Security guards patrolling Barnham due to 'feral children'

Antisocial behaviour continues to blight Barnham near Bognor despite police carrying out extra patrols and making 14 arrests.

Businesses said youths steal alcohol from Tesco Express and the Co-op near the railway station and then get “very aggressive”.

There was a report of a trespasser and also sightings of children climbing fences near the railway line that runs through the village last Tuesday.

The owner of a small taxi firm nearby said between 60 and 100 commuters were stranded for around an hour as trains were halted, including holidaymakers on their way to Gatwick.

Police have increased patrols in Barnham following a spate of antisocial behaviour (Image: Sussex News and Pictures)

Arun District Council has now paid for private security guards from MS Security Services to patrol the high street in a bid to stop shoplifting and antisocial behaviour.

It comes after a video, which went viral, of girls attacking railway security staff at the beginning of April.

“It has been getting worse and worse the last few months,” said Mehdi Gholamzadeh, owner of Baps ‘n’ Buns cafe and Barnham Kebab and Pizza House.

“When they get together it’s like 20 of them, they nick things from Tesco and Co-op. They are often drinking and smashed the bottles on the road. I had to get four flat tyres changed because of it.

“It has been going on for seven to eight months now, it has been getting worse and worse.

Mehdi Golamzadeh is one of the business owners frustrated by the spate of antisocial behaviour (Image: The Argus)

“They come nearly every day to the kebab shop. It has been better the last few weeks with the security guards. People are fed up to be honest.

“All the locals are fed up, we had a big meeting. There was a dispersal order from the police but it was only 48 hours, it doesn’t make much of a difference.

“On Halloween, one girl came in drunk and we didn’t let her use the toilet. They went to the Co-op and nicked eggs and flour and threw it at the shop window. We had to close, there were eight or nine of them being very aggressive.

“We spent two hours cleaning the windows and pavement. We were on the phone to the police and had orders coming in that we were missing. We lost about £400 in orders.

“The kids think because they are not adults they can get away with it. I am worried it will get worse in the summer, they are more likely to drink more and stay out late.”

Barnham Kebab and Pizza House said youths threw flour and eggs at its shop window on Halloween (Image: Supplied)

Sussex Police issued a dispersal order in Barnham following an incident where four teenage girls were arrested at the railway station on April 2.

It gives officers the power to disperse groups gathering in the area and order them not to return for up to 48 hours.

The council has put signs up in shops about reporting antisocial behaviour. An emergency meeting was held at the nearby village hall. 

The owner of Barnham Station Taxis, who asked not to be named, said: “These kids have got out of control. What can you do for them, they know there is no consequence.

“We messed around as children but not like this. Security has gone backwards, they are not scared. They’re feral, they go around in packs.

“It is all about consequences and there is no consequence for these children.

Businesses including Barnham Station Taxis have signs telling people how to report antisocial behaviour (Image: The Argus)

“The government or whoever does not want to punish them.

“They know they can do it here because it’s a village. They wouldn’t get away with it in a city.

“Between 60 and 100 people were outside the station because of the children on the tracks the other night. People were going to Gatwick and had their suitcases.

“They should do community services, paint fences or something.”

There were two trespass incidents at Barnham on April 16 which caused disruption, including one where three youths were removed from a train. They were then seen climbing over a fence near the station. 

Govia Thameslink Railway said it is working "flat out with the police, council and other agencies to tackle this wider, regional issue of youth violence that is affecting communities on the South Coast".

It comes nearly two years after The Argus uncovered a spate of shoplifting and antisocial behaviour on the railway line between Barnham and Hove.

Children would steal food, cigarettes and alcohol from businesses near railway stations.

Tesco Express is one of the shops which has been targeted (Image: The Argus)

One supermarket worker said: “It has been a few groups of teenagers coming into Barnham and causing trouble. We have had some instances of them coming in, fights outside, stealing energy drinks and meal deals mostly.

“It’s quite frustrating, it’s the safety aspect of it for us. The police had meetings with just businesses in the area, they have been really good.”

Another shop worker said: “They come in here and Tesco, anywhere they can steal alcohol. It’s not that the police aren’t doing anything, it’s they can’t seem to stop them. There are 15 banning orders here but that doesn’t seem to stop them.”