Residents living around  Brownes Pond woke up today to find one of the many swans who have made the pond their home this year had been shot in a callous and pointless attack by air gun wielding youths yesterday evening. Police who are investigating the incident, which could carry a heavy fine and a possible prison sentence, have a good description of the attackers.

Westover Councillor Brian Smedley was alerted to the tragedy  by distraught residents and visited the scene at once. Brian says “The incident happened at about 1015 on the evening of Tuesday 12th May and appears to have been carried out by 4 teenagers in hoodies. A resident bravely challenged them but was then himself shot at along with a house which he retreated to.”

CCTV Called for by residents

Cllr Smedley continued “The incident is a disgrace and has caused anxiety and anger amongst residents who have complained about high levels of anti-social behaviour in the area for some time. There is an urgent need for a CCTV presence in the area and a concerted and joint response by Police and the Local authorities to match the level of care and responsibility that the neighbours have taken over the years in making Brownes Pond one of the towns beauty spots.”

The Police were called and responded to the incident within 20 minutes and are now carrying out a full investigation.

Cllr Smedley said “There has been such a lot of good work put into Brownes Pond in recent years and this has been matched with increased support and attention from the relevent agencies. We have supported the Friends group with Westover ward grant money, Sedgemoor has provided ASB and Community officer time, Clean Surroundings has responded to clean up requests and SCC had been working with residents to bring the TBW cycle path project to fruition with the crucial last part of the link alongside Brownes Pond.”

Residents organising themselves

“All these issues are not without contention and that’s one reason why we’re setting up a Hamp Green Neighbourhood Group to make sure residents are fully involved in shaping the decisions that affect their community.One request, beyond the CCTV, is for children’s play equipment for the green space around Brownes Pond. This could be a vital way of reclaiming the area for families and not giving in to the anti-social elements that abuse the place and another is for the Police to include this area in their 999 response zone as they did with Lakeside caravan park at the height of the ASB troubles there a few years back so that no resident should fear calling an emergency number.”

Zero-Tolerence for ASB urged

“Another concern of residents is that the Police enforce their ‘zero-tolerance’ for graffiti tagging and follow the example set in Bristol recently where this policy had a positive impact on territorial attitudes that encourage ASB ‘pseudo gang’ culture which can be threatening to people.”

The Crime & Security Act 2010  made it an offence “…for a person in possession of an air weapon to fail to take reasonable precautions to prevent any person under the age of eighteen from having the weapon with him…”. This legislation essentially relates to the storage of air guns and the requirement of owners to prevent unauthorised access by children. Failure to do so renders owners liable for a fine of up to £1,000

Save the Swans