Village CCTV helps to deter yobs
A Mobile CCTV camera set up to in a Shropshire village has helped to deter youths who have been targeting elderly people and members of the public.
Numerous complaints have been made over the last month regarding young people visiting Whittington and throwing stones and shouting through letter boxes.
Last week 10 youths were also ordered away from Whittington Castle by local police officers after they were alleged to have abused staff and thrown food at members of the public.
Whittington Parish Council has been working with West Mercia Police, and pledged to fund a mobile CCTV camera in the village.
Since the incident last weekend, no fresh incidents have been reported to police and Jill Whitby, chair of the council hopes the problems are now coming to an end.
She said: “We were working with the police on this and put the funding forward for a camera to deter the youths from targeting people. At the moment there is one camera up so the police can keep an eye on anything happening, and they’ve told us that since last week no new incidents have been reported.
“Hopefully that will be the end of things, it isn’t nice for people in the village. Whittington is a quiet little village that relies on tourism through the castle and we don’t want anything to spoil that.”
Complaints
Police have previously said it hasn’t been youngsters from the village causing the problems, but youngsters coming from Oswestry.
The council had been sent numerous complaints about behaviour in the village, and now police have been contacting parents of the youngsters involved after identifying them.
Councillor Whitby added: “We are told they have been coming from outside the village, and we can’t understand why they would come here as there are things to do in Oswestry.
“We are told some of them have been identified with the help of a local PSCO and parents and a school in the town have been contacted.
“Our investment seems to have been worthwhile and hopefully that will be the end of it.”
