YOUNG yobs are running riot on a Worcester estate, worried residents say.

Shards of glass still litter Gresham Road, in Dines Green, where eight flat windows above the Co-op supermarket were smashed at around 6pm on Sunday.

In the same area, the community centre's bins have been torched, a telephone box vandalised and car windows and mirrors smashed.

Mother-of-one Laurie Prosser, of Shakespeare Road, said the area had become a focal point for a gang of eight to 10 youths, aged from nine to 18.

"It's like Beirut. It used to be a lovely estate, but now this gang is in the area most nights," she said.

An elderly Gresham Road resident, who wished to remain anonymous, said: "I've lived here for 52 years and have never known anything like it in all my life."

City councillor Margaret Layland, who represents the area, said. "People are depressed and demoralised. It is disheartening that these yobs are running riot in our community.

The targeted flats, run by Worcester Consolidated Municipal Charities, had only just been re-occupied after persistent vandalism. Chairman Paul Griffith yesterday refused to comment on the damage.

A Grenville Road resident added that the situation was "terrible". She said: "The youngsters climb over garages at Drake Avenue and run through gardens, breaking fences and windows. I have been pushed over before, and they are not afraid to do it in daylight hours."

Insp Clive Griffiths, of Worcester police, said: "If we identify that a particular area has a problem, such as Dines Green, we will target those areas."