Hooligans are destroying a community while police ignore villagers' pleas for help, it was claimed today.

Residents of Skelton, near York, are so worried about what they see as police inaction that they have called a public meeting to air their concerns.

Parish councillor Phil Thomas said that the recently-mooted idea of neighbourhood wardens would be of no use unless the police responded properly to crime in the village.

But the police hit back, saying they cannot function without the full assistance of people in Skelton, who need to be reporting crimes and making statements to police to enable prosecutions to be made. The sort of problems experienced in Skelton are characterised by the village recycling centre being wrecked by vandals with hammers, as reported in yesterday's Evening Press.

Coun Thomas said: "We have a system in Skelton whereby we can report events to the police without fear of reprisals and harassment from the hooligan element in the village.

"We report events as they happen to the police and what happens? Nothing."

Coun Thomas said that he levelled criticism at the police at the last Community and Police Group meeting, not for lacking resources, but for "ignoring" information put forward by local people.

He added that a public meeting would be called in the near future "to discuss the role of the police and its interaction with the people that are suffering at the hands of the mindless idiots that are destroying a community."

At the April meeting of the local ward committee, funding was secured for private security patrols, which are soon to start in the village.

Coun Thomas said: "We wouldn't need it if the police listened to what they are being told."

The view of Coun Thomas was echoed by ward councillor Mark Waudby, who said the police were not taking Skelton's problems seriously enough.

He said: "There seems to be a mentality that Skelton is a nice little village, which it is, and there can't be any real trouble there, it's just a few kids mucking about.

"But these kids mucking about are making life unbearable for people."

Coun Waudby suggested proper surveillance of the village by using the likes of an unmarked police car.

"They have got to do something rather than saying it will go away, because it won't."

Chief Inspector Andy Bell, who is based at Clifton Moor police station, suggested that the police needed more help from the people of Skelton as they could not afford to have officers in the village at all times.

He said: "I would urge the people of Skelton to report incidents to the police and to assist us by providing statements so offenders can be prosecuted.

"Without the assistance of the public the police cannot perform. It is the duty of every citizen to help the police."

Updated: 10:30 Wednesday, June 27, 2001