PIONEERING plans to upgrade a park beset by anti social behaviour are going ahead after residents' appeals to make it secure.

However, it has been revealed new CCTV at the revamped Bullamoor Park in Northallerton will not be live monitored because there is not enough evidence of problems.

Moves to upgrade the park have been on the cards for seven years but residents warned it had to be made secure otherwise there would be no point in carrying out improvements after ongoing anti-social behaviour concerns and residents’ fears about using the park.

Now, working with Bullamoor Areas Residents Group and Streetscape, plans have been pulled together for new CCTV, extra lighting and fencing a multi-use games area and outdoor fitness equipment.

There will also be extra seating, more bins and a high fence between the park and Dene Road so the entrance area is reduced to a footpath gate.

Resident Claire Hutchinson said: “CCTV which covers the top end of Forest Road and Oak Grove will be recording rather than monitored but all incidents of antisocial behaviour will be prosecuted with restorative justice and community service enforced to put right any area damaged.

“So whoever smashes it up will have to put it right.”

The town council was told there was not enough documentation of anti-social behaviour for Hambleton Safer Hub, which monitors the town’s CCTV cameras, to justify taking on the extra responsibility and including them.

But if through recording, incidents are logged the CCTV cameras could be monitored in the future.

The town council is putting in £50,000 and has agreed to put in extra lighting requested with Hambleton District Council investing £14,000.

Ms Hutchinson says there is still a lot to do.

She said: “I want to thank the town council.

“This is phase one but we are not stopping.

“Phase two is where our group needs to start pushing fund raising for play equipment so I can ask for further funds from the town council.”

Hambleton District Council said they have been working closely with Northallerton Town Council on the improvement plans for Bullamoor Park since last Summer.

A spokesperson added: “We are very supportive of the steps being undertaken to make the area more accessible to the community.

“The District Council presently monitors a camera in Bullamoor Park.

“We would always encourage the community to report any incidents of anti-social behaviour to the police at the time as this allows us to work with them to assess the need for any further surveillance or other form of intervention.”

The town council has worked with the neighbourhood policing sergeant to address criminal behaviour in the park. There have been serious incidents previously and in 2015 there was a report of a serious sexual assault.