POLICE are to target antisocial youths in the Lordswood area of Southampton.

Officers have been given the power to break up groups of teenagers hanging about in the streets.

The new dispersal order means police can move in on groups of more than two people where their presence may seem intimidating to residents.

They will also be able to return home unsuper-vised youngsters under the age of 16, if they are in the designated areas between 9pm and 6am.

As well as cutting antisocial behaviour in the city, the authorities hope the order will help tackle the problem of juvenile nuisance that takes place around some local shops.

Police officers will use their discretion when enforcing the order and for those who fall foul of the scheme a ban from the area for 24 hours will be imposed.

If they return within that time they can be arrested and face a fine up £5,000 or up to three months in prison.

Lordswood has been targeted for the scheme after police and the city council identified it as an area where residents were being intimidated by the antisocial menace.

It is the fourth area of Southampton to be targeted with a six-month dispersal orders after Bitterne Precinct, Hinkler Parade in Thornhill and Irving Road in Millbrook.

In Bitterne Precinct the order was used 18 times with one youth arrested and in Hinkler Parade it was enforced 109 times, leading to six arrests. The Irving Road order was never used.

The orders for Bitterne Precinct and Hinkler Parade were so successful they have been renewed for another six months.

Lordswood is also the focus for the city's latest crime Reduction Environment Week.

Starting today it combines efforts of police and the city council to clean up and improve the quality of life in the community.

It includes graffiti removal teams and a nightly police-accompanied city patrol team, who will be on the look-out for litterbugs, troublesome youths, and people whose pets are fouling the streets.

Previous weeks have been hailed a success in the city with a reduction in crime during and in the weeks following the event.

It is the second time Lordswood has been put under the crime reduction spotlight since the camapign was introduced in 2003. The first was in May last year.

The initiative will last a week but the new dispersal order will remain in place until mid-November.

The areas covered are Lord's Hill Way, Aldermoor Road, Beaulieu Close, Longleat Gard-ens, Cowdray Close, Petworth Gardens, Waltham Crescent, Coxford Road, Dunkirk Close, Dunkirk Road, Arnheim Road and Lordswood Road.