Teenage gathering in housefront

boardfriek

Hi all,

for the past three days I have a couple of teenagers hanging around the neighbours entrance (four detached housed in a row on the main street). It´s usually a group of four around 13-16 years old if I was to guess. They meet up around 7pm and do what others in the same age do when you see them around shopping centers (chatting, yelling, playing with their mobiles). So far I was happy to only see them in those areas but now it´s bothering me when I am reading a book or listening to music in the living room. Especially the screaming and yelling is annoying. Any idea how I can solve the situation? I don´t wanna push this out too long.

bee06

Well they're not doing anything wrong so I'm not sure you can do anything? I'm sure once it starts raining and/or gets cold they'll stop hanging out outside.

Wesser

Ask them to move somewhere else?

boardfriek

Wesser wrote: »

Ask them to move somewhere else?

To find Graffiti at my door or walls next day?

LegacyUser

There's a tech gadget you can get, I don't know the name of it, but it makes a kind of annoying white noise that only young people's ears can discern, & they instinctively move away from.

Eric Cartman

Sdggbbv wrote: »

There's a tech gadget you can get, I don't know the name of it, but it makes a kind of annoying white noise that only young people's ears can discern, & they instinctively move away from.

Im 25 and can still hear those, also if your neighbours have kids id imagine they'd be on to you fairly quickly when their kids can't even be in their own house with a window open.

lukesmom

There's nothing you can do as they aren't actually causing any harm to your property, okay you can hear them outside hanging around but that's what teenagers generally do. Now if they were roaring obscenities at you and banging your door down that would be another story. I think you should invest in some ear plugs for when your reading.

njs030

Do they live locally? If so they've every right to be there.

Op not every teenager has interest in graffiting other people's property, a polite "would you mind moving somewhere else" might be the right answer.

milli milli

Be careful OP about telling them to move. I had a similar situation but there was maybe 10 of them. I asked them to move one night and they were cheeky to me. I went inside house, looked outside window to find they had dispersed. Then noticed my car mirror was broken off.
I called the Garda that night and they took a statement. There was a group of teenagers across the road in a garden but because I couldn't identify them, nothing could be done. TBH the Garda were very lacksadaisacal about it.

Now I lived in a rough area and my car was damaged on 3 separate occasions.
Maybe your area isn't that bad?
But I would be careful with what you do.

sashafierce

This post has been deleted.

Sunny Dayz

OP put it in perspective - it's 4 teenagers aged 13-16, not a mob of 20+ feral teens. Where else do you expect them to go or what else do you expect them to do? Does one or a few of them live in one of those houses in your area?
TBH the weather is getting wintery now, they probably won't be standing out in the lashing rain this evening!

njs030

sashafierce wrote: »

Id agree with above, asking them to move will cause them to do something (regardless if this is a generalisation or not - they're teenagers, they're like that) I'd keep an eye and if they intimidate you at all ask the guards to tell them to move.
Intimidating teenagers are the worst

No they aren't. Teenagers are people-some good, some bad. You were one once did you go round graffiting and breaking windows?

If op lives in a bad area where it wouldn't be smart to demand anyone move then yes I agree with saying nothing. If op is in a good area where most people are decent their children are likely to be the same.


It annoys me that teenagers are treated like some kind of social pariah that can be looked down on and spoken to like dirt- speaking to anyone with that attitude will cause trouble.

ongarboy

Sunny Dayz wrote: »

OP put it in perspective - it's 4 teenagers aged 13-16, not a mob of 20+ feral teens. Where else do you expect them to go or what else do you expect them to do? Does one or a few of them live in one of those houses in your area?
TBH the weather is getting wintery now, they probably won't be standing out in the lashing rain this evening!

Agree with this advice regarding the winter time. I sometimes have an issue with loitering youths but only in fine weather/long evenings. Not a problem on the dark cold winter evenings. See if it persists now that the weather is getting crappy!

kylith

And once they've moved on in the winter you can look at putting a bush along that wall to discourage them from congregating there in future.

dixiefly

It sounds that they are causing a very minor nusance in the bigger scheme of things. As others have said asking them to move when they have done very little could get their backs up and cause friction with their parents and they may try and spite you by staying around more.
With the colder weather they may well disperse and then congregate somewhere else when they start meeting up again.

On a side note, the chances are that it could be a different group in a couple of years and another group after that. If this is really getting to you perhaps you should consider a move to an area with no or very few young people.

littelady

How about leaving your windows slightly ajar whilst pumping out some old timers tunes.!!!

Mousewar

They're gathering there for a reason. Comfortable wall to sit on? Privacy?
I'd just make a point of being out in my garden whenever they're around. Potter in your car or whatever. Eventually they'll get sick of you always there listening to them and they'll go somewhere where they have more privacy.

LegacyUser

boardfriek wrote: »

Hi all,

for the past three days I have a couple of teenagers hanging around the neighbours entrance (four detached housed in a row on the main street). It´s usually a group of four around 13-16 years old if I was to guess. They meet up around 7pm and do what others in the same age do when you see them around shopping centers (chatting, yelling, playing with their mobiles). So far I was happy to only see them in those areas but now it´s bothering me when I am reading a book or listening to music in the living room. Especially the screaming and yelling is annoying. Any idea how I can solve the situation? I don´t wanna push this out too long.

They are around your neighbours entrance,not yours? You say "four detached housed in a row on the main street". You mean like a terrace where the wall of the house is at the street level and you lookout a window and see footpath? If they are on the public footpath at your neighbour entrance and not interfering with you what can you do? How can you ask them to leave?


I would not use that sound. According to wiki "Under Ireland's Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act, 1997, anyone who "directly or indirectly applies force to or causes an impact on the body of another... without the consent of the other" (force including "application of [any] form of energy"), is guilty of committing assault. This issue has been raised in relation to the Mosquito device by Ireland's Ombudsman for Children following legal advice provided by Youth Work Ireland,[30] but has yet to be tested in the Irish courts". Unless you want to test it in court.

It depends on if they are just having fun and not interfering with you as distinct from engaging in anti social behaviour and interfering with you

LegacyUser

When I was about 15 a group of 10 of us used to hang around a lane way at a nearby estate - just chatting etc. The lady at a nearby house asked us to keep it down or move away when her young kids had gone to bed as they could hear us. Honestly it never occurred to us that they could even hear us (youth eh?!).

We apologised and moved to a green area away from the houses - she was really nice and polite when she told us, and to be honest I think we were a bit mortified that we had disturbed her children. From then on we always passed the time of day, and one of the girls even ended up babysitting for her a couple of years later.

I'm sure they're reasonable kids - just explain your situation politely.

Detached Retina

Maybe do a bit of a Ned Flanders and make it slightly annoying for them to stay in the one place,or as others said, if they seem like ok kids just see if they're ok to lower the volume.:)
A Colleague of mine made a big deal of going out to teenagers to tell them to clear off, and they made his life hell.
By that token, I got a surprise when I got out of my car with my kids, and some local teens were hanging out in our underground in one of the corners (back door to the car park is usually left unlocked).
They were doing the usual chatting, on the mobiles etc. occasionally doing shouty chasing games (:rolleyes:?) . Actually were sound kids, just mentioned they used it to keep out of the rain and helped me up the steps with my bags etc. on a few occasions.

SusieBlue

My parents had a similar problem a few years ago. Definitely approach them, but if your careful about how you do it, you shouldn't have issues.

My mom went out one evening, and in a very non confrontational, non aggressive manner, firstly asked them how they were, and then explained she didn't mind them hanging around in the evening cause their presence was no bother but if they could just keep it down a little bit it would be great due to x/y/z reason.

They were very understanding, didn't realise how loud they were etc. They continued to hang around there in a much quieter fashion for another couple of months (even offering to help my mom bring in the shopping from the car one day too) and then moved on elsewhere.

I think your best tactic is not to go out all guns blazing. I know that this won't work with every group of teenagers, but I think she was so nice about it she guilted them into shutting up.

Worth a try. Just don't be aggressive or confrontational, if they feel like your giving out to them they won't give you any leeway at all. Good luck!