UNDERAGE drinking and youths gathering on street corners continues to cause problems in Darlington.

Last week, uniformed warden Rebecca Heseltine seized a bottle of vodka from a ten-year-old boy in the Firthmoor area of town.

The Darlington Borough Council warden said the occurrence is not uncommon, with a 12-year-old girl from the Harrowgate Hill area recently boasting that she was a hardened brandy drinker.

The brief insight into teenage drinking at Firthmoor's community safety meeting yesterday shocked members, who said the problem starts with youths gathering on the streets.

While the new community centre in Firthmoor, Maidendale House, offers a place where youths can gather, Ms Heseltine said there is one large group who refuse to use the facilities.

"They wouldn't come to this community centre come hell or high water and it is that one group causing the problems for residents," she said.

She said alcohol is being bought for the youngsters by older teenagers.

"It is illegal for them to supply the alcohol, but we have great difficulty in proving that they have done so," she said.

"They are not daft enough to hand it across in front of CCTV cameras - they hide behind the box near the shop and hand it over."

Members agreed to look into providing activities for teenagers on a Friday night when the problem of drinking on the streets is at its worst.

Councillor Lee Vasey said: "I'm wanting to try and set something up on North Road but I need a venue and volunteers.

"There are youth clubs set up around the town already that are excellently led and very successful - such as at Branksome and Skerne Park."