Sir, – The sentiments expressed in the first two letters in the D&S on Mar 27 are indicative of the alcohol-fuelled anti-social behaviour that decent law-abiding citizens have to endure.

I share their concerns and I also experience similar problems.

It appears residents and businesses in Hambleton are expected to accept criminal damage, excessive noise, foul language and drunken abuse, along with the mountains of broken glass and discarded take-away food wrappers as if it is normal and a problem too difficult to deal with.

I perhaps have a more rounded view of the issues than some, being able to draw on the experience of having lived and worked in the licensed trade environment, served as a police officer for 30 years and being involved in working with young people.

The key tactics are education/ information, challenging the bad behaviour and enforcement.

Telling our young people about the dangers and consequences of heavy drinking is important. However, more work is done in this area than was ever the case previously and there is still a problem? That leaves challenge, information and enforcement, three fundamentals that are inextricably linked.

When citizens see or hear some behaviour they believe to be socially unacceptable they should feel able to challenge it.

By that I don’t mean we should all turn into vigilantes or take the law into our own hands, I mean politely asking someone not to do what they are doing.

Don’t just ignore it in the hope it will go away.

Be a nuisance or become a thorn in the side of your local police safer neighbourhood team, your councillor, your MP and the local newspapers.

Make so much noise about the problems so they can’t be brushed aside. Give the authorities the information they need to quantify the difficulties you are experiencing and justify the allocation of sufficient resources to actually deal with it.

The police, along with all the other agencies involved in the enforcement process often find it difficult to adequately respond due to lack of evidence.

Also, the allocation of resources to effectively deal with a problem is often subject to stringent financial constraints.

If you have a problem in your area, all these agencies are publically funded. Is it not incumbent upon us all to challenge and ensure we receive good service and get value for our considerable investment?

DAVE HASNEY Northallerton