Residents in a Leeds suburb have been left infuriated by groups continuing to flout lockdown rules as pictures emerged of youngsters playing football in the street.
Under radical Government measures to curb the spread of coronavirus, gatherings of more than two people have been banned and people are only allowed to leave the house for essentials or for one form of daily exercise.
However, in Harehills, residents claim these restrictions are regularly being flouted and one 67-year-old man says over the past week he has regularly spotted groups of children playing football in a residential street in the area.
He said: "It's mainly the kids - toddlers to teenagers - and sometimes they're with adults out on the street playing with a football during the day and evening.
"This football thing has been every day since the lockdown. It happens all times of the day and evening I know that some of the PCSOs have been around and spoken to some of the kids, but it doesn’t seem to have had any effect."
The concerned neighbour has also claimed the children are hiding from police patrols before returning to the street to carry on playing football.
He said: "A police car drove past them last night but didn’t even stop. On Saturday a police transit drove onto the street and the kids went into the back alley to hide.
"They came straight back out as soon as the van left, so they are aware it’s wrong to be out."
In the same suburb, groups of mums have also allegedly been hanging outside shops in Harehills having a natter with one another.
Zoe, 34, who lives in Harehills and has two children, said: "There have been groups of five or six women with little kids running into the road while they have a chat.
"They are stood there chatting like nothing is happening and then you get the local alcoholics and druggies congregating in the street too.
"I just don't know why they're doing it. They don't care and they just barge past you. It is happening every day and it p***** me off.
"The police have been absolutely brilliant but they can only do so much. They can only tell them to move on and they're putting themselves at risk by being out there.
"It's definitely a hotspot and I just wish they would think of the people that are out there fighting this on behalf of everybody else."
