Resident stayed in car for two hours to avoid group of people blocking the staircase to her Cwmbran home

A Cwmbran woman says people regularly block the external staircase to her flat whille smoking drugs and swearing.

On one occasion she stayed in her car for two hours until they moved as she felt threatened and didn’t want to pass them to get into her home. She lives in a flat above Fairwater Shops and wants to remain anonymous.

There are several external staircases around the shops that lead up to flats. The people on the stairs aren’t residents.

She said: “The kids are hanging about smoking weed, smoking and urinating. The stairs are the only way in and the only way out. We have to go through and smell it.

“They have even mashed chips into the stairs to make them slippy. There is usually about six to eight of them. it’s a nightmare, an absolute nightmare.”

She said she has contacted the police, Torfaen Council and Bron Afon for support.

“Once people wouldn’t let me up the stairs. I think it’s bad luck to pass people on stairs, so I asked them to come down so I could go up. I said, ‘I don’t care what you do after’. They said ‘nah, f off’, that’s all you get. Someone needs to do something about the stairs.

“They have graffitied all over the stairs. It looks terrible.” She is now looking to move to either private accommodation or another socially rented home in Torfaen.

Gwent Police told Cwmbran Life they were contacted about anti-social behaviour at Fairwater Square on Tuesday 20 September and Monday 7 November. On both occasions, officers visited the area and regular community support officer patrols were carried out.

Inspector Jennie Tinsley-Brustad said: “Anti-social behaviour and associated disorder is completely unacceptable. It can have a negative impact on the quality of life of our communities and it won’t be tolerated.

“Our officers are committed to protecting the residents of Gwent and will take action against anyone intent on causing harm or disorder.

“If you have any concerns about anti-social behaviour, and see us on our patrols, please stop to talk to us.

“You can also report your concerns by calling 101, by sending us a direct message on Facebook or Twitter, or anonymously through Crimestoppers.”

A Torfaen Council spokeswoman said: “Our community safety team has received a number of reports of anti-social behaviour in Fairwater Square and has distributed anti-social behaviour surveys to residents and spoken to local businesses.

“A community support officer from the neighbourhood policing team has been visiting the area to identify those responsible and help deter anti-social behaviour.

“The outreach team has also been holding additional activities for young people in the community.”

Bron Afon, her landlord, said they send a member of staff to here home to chat and find out more.

Emma Fish, service lead, community housing, Bron Afon, said: “We are sorry to hear that she has been experiencing this kind of anti-social behaviour on her doorstep and about the distress it has caused her.

“We want to support her in any way we can, so we will arrange for one of our community housing officers to visit her to listen to her concerns and act as a point of contact.

“To avoid any further confusion, we will work with partners to plan what actions need to be taken, so she can be reassured something will be done about the anti-social behaviour in her area. In the meantime, we encourage her to report any criminal activity to the police.”