The quiet neighbourhood 'plagued by crime, drug use, and drug dealing'

RESIDENTS CALL FOR ACTION TO TACKLE 'SCARY' ANTISOCIAL BEHAVIOUR

- By HARRISON GALLIVEN Local democracy reporter

CROYDON residents are fearing their quiet neighbourhood once again becoming overrun with “scary” antisocial behaviour (ASB) unless urgent action is taken before the summer.

Locals living on Oval Road, near East Croydon station, say their street has become a hot spot for ASB, with squatters in gardens, drug use in alleyways, and human waste left near school entrances.

Despite this, residents feel they don’t receive the same protection as those in the town centre.

Tucked behind the sleek new developments around the busy station, Oval Road’s terraced homes and community pub present a quieter contrast.

However, residents say the area has become a spill over zone, and it was left exposed after being excluded from Croydon’s town centre Public Space Protection Order (PSPO).

"There were lots of incidents of ASB, particularly in the summer and autumn of last year,’ said Addiscombe resident and former councillor Jerry Fitzpatrick.

“People were spilling onto people's properties, coming onto their forecourts, going into back gardens.”

Melanie Felten, who lives on Oval Road, said the problems worsened after the PSPO came into force.

“There was a string of events that we didn’t have years back,’ she said.

“Since the PSPO came into force in 2023 there has been a displacement and spill across the boundary where it is not active.”

She added that she had warned the council at the time to include Oval Road.

“It's so close, but I didn’t get a response because it was a consultation,’ she said.

The day-to-day consequences have taken a toll.