POLICE in Pewsey are appealing to parents to help them contain a rash of vandalism and under age drinking.

The weekend saw some of the worst wanton vandalism the village has seen in recent years with cars damaged and windows broken.

Sgt Andy Peach has now appealed for parents to be more accountable and to be aware of where their children are and what they are doing.

He said the village is currently suffering a wave of vandalism and he believes much of it is linked with under age drinking.

During the weekend vandals attacked cars and a building in the town.

A Vauxhall Zafira parked in Wilderness Row had its windscreen and front windows smashed and bodywork panels damaged.

A Ford Focus car belonging to a visitor from Essex, which was parked by the Co-op had its wing mirrors kicked off and a sharp instrument was used to gouge a part of its paintwork.

Parts were also removed from a sailing dinghy parked in the High Street, also at the weekend, and a number of wire-reinforced windows at Wootton's DIY and gardening shop were smashed.

Owner Chris Wootton, one of the village's firefighters, said part of the problem was a lack of police patrolling the streets at night in Pewsey.

He said: "It's ironic that we should be targeted because we are right opposite the police station.

"The vandals have a free hand because you rarely see a policeman when they are needed."

Sgt Peach said the vandalism was committed by teenagers who had managed to acquire drinking alcohol.

He said he was convinced teenagers were either taking drink from their own homes or getting older friends to buy it for them in the village.

Shops in the village selling alcohol have all been spoken to by police and Sgt Peach said they had been careful to observe the under-age laws.

But he said the crux of the problem was that parents did not know where their children were or what they were doing.

He said the problem was heightened in the summer with the warmer weather and lighter evenings. "There is also the fact that children are drinking alcohol younger nowadays."

He said he and his officers were determined to stamp out the problem and where necessary to make parents take responsibility for their youngsters.

But he believes some of the young people carrying out anti-social acts in the village were not necessarily from Pewsey and frequently came in from other villages as far away as Burbage and the Collingbournes.

He said: "We know young people from other villages travel to Pewsey and it does seem that when they are not on their own turf they get even more excitable.

"If parents don't know where their kids are or what they are up to then they should find out."

Whenever young people are apprehended for vandalism or under-age drinking, parents will be requested to go to the police station to collect them and also to face questions about their own responsibility for their children.

"We want to bring the parents to book on this," said Sgt Peach.

"They have a responsibility towards not only their children but to the rest of the community.

"We want their help in curbing this behaviour."

Sgt Peach said he did not believe Pewsey was any worse or better than other communities of the same size.

He said if parents did not co-operate by making sure they were aware where their children were and what they were doing they might get a shock when a police officer knocks on their door.

"Our message to parents is do you know what your children are doing? We need your help to combat this situation before it gets out of hand."