A higher proportion of people are afraid to go out in the evenings in Didcot than any other town in south Oxfordshire.

A residents' survey showed nearly half of Didcot's population thought it was unsafe to go out on foot at night.

According to Feedback, a newsletter detailing the findings of 1,100 residents across the district who completed questionnaires on a range of community issues including safety and the environment: "Half of Didcot residents rated their town as very or fairly unsafe when walking out at night."

In other south Oxfordshire towns -- Wallingford, Thame and Henley -- "the balance was very much the opposite, with a much greater proportion rating them as very or fairly safe".

South Oxfordshire District Council is undertaking a series of 'citizens' panel' surveys to help formulate council policies.

The latest survey revealed that while only 10 per cent of people in neighbouring Wallingford believed it was "fairly unsafe" when walking at night, 44 per cent thought it was unsafe at night in Didcot.

Police are dealing with a wave of vandalism in Didcot and residents fear rowdy and antisocial behaviour will increase with the start of the school holidays.

Town councillor and district council cabinet member for Didcot John Flood said he thought people's worries about antisocial behaviour were wholly justified.

Capt Flood, a retired merchant seaman, said: "In 33 years of seafaring, often to some pretty rough places, I did not encounter the marauding gangs of drunken, vandalising youths as we now have in Didcot."

He called on the Government to introduce 'zero tolerance policing' backed by the courts.

According to a statement issued by Thames Valley Police, crime figures for the past three years showed "southern Oxfordshire is the safest place to live in the Thames Valley."

It added: "Steps and measures continue to be put in place to keep it that way".

Police said their aim was "to work with communities to tackle the fear of crime".

Police spokesman Vicky Evans said: "There is an increased level of officers on duty in Didcot town centre on Friday and Saturday nights when it is expected that there will be more public order offences."

District councillor Margaret Davies, leader of the town council, said fear of crime could sometimes be self-induced.

She said: "People may read their local paper and feel the town is unsafe even if in reality it is safe. The reality is that crime figures in Didcot are low."

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