'It's not fair,' say children of Corby curfew but neighbours and police hope to end the terror

Amid the burnt-out cars, the debris of urban blight and the graffiti proclaiming "Mad Dog 2001", a wind of rebellion was sweeping through the sink estates of Corby.

Nobody was using the words "human rights", possibly because those with the grievance were only children. But, as children, they were saying something far more familiar to grown-up ears: "It's not fair."

It was after dark on Monday, the day that Northamptonshire Police announced they had applied to the Home Office to be allowed introduce a curfew on children up to 15 in areas where gangs had been "terrorising" the community, and the kids weren't happy.

On the Kingswood estate, where 1970s "right-to-buy" homes with frilly curtains rub against burnt-out shells and boarded-up wrecks, they know all about trouble but the adults and the children are split over how to deal with it.

Liz Cunningham, 46, who has five boys and one girl, said: "The curfew is a great idea – but they should raise the age and lower the time.

"There is some trouble round here – mainly kids stealing cars and setting fire to them, and vandalism and a bit of window-smashing – but that's not why I think the curfew will work. I'm more interested in the effect it will have on the parents.

"If a kid is roaming after 9pm and the police take him home, then the parents will have to take care of him. And, at the moment, I think there are too many parents who don't pay their kids enough attention, don't know where they are and don't know what they're up to."

Last August, the Government introduced new extended curfew orders, but until now no police force has applied to use one. If this application is approved, Northamptonshire Police hope to have the Corby curfew in place within three months.

Mrs Cunningham's neighbour, Amanda Clarke, 35, was certainly not in the category of inattentive parents. Her daughter, Emmie, nine, and son, Michael, 14, were sparky and articulate – and aggrieved.

"We are all being blamed for the kids who cause trouble," said Emmie.

"We play out, but my mum knows where we are and we all look after each other. There are some bad kids, but why should we get the blame for what they do? It's not fair."

Her brother and his friend, Lee Anderson, 14, said the curfew was doomed to failure. "Everyone will just ignore it. All my friends have said they'll just jump out of the window and climb down the drainpipe," said Michael. "Some of the kids cause trouble, but they're older than 15 anyway."

Police spokesmen told The Independent that they did not have specific figures for crimes committed by under-15s in the area covered by the proposals, but said there was perception among older people that made them feel vulnerable.

Corby has inevitably suffered with the shrinking of British Steel, now Corus. Local people say it is difficult to find a full-time job, that agencies place people in temporary jobs and cream off a percentage.

On the estates bordering the Oakley Road, where last year children allegedly set fire to and gutted a Safeway supermarket, the signs of deprivation are clear: badly designed estates with few facilities for adults and even fewer for their children. Streets are designed either as rat-runs or cul-de-sacs. Derelict garages are hangouts for bored, shifty youngsters, smoking and sniffing glue. Parents like Mrs Cunningham and Mrs Clarke worry each time one of their children finds an empty heroin syringe.

Pat Fawcett, the Labour councillor for the ward covering the curfew area, said: "There probably isn't more crime than in a lot of other places, but there is a feeling that people are afraid of some of the kids that roam in gangs. And if anyone tells the police, there tend to be cases of retribution.

"Something has to be done, and the community is behind the police on this one."

Many in the area resent the poor image they have – particularly when simply having a certain Corby address can ruin your chances of getting a job. But it is an image the police hope to improve.

Police expect the curfew in reality not to be a blanket ban on all children, but one they can impose on the youngsters they already know to be causing trouble. No one is likely to be rounded up for playing outside home or for walking home late from a friend's house. So, if it works, the children of Corby might say it is fair, after all.