Eleven children in Maryport are being dealt with by police after anti-social behaviour has escalated in the town.
Officers are asking parents to check in with their children and talk to them about the consequences of their actions.
A police spokesman said: “One incident last month in Maryport resulted in the window of an elderly couple being smashed. This understandably received widespread social media attention after the victim’s family posted in a local group.
“The young person responsible has since been traced and accepted his behaviour was wrong and has been referred to the child centred policing team to prevent further escalation of this type of behaviour.”
Maryport’s community beat officer Sam Steele said: “This case is just one of 11 children being dealt with this month.
“What can start as messing around can quickly escalated into criminal actions. Unfortunately, too often I am taking young people home to inform parents of their behaviour.
“We are working with schools, parents and carers to educate young people on the very real consequences of their behaviour.
“If you suspect your child or a child in you care or that you know, is going out and getting involved in anti-social behaviour or low-level criminal damage, please speak to them about the impact it can have on a victim, the community and their future.
“I continue to work closely with local schools, businesses and residents to identify and combat such behaviour.
“Please be assured we take all reports of antisocial behaviour seriously and we carry out a lot of work with partner agencies goes on behind the scenes to prevent issues.”
If you have information about any incidents of anti-social behaviour, people are urged to report them to police so they can be investigated.
