VANDALS who have plagued an area of Bromyard have been warned that they will be caught - no matter how long it takes.

That's the vow of town councillor Judy Wooland, who is helping lead a CCTV initiative to combat the problem.

A camera was installed last week at the public hall after three cherry trees on the nearby green were stripped by youths, thought to have been drinking.

However, the camera then became a target itself and was nearly destroyed by vandals throwing stones. The five or six teenagers missed their target but succeeded in smashing a window below the camera.

Now Coun Wooland has promised to step up efforts to catch the hooligans.

"We know who the people involved are, it's just a case of getting video evidence to prosecute them," he said .

"We're determined to conquer this."

Coun Wooland said that the camera was operational when it was attacked last week but that lighting in the area was too poor to be able to make out the vandals. Now two more cameras and additional lighting will be installed in the area.

Mayor Joan Dauncey, who is also involved in efforts to catch the youths, said the area around the green had fallen victim to vandalism because it offered shady corners for the youngsters to hide.

She said nearby off-licences had been reminded not to sell alcohol to young people, after some were found to be carrying bottles of cider.

Coun Dauncey said: "It would be nice to be able to approach the youths directly but some of them are extremely aggressive."

However, Herefordshire Councillor Chris Grover does not believe the camera system will work.

"It's a step towards solving the problem but all it will do is drive them to do their drinking somewhere else," he said.

"People say we should do more for the youth but these aren't the sorts of kids who would go to a youth club. We need to tackle the parents and the schools instead."

Coun Wooland said that a skatepark, granted planning permission in November, should offer somewhere for the youngsters to meet.