A new fence, no-entry signs, cameras and extra lighting above the entrance: the municipality of Altena wants to tackle the nuisance at Community School De Esdoorn. The students have been harassed by annoying teenagers for months. They push over toddlers, destroy their belongings and swear at children. Due to the measures, this should now end.
The school is located in the middle of Sleeuwijk, on the edge of a park. It should be a child-friendly environment, but things have been going wrong in the park behind the school for years. There are teenagers who scare primary school children. They swear at them, break their bicycles, destroy the trash cans and push over toddlers. “Be careful of me, because I’m dangerous,” said one, threatening two small children with a pocket knife.
The school suffered almost ten thousand euros in damage last year due to the many items that were destroyed. It was not something for the school to see. Demolish stuff? Until then. “But don’t touch our children,” said director Marlies van der Burg. She has been in discussions with the municipality of Altena for a long time to ensure that something is actually done about the nuisance. And that now seems to be paying off.
Measures
After an inspection, a council meeting and an inspection by the Public Order and Safety officer, five solutions were proposed. For example, a fence will be placed at the entrance to the school, no-entry signs will be posted, extra lamps will be hung at the school and a security camera will keep a close eye on everything in the park.
Ten people have also registered to carry out neighborhood watch around the school. They just have to learn how to deal with the teenagers, but that is being initiated at the expense of the municipality.
The director of the school explains what the problem is: