Mob violence is a terrifying experience, one the people of East Bowling are counting the cost of after a gang of 40 youths went on the rampage in the community.

Shops were damaged, residents were terrorised and property was attacked as the youths ripped up road signs and hurled them at people's houses.

One shopkeeper has told how his store was bombarded with bricks and that the thugs, mainly teenagers, were swigging alcohol before the disturbance.

The police have acted swiftly and confirmed that the area is to get a full-time beat bobby to patrol the streets.

The residents and traders in East Bowling feel they have been given short shrift in the past when it came to policing, and they are rightly hailing the news as a victory.

A 1,000-name petition was handed in to police chiefs after the violence, proving that people power and a sense of community spirit can get things done.

While no-one is suggesting that one police officer can solve all the problems in one particular area, or that a single constable can be in every place at the same time, it certainly sends out the right message.

The law-abiding residents of East Bowling will feel safer with a visible police presence and hopefully the cowardly thugs who feel the need to cause such havoc will think twice about lobbing bricks and damaging property with a full-time officer on patrol.

And, as police bosses say, this is no knee-jerk reaction seen as a quick fix to patch up the problems. They are working with the local community to seek long-term solutions to the issues in East Bowling.