POLICE have moved to reassure villagers that the extent of anti-social behaviour in their community is not as serious as some people believe.

Darlington police say that isolated incidents of smashed windows and bullying in nearby Sadberge should not be seen as a permanent problem for the community.

Beat officer Karl Lowe, addressing a meeting on the issue of anti-social behaviour in the village this week, said he wanted to nip any nuisance behaviour in the bud.

Concern has mounted recently about youngsters causing trouble, after an elderly woman was taunted by two young boys while waiting for a bus.

Problems of youths causing nuisance on Friday disco nights, and an incident in which windows in the village hall were smashed, have also been addressed at previous parish council meetings.

Joan Vickers, chairman of the Sadberge Village Hall Association, said: "Some older residents have suffered threatening and quite aggressive behaviour, and have said they were considering leaving the village."

But Sergeant Mark Ralphs, of Darlington police, said: "There is no real problem of anti-social behaviour in the village.

"The disco nights are always policed and residents can call us if they ever have a problem. We need to be kept informed."

He said that in the past five years only five calls had been made to the force reporting incidents of youths causing annoyance or nuisance in Sadberge.