"Some are frightened to sit in their own living room" - Residents anger over anti-social behaviour at derelict care home in South Shields

Residents living on Hampshire Way in South Shields say they have ‘had enough’ following a spate of anti-social incidents at a derelict care home located behind their street.

Several incidents have been reported to police including a group of teenagers throwing tiles off the roof of the derelict house into neighbours gardens below.

Jeanette Dearden, 62 who lives on Hampshire Way says anti-social incidents have been happening for around three years, with incidents getting ‘worse’ and more frequent in the summer months.

She said: “We are all just fed up of the mayhem caused by youths and some elderly residents are terrified – some are frightened to sit in their own living room.

"There’s tiles that are thrown from the roof of the building into our gardens and windows smashed and nothing is being done!”

Jeanette says that residents have made several complaints to Northumbria Police and South Tyneside Council.

She added: “We feel helpless because this has been ongoing and it’s so dangerous – some residents have dogs too so when they are throwing rocks and tiles it could hit them if they’re in the garden, we have just had enough.”

Northumbria Police say they are aware of a number of reports of anti-social behaviour involving a group of teenagers at the derelict care home.

A spokesperson said: “Enquiries are ongoing to trace those involved and officers are carrying out increased patrols in the area. Anybody involved in disorder will be dealt with swiftly and appropriately.

“We would also like to remind everyone that derelict buildings are closed to the public for a reason – and anybody who does trespass could be putting themselves at risk. They may also contain hazardous materials that can have serious health consequences for anybody exposed to them."

A South Tyneside Council spokesperson added that they ‘understand the frustrations and distress’ caused by ‘reckless behaviour of a small minority of people’.

The Council spokesperson said: “We want to reassure communities that we take incidents of anti-social behaviour extremely seriously and continue to work closely with our partners at Northumbria Police to tackle the problems highlighted.

“Where the youths involved are the children of council tenants, then their behaviour can also have implications for their tenancies and we will not hesitate to take appropriate enforcement action.

“Although the Council does not own Hampshire Court, considerable work has been carried out previously to secure the property and we are making arrangements to prevent people from gaining further access as a matter of urgency.

“We would always urge people to stay away from derelict buildings due to the risk of injury, while also reminding people that trespassing on private property is illegal.”

Anyone who sees anti-social behaviour happening in their area or who has any concerns is asked to contact Northumbria via the ‘Tell Us Something’ page of their website or by calling 101.

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