TWO students arrested for making their neighbours’ lives hell with a string of rowdy parties have finally faced the music – meeting those aggrieved to apologise face-to-face.

It was late November when Durham Police raided the party house on Neville Street, Durham – arresting two students and seizing hundreds of thousands of pounds-worth of sound equipment.

That followed repeated complaints from neighbours – permanent residents and students alike – of ear-splitting noise until the early hours, public drunkenness, urinating and vomiting and drug taking.

Rather than face criminal charges, the two arrested agreed to meet their neighbours to hear how their actions had affected them, apologise and discuss how to put things right.

Today (Monday, January 26), all sides came together at Durham Town Hall, for a one-hour meeting organised and overseen by Durham Police under its restorative justice approach.

One of the students said his actions were thoughtless, he had “lost control” of what was happening, he had “wronged” the entire community and he wanted to ensure it never happened again.

A large number of people had come into the house, the music had been turned up to an “extraordinarily loud” level, people had been behaving very anti-socially and the party had flooded out onto the street, he added.

The second said he had been unaware of the impact on people living nearby and was grateful for the opportunity to apologise.

Sergeant Dean Caile, who dealt with one of the parties, said the behaviour was disgraceful and it was the first house party about which he had had to file an official statement in 17 years of policing.

Paula Perry, who owns the house, said she was sorry at the situation and expected her tenants to keep to the terms of their tenancy agreement.

Two residents who attended told of wider problems of student behaviour.

Robert Weil, of nearby Crossgate, said he could be woken up every 15 minutes between midnight and 4am.

“The majority of students just don’t consider there are other people in the city who have to get up for work,” he said.

A woman, who asked not to be named, told the two students they were idiots and fools and she felt sorry for them.

The students apologised, promised the problems would never happen again and agreed to encourage their fellow students to respect their neighbours and communities.