Heart is pumping strong
I am very conscious as we move to and through summer about what there actually is for the kids to do
Fires were started there and at disused stables. The club’s greenkeepers have had to clear away bottles of booze and the captain Bert Holt called on parents not to drop off their children at the course.
Parks in Neilston and the countryside and lochs on the Neilston Pad can also be quickly observed by sending the drone up.
School campus officers are involved in the operation and Inspector Michelle Grant said: “The drone is operated by the same observer crew that are on the helicopter and it comes under the same Air Support Unit.
“It was used for the first time at the weekend specially for surveillance of this type.
“The concept has now been proven for this purpose, as it can cover such a large area compared to officers on the ground.
“It has previously been used for missing persons searches and for mapping purposes in East Renfrewshire, which is great for introducing the area to new officers.
“People in this area are never far from open space and that’s why people want to live here.
“But these areas must be accessible to all, without fear of antisocial behaviour.”
Local police are seeing a trend where youths from outside East
Renfrewshire are riding empty trains to come here.
Barrhead and Neilston are on different rail lines, making them easy to reach from the city.
This “displacement” is being monitored by British Transport Police as currently there are no ticket collectors in the carriages due to Covid-19.
The drone was involved recently when youths from East Kilbride travelled to Clarkston for an illegal football match which attracted around 200 teenagers.
The chief inspector, who has teenage children himself, added: “What we are seeing is Covid fatigue.
“We are speaking with the council’s youth staff who work quite a lot in the Neilston and Barrhead area.
“I am very conscious as we move to and through the summer, about what there actually is for the kids to do.
“Many are not going away on holiday, do not have concerts to go to, or have the usual summer jobs.
“But it is important to say that not all the kids that gather are causing bother.
“If they are not involved in antisocial behaviour or carrying alcohol, or putting themselves in danger, then that is fine.”
The British Heart Foundation is preparing to welcome customers back to its stores across the country.
The nation’s heart charity will be reopening its high street shops and be able to accept donations in store again next Monday, April 26.
James Jopling, head of BHF Scotland, said: “It goes without saying how excited we are to get all our shops back up and running in Scotland and we cannot wait to see our loyal customers, staff and volunteers again.
“The coronavirus crisis has had a seismic impact on our income and the last 12 months have been the hardest in history.
“Our shops play a huge role in funding research into heart and circulatory diseases and run purely on the support of the public, which is why we never take any donation for granted.”
BHF outlets are at Paisley Clearance Shop, 32 High Street and Paisley Clothing Bank at 37 Lounsdale Road.