A HUMOROUS campaign with a blunt message to reduce town centre disorder among young people is being launched tomorrow night.

Don’t Be A Dick is the plain-speaking slogan created by teenagers in Stanley who attend a youth club.

The aim is to encourage a minority of trouble-makers to stop and think about the impact their antisocial actions have on others around them.

It includes a series of videos featuring Vin Welch, father of television star Denise Welch, acting like an 82-year-old yob and causing problems for people in the town.

He gets drunk, chucks bricks, smashes bottles and pushes a youngster in the path of a car.

The series culminates in his inevitable arrest, but each of the four shorts films ends with the sobering and hard-hitting message: ‘Don’t Be A Dick’.

Sergeant Dave Clarke said the campaign was so-called because the angry octogenarian character’s name is Richard.

He said: “Most of the kids don’t realise they are doing it and a lot of young people have peer pressure to act the goat, but it can get out of hand.

“Don’t Be A Dick is a great phrase to make people stop and think about what they are doing

“It is powerful and does not come over as officious or a party pooper.

“The young people have come up with it and it allows them to help keep their mates in check without being over the top.”

The town, which has been blighted by antisocial behaviour for years, made national headlines when a mob of around 100 youth surrounded police on Bonfire Night last year.

A hardcore gang of around 20 hurled bricks and fireworks at officers in the town centre near the bus station.

After the night of violence, Corey Daglish, 13, from Stanley, who attends Pactivate youth sessions at Pact House on Front Street, suggested holding public meetings to tackle the problem.

He said: “The videos are a bit of a joke but they are also sending a serious message.

“It makes sense to have the roles reversed with an older person.

“We would not like them treating us like that so why should we treat them like that?”

The videos will be launched with free pizza night for youngsters at Pact House from 7pm on Friday.

Toby Dunne, 18, a volunteer youth worker, who also worked on the campaign, said: “We want to raise the profile of the problem of anti-social behaviour in the community and eradicate it where we can.

“The campaign is quite thought-provoking. It shows how some young people are hurting not just themselves and animals but the area that we live in as a whole.

“Young people are aware of the issues but they do not necessarily associate it with anti-social behaviour and the consequences it can have.”

Vin Welch, who lives in Ebchester, got involved as he knows Sgt Clarke’s family and was happy to help out.

He said: “You have behave to other people as you would have them behave to you.

“I hope the kids will see it and the message will get through to them.”