old was arrested. Police said they were working with Wirral Council and local schools to help identify suspects.
The dispersal order came after claims antisocial behaviour had spiked in recent weeks with some describing it like “the Purge”. Stagecoach also confirmed objects were thrown at a bus on March 15 but there were no injuries.
After a furniture store in New Ferry exploded six years ago, Sam said: “The place has been left on its own and has become a youth gang zone. They just come in and they just mess around. They are causing damage to the community and it seems like they don’t have any compassion for the businesses and people who live here."
He said: “There was a huge abandonment in New Ferry after the explosion. I remember it in the 2000s, it was a lovely place and it was full of people, shops, restaurants and cafes. It was a vibrant community.”
In response to rising antisocial behaviour, Wirral local policing Inspector Daniel Greenhalgh said: “We are aware that a small minority of youths are causing anti-social behaviour which seems to take place when the schools are closed such as during the half-term period and at weekends.
“We won’t tolerate any kind of anti-social behaviour, and would like to reassure the New Ferry community that we are actively and robustly responding to the situation by putting proactive measures in place to prevent offences from taking place.”
Sam praised the steps taken, adding: “It was the first time in god knows how long we have been very quiet, not disturbed, no shouting, nothing. There was no litter on the street, that is very unusual, I don’t remember such a thing.”
Mark Craig, Chair of the New Ferry Residents Association, said people in the area wanted to see similar action again, adding: “We are worried the kids will be back doing what they do. It’s just hammering home what can be done.”
The government announced on March 27 a plan to tackle anti-social behaviour in England and Wales with 16 areas undergoing trials for hotspot police in areas with the highest rates of antisocial behaviour.
Mr Craig: “I think that this community should be begging the government to be one of those areas. We have so many incidents here." He is planning to write to Wirral South MP Alison McGovern on the issue.
He worries things could escalate beyond antisocial behaviour, adding: “That is what residents here are terrified of, that it is going to become known as a place of drug gang rivalry.”
On March 22, a meeting was held at New Ferry Hall to discuss antisocial behaviour in the area.
Cllr Sue Percy, who represents Bromborough for Labour, said: “At the moment, there is a small number of young people spoiling things in the evenings with mindless vandalism and anti-social behaviour. I have been working with the community and speaking to residents daily about the issue.”
Cllr Percy said she’d been working with youth support services and police, as well as campaigning for more activities for young people with the refurbished Bebington Youth Club finished later this year providing a football pitch, gym, cafe, and youth club.
Kieran Murphy, a Green Party candidate for Bromborough in the upcoming council elections, said: “Anti social behaviour of some young people is causing fear for people who live in New Ferry. Police should investigate crimes, harassment and intimidation.
“New Ferry’s youth club has been closed for three years. Six years since the devastating explosion in New Ferry and not a single new brick has been laid to rebuild our once thriving town centre.
“After eleven years of Labour as the largest group on Wirral Council, young people have been sidelined. When I am sidelined as a person with disabilities, I feel angry. Much more needs to be done to engage with young people and provide facilities that are proven to reduce anti-social behaviour.”
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