PETERSFIELD police have been forced to take special to tackle hooligans who are

wreaking thousands of pounds of damage on the town.

Police recorded the townÕs highest ever number of vandalism cases throughout December and the Christmas holiday and have now called a special meeting in a bid to combat the growing problem.

They believe the situation has become so grave that it is time for the community to work together to find a solution.

Announcing his decision to take new measures to fight hooligans Insp Steve Sargent said: ÒVandalism in the Petersfield area has increase steadily over the past two years and is at an unacceptable level. Last monthÕs 49 cases was the highest ever recorded figure and it is known that many other cases are never reported and do not show show in police statistics.Ó

He said he believed the solution did not lie in extra policing alone Ð even if this were possible Ð and that the whole community needed to work together in some form of co-ordinated action.

ÒWe have got to call a halt to this vandalism in one way or another and we all have a part to play,Ó he told The Herald.

The special meeting will be held in

St PeterÕs Hall on Monday, February 10 at 2.45 pm.

Insp Sargent has invited a wide variety of groups represented in Petersfield including Neighbourhood Watch co-ordinators, East Hampshire District Council, Petersfield town and surrounding village parish councils. He also hopes that housing associations, residentsÕ associations, Shop Watch and Pub Watch groups will attend the meeting.

ÒWhat we want is representation from the widest possible cross-section of the community, Ò said Insp Sargent, Òif anybody has a point to make we want to hear from them and they would be more than

welcome.Ó

ÒOne of the important points is that we know about cases reported to us, what we donÕt know about is those that are not reported. We are sure there are more unreported and we would like to hear about them to give us a clear picture of the problem.Ó

He said the pattern throughout the last two years had been a worsening vandalism problem on Friday and Saturday evenings as people made their way home from the town centre: ÒWe suspect that drink is playing a part in this.Ó

These incidents included the targeting

of cars parked in residential roads. Car radio aerials were being bent, windows broken and paint work deliberately

scratched.

ÒWe want other peopleÕs ideas on how to tackle this problem. We are looking for a more co-ordinated approach with some imaginative thinking and people recognising that this is a problem for the town as a whole,Ó said Insp Sargent.

The police initiative is the latest of several moves to combat vandalism.

Three years ago the then town mayor John Crowhurst called for special measures to fight the problem. He wanted to set up a special group to combat teenage hooligans who were causing thousands of pounds of damage in the town centre. He also pushed for more closed-circuit television to monitor the town centre and better street lighting to deter vandals.

Shopkeepers had reported a string of incidents including a threat with a knife, fireworks thrown under cars, youths urinating and vomiting in shop doorways, and motorists being verbally abused.

Two years ago Petersfield Football Club blamed the advent of the townÕs skateboard ramp for a series of vandalism attacks at the ground in Love Lane where hooligans caused havoc kicking the stand, destroying seats and damaging the fence.

The same year Petersfield town councillors took the lead in trying to combat vandalism and rowdiness in the parish church yard where damage was caused by youngsters cycling and skateboarding.

Anyone who would like to attend the town meeting should contact Petersfield Police Station.