Brenchley Gardens in Maidstone – battle to stop anti-social behaviour Photo: Maidstone Borough Council
Following antisocial behaviour in a popular town centre park, new gates have been installed at Brenchley Gardens so it can be securely closed at night, when many of the incidents occur.
From today, Monday 30 January, the gates will be locked at dusk each night until 7am the following morning. During these times there will be no route through the park or to the station after dark.
Cllr Martin Round Lead Member for Environmental Services at MBC said: “In order to stop anti-social behaviour taking place at night in Brenchley Gardens we have decided to close the park at dusk each night and re-open it again at 7am each morning.”
Signs at the park entrances are letting users know the gates will be locked from 30 January.
“Brenchley Gardens is a beautiful park, which is used and enjoyed by many people during the day. It is a great shame we have had to resort to these measures after dark. One of our key aims is to make sure Maidstone is a safe place to live and we want our residents to feel safe. We want to protect and where possible enhance our environment and make sure our parks, green spaces, streets and public areas are high quality by ensuring they are looked after, well managed and respected,” said Cllr Round.
The committee’s decision to install gates and close the park at night was taken by the former Communities, Housing and Environment Committee.