CLUBBERS are being blamed for anti-social behaviour after a shop window was smashed over the weekend.

Staff at Winchmore Designs on Epping High Street said it was not the first time the glass window at the front of the shop had been broken.

Sales Assistant Tina Bennett added: “It must have happened Friday night or early Saturday morning because it was like this on Saturday. It's the second, or maybe the third time it's happened.

"It's obviously people using the club and we also get a lot of bottles thrown at the back of our shop.

"I don't know how well the police patrol the high street but there isn't any CCTV covering this area so whoever did it will probably never be caught. It's going to be quite expensive to repair.”

But Caroline Polledri of Club 195 said they do everything they can to prevent their customers from causing trouble.

She added: “We work very closely with the police. We have security cameras which go nearly all the way up to the high street and we are very aware of what's going on.

"We do everything possible to stop things like that happening and the police are happy with the way we run things.”

The issue of anti-social behaviour along the high street was bought up at a recent Neighbourhood Action Panel meeting for Epping, where members complained that youths congregating in the area were intimidating and cause trouble.

Police assured that there were increased patrols at the weekend but Paul Gardener from the district council's safer communities team said installing CCTV cameras would cost far too much money.