Hell can be a children's playground

When Beryl and Alan Rollason moved to Roman Acre a year ago, it was to live the quiet life, not to see people taking drugs and men having sex just yards from their garden where their 15 grandchildren play.

But just months after they settled in, plans were unveiled for the Hedgehog Hollow children's park at the bottom of their garden which has since become a favourite haunt of unruly children and adults.

The fence separating the park and the back gardens of the houses in Roman Acre is around three feet high and affords a clear view from the park into the gardens that border it.

"I feel intimidated in my own home," said Beryl, a care assistant at Dean House in East Preston. "Kids in the park hang over the fence and yell abuse at us in our garden so we don't go outside anymore.

"I've seen children drinking alcohol in the park and people taking drugs. About a month ago I could hear three men out there having sex at night and being very graphic about what they were doing to each other.

I shouted at them and they got up and ran away. It was awful.

"When we moved here that land was left to run wild. There were trees and tall shrubs, we never had any problems but since the park was put there it has all changed."

The family said they were not objecting to the park itself and the young children using it to play in, but to the fact that their privacy in their garden has all but disappeared and said their neighbours whose houses also border the park feel the same.

Even chef Alan who is 6ft4 has been threatened by the children: "I have been round there to ask them to be quiet and stop swearing but they just get abusive," he said.

"If they can't see over the fence then hopefully they'll leave us alone," said Beryl. "Out of sight, out of mind, that's what I'm hoping but we need a decent fence.

"It won't stop them gathering there but it will give us our privacy back. The police said they have stepped up patrols in the area so I hope that will help too."

Beryl, Alan and their daughter Jessica, who lives in Rustington, have complained several times to Arun District Council about the problems.

At first, the council's parks department responded by saying that prickly bushes or 'security planting' would be established along the park's border with the homes.

But now, following further letters from the family stating that privacy was the issue, and the Gazette's intervention, a new, much taller fence is planned.

Dee Christensen, senior community parks officer with Arun, said: "We have been reviewing the situation and it has got worse.

"It is terrible what the family has had to put up with and we have to do something about it.

"I plan to visit the site with a representative from our landscaping department within the next week and get something into place before the summer holidays if not sooner.

"A 6ft chain-link fence with a mesh covering to provide immediate screening would probably be the best option and can eventually have vegetation grown over it.

"We are aware that anti-social behaviour in Arun parks has got worse over recent years and at our last team meeting we decided that we need to take a stronger approach against it, working alongside the police and Arun's anti-social behaviour team."