NEARLY 200 pints of alcohol were seized from people on the streets during a crackdown on crime in central Darlington.

Police also arrested five people during StreetSafe Action Week, which is being hailed as a major success by police and community safety bosses.

The crackdown on crime and anti-social behaviour involved Darlington Borough Council, the emergency services, the DVLA, Primary Care Trust and other agencies joining forces to help clean up the streets.

The initiative, organised by Darlington Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership (CDRP), aimed to tackle a host of problems including littering and fly-tipping, graffiti, untaxed cars and other problems.

There were also a number of events designed to encourage people to take greater pride in their community.

Figures produced today reveal that the crackdown, which ended on Sunday, proved effective in helping to clean up the central part of town.

Police arrested five people on suspicion of various offences and stopped a further 113.

Two drugs warrants were executed and 105 litres of alcohol seized from people on the streets.

Fourteen licensed premises were visited to ensure they were not selling alcohol to under-age customers, while seven youngsters were stopped in a school truancy sweep.

The DVLA also prosecuted 111 people for not having their vehicles properly taxed.

Street Scene removed graffiti from several locations throughout the area.

These included Larchfield Street, Duke Street, Raby Street, Widdowfield Street, Bartlett Street, Kitchener Street, Sun Street, Archer Street, Corporation Road, Salisbury Terrace and Cartmell Terrace.

The fire service carried out 67 home safety checks and a further 65 people have signed up for safety checks.

Eleven businesses were visited by fire crews, with three of those visits resulting in follow-up calls being made.

Bill Dixon, the cabinet member for community and public protection, said: "The action week was a real success and I am delighted with the results, which came about from so many organisations working in partnership.

"We will continue to focus on these important issues to ensure that residents are still seeing improvements long after the action week has finished."

Chief Superintendent Peter Davis, chairman of the CDRP, said: "The partnership exists to make Darlington a safer place for people to live and the action week was a real demonstration of our commitment to achieving that goal.

"I am thrilled with the results and would like to thank residents for their support of the initiative."