YEARS ago, groups of youths congregating on street corners would invariably be told to move on by the police. It was a foolish lad who questioned the wisdom of the diligent constable or barrel-chested sergeant when ordered to "hop it, sonny."

Sadly for society, the decline of the beat bobby has led to large groups of youngsters gathering on playing fields and outside parades of shops.

A few of these teenagers misbehave, others do not. We must not fall into the trap of tarring them all with the same brush.

Nevertheless, many citizens' lives have been made a misery because of the acts of a sizeable minority.

This newspaper therefore has great pleasure in announcing the success of the new Section 30 dispersal orders. Don't be put off by this bureaucratic-sounding title - the revelations that incidents of anti-social behaviour have dropped by an average of 40 per cent in two areas of Worcester should fill us with optimism for the future.

These orders target troublespots. Police base their decisions on recorded reports of problems and not on anecdotal information. This is why they have proved to be so effective - resources are not wasted in areas where incidents are relatively rare.

A third dispersal order for an area of Worcester runs until early next year. There is no reason to suppose that this will be any less effective than the first two.

We must not be complacent. But now we've won a battle, there is real hope that we can win the war.