BOSSES are gearing up for a crackdown on anti-social behaviour and crime which has proved a blight on a community for the last five years.

Blackburn with Darwen Council executive member for neighbourhood and prevention, Cllr Shaukat Hussain, has approved plans for a new public spaces protection order around Laburnum Road bridge in Little Harwood.

The new PSPO will replace an existing gating order, and will add prohibitions that can be enforced in deterring and preventing crime and disorder and anti-social behaviour.

Since March 2017 police have received 44 complaints of anti-social behaviour from the Laburnum Road, Gladstone and Blakewater residents who live near to the immediate problem bridge area.

Under the PSPO, gates restricting access from Laburnum Road leading to Whalley New Road will remain in place.

And the order will give powers to fine people found acting anti-socially in the area.

Proposals to restrict access just between 7.30pm and 7.30am were rejected by residents, who asked council bosses to permanently close the gate.

Cllr Hussain said: “This built up residential community has suffered persistent ongoing crime and anti-social behaviour since 2014 which has adversely affected their quality of life to their own detriment.

“Direct regular contact between the community safety team and local residents, and a recent local community meeting at Little Harwood Community Centre has again sought to remedy the problems and ease the negative impact on the residents.

“Unfortunately although problems did quieten down for a short while, and community protection warning notices were successful in deterring those targeted vehicles from returning to the area, problems and complaints have continued, and it was feared by residents that these would worsen as the summer months and better weather came, which they have.

“The community safety team has over a period of time, but more specifically since October 2016, collected a wealth of evidence of noise nuisance, fire setting, vehicle nuisance, suspected drug abuse and dealing, violence and threatening behaviour.

“This severely impacts upon the already depleted police resources and portrays some of the problems faced by residents.”

The original gating order was put in place after complaints by residents. And there were also efforts to tackle anti-social behaviour by installing CCTV and having regular police patrols.

Cllr Hussain approved the introduction of the PSPO, which will remain in place for the next three years.