Twenty-seven young people are now on a watchlist with strict conditions after causing persistent anti-social behaviour problems in the city centre.
Problems include harassing and intimidating retail staff and members of the public, criminal damage, theft, and breaking into abandoned buildings.
A dedicated team of uniformed and plain-clothes officers has a watchlist of 27 main offenders whose parents and guardians have been visited.
Most of the children involved in anti-social behaviour (ASB) and criminality are aged between 11 and 16.
Eight young people have been issued Community Protection Notice Warnings since the launch of the operation.
These come with strict conditions, such as not being allowed to enter the city centre or wear balaclavas.
If the behaviour continues, their parents or guardians will ultimately pay the price by being issued with a Community Protection Notice (CPN).
Breaching a CPN is a criminal offence and has a wide range of consequences, including significant court fines. The police may also pursue civil orders, which could impact tenancy.
Officers have visited the parents and guardians of all eight young people who have been issued with the warning notice.
So far, no parents or guardians have been issued with a CPN.
However, 10 parents or guardians have been visited and warned that this is possible if they do not control their children or seek support.
Officers have also arrested 16 young people for a range of offences and issued 26 dispersal notices, preventing them from returning to the city centre for up to 48 hours, as well as requiring them to surrender their balaclavas.
Operation Reclaim is a partnership approach to tackling the major issues affecting the city centre, including youth anti-social behaviour.
Sergeant Cai Kemish, who leads the youth anti-social behaviour police operation, said:
“The results speak for themselves. Every day, we are working extremely hard to engage with these young people and make sure they move away from criminality.
“This includes taking them home to their parents or guardians and explaining how their behaviour has impacted members of the public and businesses.
“Some parents have engaged with the process and are mortified by their child’s behaviour. However, some haven’t, and we have warned 10 parents and guardians that the consequences of their child’s actions will fall on them.
“It isn’t a nice position for them to be in, but we can’t keep issuing warning after warning. They need to take responsibility.
“I am sure the public would want us to spend our time more effectively rather than dealing with their constant poor behaviour.
“However, we know the impact a minority of young people are having on our city, and that is why we are out in force, doing everything we can.”
