A CAMPAIGN of egg-throwing, abuse and vandalism on a Malvern estate is causing misery for residents who say they cannot cope for much longer.

The occupants of a bungalow on Lechmere Crescent, who do not want to be named for fear of reprisals, say they have been under siege by a group of youngsters every night for the past week, and on and off for the past two years.

A 78-year-old neighbour with failing sight has been forced to build a shield from wood and plastic sheeting to protect his window from the bombardment.

"We can't stand it any more," he said. "If we could pack up our bags and go, we would."

One neighbour, who is also too frightened to be named, said the campaign started in 1999, when her car was targeted by youths who deflated tyres and left broken bottles beneath them, scratched the paintwork and daubed it with spray paint.

She and her husband applied to Elgar Housing to move house. However, three weeks before the move came through he died of a heart attack.

Although she does not attribute this directly to the vandalism, she said it had put her husband under a lot of stress. She sold the car, at which point the attacks switched to next door.

All residents are in agreement that the parents of the children responsible, who they say come from far and wide to congregate in a nearby alley, need to be held to account.

They say calling police is no use, because the youths scatter at the sight of a patrol. They would like to see schools instilling respect for their elders and have contacted Dyson Perrins CE School to put this point across.

Another neighbour, Ken Holton, 44, said he had recently had to pay £150 for repairs to his car after it was vandalised. Further down the road, 43-year-old lorry driver Peter Law said children congregating in the road drop litter and take drugs.

PC Dilip Sarkar, beat manager for North Malvern, said youths congregate in the area because of a series of alleyways giving access through it. He said police were notified of problems around Lechmere Crescent over the summer but had received no calls recently.

"If we get complaints we will respond to them accordingly," he said, adding that even if no one is able to attend at the time the police are called, messages left on voicemail will be picked up and acted upon later.