A GROUP of worried Irvine parents have joined forces with their councillor and local police in a bid to re-open a community centre to try and get kids off the streets.

A handful of mothers and fathers from Girdle Toll contacted community police officers and Councillor Tom Barr to try and push for a local centre, which was closed last year, to be re-opened.

The parents, who have asked to remain anonymous, say they have long been plagued by gangs of youths coming into the Girdle Toll area in a bid to fight with local youngsters.

The gangs are often armed and the parents say they were left with no option but to contact police and even took to patrolling the streets to try and crack-down on youths terrorising their area.

But the group hope to have found another way forward after a positive meeting with council officials on Friday to discuss the possibility of re-opening the Burns Crescent centre.

One mum, who was determined not to be beaten by the gangs, told the Times: `A friend"s son was attacked a while back and I started making a diary of everything that has been going on ever since.

`I go out to them at nights and tell them to clear off, we don"t want them hanging about causing trouble.`