LOCALS in a famous seaside resort say it’s being destroyed by millions of day-trippers who reportedly fight, drink and abuse drugs in their street.
Weymouth in Dorset is famous for its sandy beaches, which attracts two million day trips a year and millions of holidaymakers’ money annually.
Locals are urging the council to increase police presence on their streets[/caption]
Residents say they often smell weed in the area[/caption]
The seaside town is home to a varierty of restaurants and BnBs[/caption]
But recently, some locals and BnB and hotel owners have been left fuming following reports of fights, drinking and even drug deals in their streets.
The anti-social behaviour has become so bad, local business owners claim customers have vowed to never come back.
Local authorities, they added, need to do more to tackle the constant stench of marijuana in the air, and help tackle the increasing incidents of anti-social behaviour.
Lee Waugh, 57, a military veteran and shop owner who has lived in Weymouth since he was a teenager, claims the problems are getting out of hand.
So much so, one of his pals got beaten up by a “group of yobs” and was taken to hospital.
He said: “It’s the pack mentality with groups, just yobs who are only young – my mate got beaten up and had to go to hospital.
“If you happen to be one of the people who gets caught up in, you probably won’t come back again.”
As a shop owner, he wants to showcase the clothes he sells outside to encourage people into the store however even this is becoming difficult as “opportunists steal them”.
He added: “They need to issue more orders to keep them out of town, and actually enforce them. I’ve noticed in the winter it doesn’t seem so bad, but come the summer I fully expect it will return.
“There’s a lot of weed – you can smell it. People don’t even hide it through town, they’re walking up and down the street with it.
“The town looks run down as well, it’s quite a deprived area and there is a lot of poverty, and if it starts to show in the town and, with the antisocial behaviour in with it, it can be an unpleasant place to come.
According to the former veteran though, tackling these problems is not going to be straightforward, requiring proper funding and more police patrolling the community.
He said: “But under austerity, they closed everything, all the youth centres and progress made in the 90s stopped. Young people have nowhere to hang out.
“I think we could do with a few more officers on the beat, even if they’re just community support officers.
MAKE YOURSELF AT HOME Our beautiful village is ruined by swarms of tourists – I came home to find Japanese family having a picnic in my LOUNGE
A STUNNED couple in one of Britain’s busiest tourist destinations came home to find a Japanese family sitting down to a picnic in their lounge.
The family from the Far East were among hundreds of thousands of visitors who flock to beautiful Bibury in the Cotswolds every year.
The town, famous for it swans and chocolate box homes dating back to the 15th century, has become such a magnet for tourist that the local council is considering a ban on coaches.
Locals are fed up with up to a dozen giant coaches at a time clogging up the narrow streets and the constant procession of camera waving holiday maker.
But for retired freight agent Brian, 83, the final straw was when he and his wife returned to their cottage in Arlington Row to find a Japanese family sitting in their living room tucking into a picnic.
Like many in the low-crime town, they had left their front door open when they went to run an errand.
The tourists had duly let themselves in and settled down to a giant spread inside the property, which was built in the 1400s.
Brian said: “I did not know this at the time, but evidently it is customary in Japan that if you leave your front door open, it’s seen as an invitation for others to enter and enjoy your hospitality.
“Luckily they brought their own picnic and didn’t snaffle the contents of our fridge.
“I couldn’t believe my eyes when I walked through the front door and saw them all sat there stuffing their faces.
“I’m a mod and we used to invade towns in the 80s, but it’s nothing like what the young people do today.”
For Assistant Chief Constable Mark Callaghan, however, Dorset is still a safe place to live and visit, as officers are work hard to ensure it’s a pleasant area for both locals and visitors.
He told the Dorset Echo: “Dorset remains a safe place to live and visit. Our collective efforts have seen reported anti-social behaviour reduce by six per cent last year compared to the previous year and a huge 40 per cent since 2021 thanks to a range of partnership operations and initiatives.
”Anyone who continues to come to notice will be considered for further action, such as community protection notices and criminal behaviour orders.”
Lee Waugh, who has lived in Weymouth since his teenage years, believes the problems in the town are getting out of hand[/caption]
Janet and David Dye are worried about young people using drugs and drinking in the town’s streets[/caption]
Barry Coleman had to install cameras in his shop to protect it from thieves[/caption]
For one happy visitor too, the area is still a go-to holiday destination for her and her family thanks to its “beautiful beach”.
She added: “Shops are immediately behind the seafront and the harbour has a great choice of restaurants and bars.”
For another tourist, Weymouth is “perfect” as it has “lots to do”.
He said: “donkey rides , sand sculpture, doggie beach, deckchairs, lots of toilets, great views, perfect!”
But for Janet and David Dye, 67 and 71, who have been frequently visiting the area for 13 years, it’s has become overrun with people drinking and smoking drugs in the streets, which they say is a real “nuissance”.
David said: “If you are drinking a bottle of beer in the street, the police should stop you and tell you to tip it out – that’s supposed to be the law.
“But a lot of the time they won’t, until someone complains that they’re drunk. But weed is the main problem, and the authorities shouldn’t let everyone do it.
“They should have people monitoring it, walking up and down, and if they catch them, give them a warning and take the stuff away, and then if they get caught again they should be prosecuted.
“That’s everywhere. And that’s why they’re smoking weed, they’ve got nothing else to do so they cause a nuisance.
Several shops have radios connected to each other and the community police, to deal with violent people or shop-lifting
Barry Coleman
“If they want to play with knives, stick them in the army. That’ll teach them discipline and teach them respect, because most of them haven’t got any.
“People get more money from benefits than a job, they turn around and say ‘It’s not worth us going to work, we get more money on benefits’.
“We should send them out and tell them to sweep this promenade, pick the rubbish up, then at the end of the week, when they’ve got something signed to say they’ve done it, they can get their benefit. Work for it.
Janet added: “But the government doesn’t think like that do they? They really don’t.
“There’s no community groups or programmes or anything for children who are above the age of 12, 11 or 12. There’s nothing for the older children.”
Barry Coleman, 69 has owned the shop Baan 57 for four years and said that although business is going well, he has suffered significantly from shoplifting and antisocial behaviour.
His biggest challenge has been keeping an eye on youths who reportedly steal jewellery.
The drug dealers and street drinkers on the back streets will have an effect on holiday-makers
Barry Coleman
And whilst the problems have gotten better since the local McDonald’s shut down, he has been forced to install security cameras to keep an eye on potential thieves.
He added that many visitors have been reportedly put off coming to Weymouth because of the wafts of weed that circulate the area.
He said: “We call this weed alley. Every time someone walks by there’s a big waft which comes through.
“Lots of visitors have been put off here, but that’s high streets across the country.”
For Barry, the council does a good job of keeping “the seafront nice and clean” but “having the drug dealers and street drinkers on the back streets will have an effect on holiday-makers.”
He added: “The problem just gets shifted around the town, rather than solved. But the problem for councils in these coastal areas is that they tend to have empty BnBs and hotels in the winter, so they get sent lots of homeless people to these places.
“So these coastal areas can become less and less popular. But there’s a problem with homelessness across the country.
“Several shops have radios connected to each other and the community police, to deal with violent people or shop-lifting and that shouldn’t be necessary.
For Danny Luong though, an employee at the shop, fighting has been happening in Weymouth for years.
“The community police do a good job, but they catch the morons, disperse them, but they don’t do anything, they don’t prosecute them, so they come back,” he said.
There is something about railway stations that attracts drug users – maybe it’s because it’s lit all night
Kate Mattews
Kate Matthews, 56, has lived in Weymouth for 11 years and has owned the shop Pimpled since October 2024.
For her, the “biggest” problem is teenagers that get “get drunk” and who are noisy on the seafront.
She said: “There are definitely more instances of large groups that are on the seafront that are drunk and noisy.
“The biggest problem in Weymouth is teenagers. Particularly round by the station, that is a major, major problem, but luckily they don’t tend to come in here.
“We have a WhatsApp group for the street so we can let each other know and we can look on the CCTV and check. It’s sometimes the people you least expect – like a young couple in their 20s.
“I’ve had a couple of moments where I’ve recommended people to stop whatever it is they’re thinking of doing.
“There is something about railway stations that attracts drug users – maybe it’s because it’s lit all night. And it does seem to be youngsters, and when there’s 20 of them it can be intimidating.
“It’s definitely gotten worse – since lockdown I think. Without question to me it’s a Covid thing, people lost their manners. Even something as simple as holding a door. But I think it will improve, it has to.
“I do like the old–school approach of police officers on the beat. We need more at the weekends, when it’s busier.
“They’re supposed to have no money but they have enough to buy drugs, and they have all the clothes that they want to wear, but so far they’re leaving my business alone.”
Danny Luong believes the police do not do enough once they catch the problem-makers[/caption]
Holiday business owners and residents say Weymouth is being ruined by antisocial behaviour[/caption]
The town’s beach is a go-to place for many tourists[/caption]
Weymouth is popular for its beach and seafront restaurants[/caption]
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