A NEW initiative to fight anti-social behaviour (ASB) in Bridgwater town centre has been put in place following a recent meeting.

A Bridgwater Town Council meeting with local business owners, the police, and town wardens has resulted in a clear-cut plan for how ASB will be tackled in the town centre.

Speaking on the meeting, Cllr Tim Mander, chair of the town council’s Police Forum, said: “It is disappointing to hear once more the lived experience of the problems created by the street drinkers; large groups of unruly youths; drug dealing/taking and shoplifting.

"The manager of the Nationwide outlined how she had had to call 999 three times in the last fortnight following brawling drunks outside the bank, and on two occasions she had had to shut the branch.

"The manager of Angel Place and proprietor of Café Kreme both highlighted how gangs of masked up youths had created mayhem and upset customers.

"The manager of Boots explained why they now locked all doors bar one and employed security and despite this still had shoplifters regularly working in and walk out with arm full of goods.

"Many others contributed with their own experiences and of course questions were raised regarding the police response."

As a result of the meeting, several ways of mitigating against ASB were agreed upon to help the situation.

Firstly, Kirwan Pritchard and Rob Semple of Bridgwater Town Council have agreed to arrange a meeting with Somerset Council housing team to discuss their allocations policy.

Secondly, the town wardens will be asked to concentrate their patrols to Fore Street between the Robert Blake statue and Town Bridge over the next two weeks.

Social services will be recognised as the main point of contact when reporting youth crime issues.

In addition to the above, potential locations for additional CCTV cameras will be investigated.

Following the meeting, town centre trader David Harris-Heffer of Initiis Ltd, said: “I noticed a newfound optimism from local businesses through collaborating with the town council and the police to tackle the anti social behaviour currently crippling the town centre."

Rob Semple, community spokesman for  Bridgwater Town Council, said: “We are always looking at ways to develop and improve Bridgwater town centre to make it a place people want to visit, work and invest in.

"We take the matters raised very seriously.

"We want people to feel safe when visiting Bridgwater town centre and we will continue to work with our partners to find solutions to the issues raised.”