SOME people living in Pinehurst and Penhill are afraid to leave their houses – even in daylight.

That is the claim from one Labour councillor, who says more should be done to help them as violent crime in the area continues to spiral upwards.

Swindon party leader Jim Grant asked Conservative cabinet member for housing and public safety Cathy Martyn what the authority was doing about what he called “a wave of gang warfare".

He said: “We’ve seen an increase in stabbings and general public disorder in Penhill and Pinehurst.

"What is the borough council doing about it?”

Coun Martyn said: “Crime and disorder and anti-social behaviour are matters for the police and we are working closely with the police and providing the necessary support to them and the community.”

Coun Grant said: “Pinehurst and Penhill are always at the top of the charts for crime and disorder and the decent people in the area are rightly sick of it.”

He said councillors in the area had arranged their own meeting, independent of the borough council, with Police and Crime Commissioner Angus Macpherson and the assistant chief constable.