A teenager has been cleaning up his act after being caught throwing eggs and flour at homes in Chippenham.

The 16-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, has been ordered to scrub the walls he targeted on bonfire night after being caught by the police.

Instead of sending the youth through the court system, it was decided he would3 serve his punishment through community pay back under the Local Resolution scheme.

The teenager spent a couple of hours cleaning the two properties in Cricketts Lane under the supervision of PCSO Will Taylor.

The victims of the attack were apprehensive at first about the punishment but were said to be delighted with the results. PCSO Taylor said: “Sometimes it is difficult to go forward with a criminal prosecution. We were able to deal with this case quickly with the help of the Local Resolution.

“It is a good way for the culprit to right their wrongs and for the victim to see that something is being done.

“The two home owners were quite anxious at first but by the end they were delighted with the result.

“The boy’s mother was also pleased it could be dealt with this way, that she didn’t have to go through the court pro-cess, and the boy won’t have a criminal record as a result.

“The Local Resolution is something we have had for some time but we are being encouraged to use it more.

“As part of Wiltshire Police, we won’t tolerate anti-social behaviour.”

The boy was not on his own in committing the offence, but after an appeal from Wiltshire Police they were able to arrest him after he was identified by a member of the public.

The cost of the damage was only the cleaning bill which was taken care of by the offender’s hard graft.

If there had been further damage then the boy would have been taken to court.

The 16-year-old said: “It is a better way of dealing with low level crime and I’m genuinely sorry for my actions.”