Police say they have increased patrols on a Chorlton estate following complaints of anti-social behaviour.
From fires on the playing fields night after night, to homes being egged and bins being stolen, residents on the Merseybank Estate say they have been terrorised for months.
It's claimed that the problems got worse in December, with one resident telling the Manchester Evening News he'd had to call police three times a week to the estate, which borders Princess Parkway and the River Mersey.
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“There were a few incidents over October and November, I think that’s when the playground got torched," Nicholas Saunders said.
“Things just kind of escalated and deteriorated from there.
“There was a point in December when every night or almost every night, you would be seeing fires out on the riverside or out on the fields.
“Neighbours and residents were having their bins taken, things taken from their gardens, anything that wasn’t bolted down was going walkies every night.
“Depending on the severity of the fires, people were contacting 101.
"People were contacting 999 when there’s an actual fire going on or when people saw theft with a need for immediate intervention.”
Nicholas says he called the police four times between December 18 and January 6, and has been confronted with more incidents since then.
“Even last night, at around half eleven at night there were still young kids out on the riverside, drinking, smoking cannabis," he said.
“There was one night, I think it was Christmas Eve or possibly the night before, where the fire brigade and police were out. The fire brigade was out twice and the police were out once.
“With it all being onto the river and the parklands, the one evening the police did turn up and try and stop one of the fires, the boys all just ran into the woods.”
Nicholas says he has invested in chains, padlocks and a CCTV system in order to protect his property.
“I’ve had a few incidents where they’ve tried to come onto my property. It’s got to the point where my bins are chained up with metal chains and padlocks, I’ve had to put new locks, and a new postbox up on my gate because it was kind of every other night someone was trying to come onto the property and take things," he said.
He told the Manchester Evening News that residents and the council are planning a meeting for the end of this month to try and find a solution.
“I really feel for any families or any of these boys because if there’s no intervention and no help then this is kind of where they end up," he added.
“I thought, there’s always going to be shenanigans going on wherever you live. But I didn’t feel in imminent danger (before), whereas now, I don’t go out in the dark anymore because you know, I’ve had at least two incidents.
“I think people see these things going on but they don’t want to intervene because they’re afraid.
“There’s a legacy of it always kind of being ignored and it doesn’t get talked about and everyone just kind of lives in fear.
“I mean, that’s how I felt.
“It’s a massive rat run for crime.”
Joanna Midgley, deputy leader of the council and councillor for Chorlton Park said: "The Merseybank is a great place with a fantastic community spirit.
"Unfortunately, the actions of a small number of young people are currently making life very difficult for some residents.
"As local councillors we are working with the council, police and Southway housing and residents to find a solution as quickly as possible.
Meanwhile Maria Studzinska, an organiser for the Merseybank Green Group, described the situation as 'frustrating'.
“Last year, along with MCC, we completed the consultation regarding the playing fields with lots of input from the local youth," she said.
“They requested improved basketball and football pitch, adventure play and some more areas for socialising.
“We had initial talks with the council and they were happy to support us, however with the current state of things, with fires occurring on a daily basis it looks like nothing is going to last.
“As a community we are happy to invest time and energy into bringing these ideas to life, however if nobody can stop these fires from happening it's simply not worth it.
“It's a case of young people redirecting their energy towards destructive behaviours, for years they only had access to small sports areas which went way beyond their life cycle.
“As much as I hate to watch these things happening I feel that at the moment there is nothing on the estate for them to burn all that energy in more productive ways.
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“The authorities should attempt to find the answer - ' how do we break this cycle?'"
Councillor Rabnawaz Akbar, executive member for neighbourhoods, said: "The Council is aware of the issues currently faced by residents in the Merseybank Estate, and is taking steps to urgently address them.
“The Council is working with its partners at Southway Housing, Greater Manchester Police and the Fire Service to investigate acts of anti-social behaviour and to find the people responsible.
"Contact has also been made with residents to gather evidence, with a meeting planned in the coming weeks where any additional concerns can be raised so that the Council and partners can find a solution.
"No resident should have to live with the constant fear of anti-social behaviour and the Council would like to reassure residents that everything is being done to find the culprits and take appropriate action."
Inspector John Picton, of GMP's City of Manchester division, said: "We are aware of the issues and concerns raised by the community and we currently have increased patrols dedicated to this specific area to help tackle the anti-social behaviour issues.
"Anti-social behaviour can have a serious detrimental impact on people within the community and will absolutely not be tolerated.
"We are working closely alongside partners to ensure these issues are resolved and a meeting between the local authority, police and councillors is scheduled for next week to address the situation and provide a multi-agency solution.
"I would encourage anyone experiencing issues or anyone with concerns about anti-social behaviour in the community to either speak with officers or get in touch with police via phone."
A Southway Housing spokesperson said “Merseybank is a community filled with people who care about their area and about one another.
"Though only a very small minority of residents are involved in antisocial behaviour it can disrupt and really badly affect the lives of everyone.
"We are continuing to work with local residents and our partner agencies, including the police and the council, to identify effective solutions to these latest incidents.
"Over the last year we have taken strong action in Merseybank, which includes the issuing of 13 tenancy warnings, two acceptable behaviour contracts, and one injunction, against 15 youths.
"We would encourage residents to continue to report incidents to Southway and the Police to help us to continue to take action.”
