THE Guardian reported this week that a Leyton park has become a hotspot for drug dealing, drug taking and violence.
Coronation Gardens, it seems, has become a magnet for anti-social behaviour.
Those living nearby report seeing gangs of youths hanging around late at night and some have even said they've been threatened.
The park, ostensibly tranquil and comparatively well kept, is easy to get into after hours as there are conveniently placed benches outside and CCTV is apparently no deterrent.
The council has said it is working with the police and plans to relocate the benches, but this seems like using a plaster to cover a gaping wound.
It will perhaps prevent people from hopping the fence, but they will presumably find another way in and it does not address the problem itself, which is that youth crime is ever-increasing.
The park is not the real issue, as one resident pointed out – it's that young people find themselves sucked into illegal activity.
And so inevitably, these 'hotspots' spring up – and, as much by coincidence as anything else, they appear in parks.
They are centrally located, provide plenty of cover with trees and shrubs and access isn't too much of a problem, even late at night.
It is no longer the case that parks are places for children to play or to take a leisurely stroll.
More and more frequently, we hear reports of dog-fighting or brawls or even stabbings in the borough's open spaces.
It's not the parks themselves, therefore, that need to be addressed, but keeping people – and especially young people – away from crime.
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