RAMPAGING teenagers have been blamed for a spate of attacks on parked cars in Bewdley.

Bewdley town councillors believe unruly youths are running up and down on cars, breaking windows and torching them - with Dog Lane car park a problem hotspot.

Councillor Paul Gittins said at a meeting on Monday hooligans had left a note on a vandalised car with a chilling message to the owner - "if you report this we know where you live".

The council hopes to reinstate regular meetings to discuss crime in Bewdley with the town's beat manager, PC Nigel Barter, and is seeking a special meeting to cover ways of making Dog Lane safer - with better lighting and CCTV considerations.

Mr Gittins said: "In Dog Lane a couple of weeks ago several cars were vandalised and two were stolen. A few days later more were vandalised - then on Saturday a car was set on fire."

He said a recent typical Friday night in Bewdley had included violence, with someone being glassed, and vandalism to telephone boxes and cars.

Mr Gittins, a sub-officer at Bewdley Fire Station, said he had seen teenagers roaming the streets on his way to deal with the car fire on Saturday night.

"There were 16-year-olds walking around and when I came into the town centre there were even more. It's worrying," he said.

Patricia Palmer reported incidents of teenagers damaging cars by running on top of them, while Bill Mason said there had also been problems in Richmond Road.

Meanwhile, PC Barter has announced a crime prevention event at the Dog Lane car park between 3pm and 8pm on Saturday when officers will be on hand to advise people on how to protect their cars and send letters to owners of "vulnerable" vehicles.