Officers cracked down on youths during a night of surveillance at Worden Park aimed at targeting anti-social behaviour and underage drinking.

Last Saturday the officers issued five fixed penalty fines to youths caught with alcohol and they say more will be issued if necessary.

Neighbourhood policing Sgt Jeanette Bashall said the blitz is already proving a big success.

She said: "On Saturday night alone we issued a number of penalty notices and it appears the message is already getting around because we are seeing a lot less underage drinking as a result.

"The late nights always bring a certain amount of problems with anti-social behaviour and youth nuisance, so we want to send a clear message as early as possible that we will not tolerate it.

"If youths are caught with alcohol we will issue them with a fine and if they are under 16 we can take their details and issue the fine at home, which means their parents get to know what they've been doing."

Changes in licensing laws have enabled officers to carry out the blitz in certain areas, such as Worden Park.

Previously police have only been able to confiscate alcohol from groups of youths or ask them to move on.

Now officers are able to issue £30-£50 spot fines, depending on the age of the offender.

Sgt Bashall said: "In the main, youths in Leyland are well behaved and responsible. But problems are caused by a small minority who spoil it for everyone else.

"These new powers help us take a more robust approach to these problems."