Traders and customers have called for gangs of teens who congregate outside shops in Balfour Court to be moved on.

They claim that the youngsters are driving away trade and intimidating residents with their regular skateboarding meets in the square near Leyland Market.

PC Paul Whittaker, of Leyland's neighbourhood policing team, urged the gangs to stay away or face the wrath of officers.

He said: "There have been a number of complaints and we have put this area on our anti-social behaviour priority list, which means we are patrolling it multiple times a day.

"It seems that youths are using the area as a skate park and it is causing some disruption for residents and shoppers.

"They don't seem to be a bad set of kids but it is important that we try and educate them to take responsibility for their own actions. We want them to realise that what they are doing is causing problems for the residents.

"We also want them to know that any nuisance behaviour will not be tolerated."

According to traders, the problems are getting worse as groups of up to 20 youths use the street furniture as makeshift skate boarding ramps.

Worries have also been raised after the groups started congregating on the nearby Ecroyd car park, behind Leyland Market.

• For more on this story, see this week's Leyland Guardian