PRIVATE investigators are offering to help communities wage war on anti-social behaviour.

Former CID officers have contacted parish councils across Cheshire to advertise their company Brian Harrison Investigations Ltd, which uses police-style surveillance to collect evidence of recurring problems.

The Stoke-on-Trent company's letter arrives as several Chester villages have been experiencing a wave of destructive behaviour.

Most recently, residents in Kelsall discovered yobs spent a night lobbing bottles around the village recreation land, leaving a sea of broken glass for children and dog walkers.

Clerk Natalie Read told the annual parish meeting: 'I've never seen anything quite like it in my life.'

On a separate night, a member of staff from the Olive Tree pub was attacked as they made their way home from work.

Other recent incidents include:

In Tattenhall, a milkman was left unable to work after he was attacked with an iron bar. Yobs also turned on a man and a woman with a shovel.

A Tiverton motorist escaped serious injury when a brick was thrown through his windscreen.

Brian Harrison Investigations Ltd offers to use handheld cameras to capture nuisance youths on tape.

Ex-police officers stake out hot spots to witness first-hand incidences of vandalism or arson and will appear in court to give evidence.

Former police detective, employee Gary Flanagan, said: 'I have seen large groups of individuals gathering on street corners, drinking alcohol, being abusive and intimidating by their presence. I have witnessed windows being smashed, vehicles being damaged and fires being set.

'In a gang you will find one or two ringleaders who orchestrate everything. These are the ones we concentrate on and take to court. They are made example of and the rest of the crowd follow in step.'

He said that business has increased in the last two years, when anti-social behaviour has become subject of heated political discussion.

'Two or three years ago people were worried about their houses being broken into and burgled, now they worry about youths and vandals.'