Residents’ despair over drug needles dumped in their neighbourhood

Sharrow residents first highlighted the problem last November but say the Landsdowne estate is still being blighted.

One father, who did not want to be named, said: “We are keeping our children inside because of the dangers of children picking needles up.

“The council has not acted on this problem and it is becoming a lot worse. Residents don’t know what to do and are in fear of retaliation if they speak out.

“We have all been complaining to the council and police with no changes whatsoever. Our concern is keeping our kids and community safe but no matter what we do or say the authorities are ignoring us. We are really upset and tired.”

South Yorkshire Police says it will increase patrols and will also hold a pop-up station there but local councillor Alison Teal says people want CCTV.

She said: “I’ve continued to receive a sustained flow of complaints from residents about open drug dealing and drug paraphernalia.

“Council officers and the police report they are doing all they can – unfortunately, residents say they are not seeing any improvement.

“Residents would like to see CCTV cameras installed to monitor the area, improve public safety and gather intelligence.”

Sgt Ross Greenwood, who leads the Sharrow policing team, said he was treating this as a priority.

He said: “My officers carry out regular, visible patrols in the area, and due to recent concerns I will look to increase patrols in the coming weeks.

“I would like to reassure residents that we are taking action already, which includes stop-searches of individuals and a significant amount of engagement with agencies such as the housing association and the council.

“We also recently secured a closure order at premises near to the estate, which we are hoping will help to disrupt drug-related activity in the surrounding area.

“As with anything, our ability to tackle this issue relies on local people talking to us about their concerns.

“I would like people to feel confident in reporting things they are not happy with, one way of doing this is by visiting our pop-in police stations, one of which is taking place on the Lansdowne Estate on July 4.

“We also have a Facebook page where you can see what the team has been up to and this can be found by searching ‘Sheffield South West NHP’.”

The pop-in police station will be open between midday and 3pm in the quadrant area between the flats.

Sheffield Council has asked residents to report any concerns.

Janet Sharpe, director of housing and neighbourhood services, said: “We take the dumping of waste and litter seriously across the city and we want everywhere to be clean and safe so our estates team do check the area regularly.

“We would ask residents to report any concerns they have to the team via the call centre on 0114 293 0000 or if their concern is about needles and syringes to contact the council’s Environmental Services Team on 0114 273 4567.”