POLICE have issued a warning after numerous reports of children lying in the middle of the road in dangerous games of ‘chicken’. 

Teenagers and younger children have been seen lying in roads at a number of locations in Worcester, residents say.

There have been a number of reports of the dangerous game on social media.

Following this, West Mercia Police’s Inspector Chris Percival has warned children and their parents that they are posing a grave danger to themselves and others.

“Children need to understand the dangers of engaging in this kind of behaviour and that they are posing a danger not only to themselves but to motorists and the rest of the public,” he said. “Parents also need to be responsible for their children’s behaviour.

“I want to urge anybody that does see this kind of activity to report it to their local Safer Neighbourhood Team immediately, especially if it is becoming an urgent or frequent issue.”

One resident reported seeing three teenage boys lying in the middle of Windermere Drive in Warndon. They said another teenager, dressed in dark clothing, was dancing in the road and forcing cars to make emergency stops to avoid hitting him.

The same Facebook post also made reference to a group of teenagers causing a nuisance at the Tesco supermarket in Warndon.

It is said that the group was swearing and shouting at security guards and riding their bikes through the supermarket foyer. 

The teenagers were also riding around the car park and only narrowly avoiding a number of parked cars.

Another witness to the behaviour said: “it was an accident waiting to happen” and that teenagers regularly lie in the middle of Bilford Road near to Tudor Grange Academy and in Blackpole Road near McDonald’s.

They added that the trouble had peaked over the summer holiday and began to decline only to return again recently.

A spokesman for Tesco said they could not comment on recent reports as they had not been made aware of any incidents by the police or security staff.

However, they did highlight their ongoing communication with the police regarding antisocial behaviour inside the supermarket and in the surrounding area.

Cllr Lucy Hodgson, who represents Warndon Parish South, whilst aware of previous incidents of antisocial behaviour at Tesco and in the surrounding area, had not been made aware of any recent reports.
Cllr Hodgson also said no incidents had been raised at the parish council meeting.

Cllr Hodgson and Cllr Andy Roberts urged residents to report any incidents to the police.