Godalming Town Council has set up a working group to consider Waverley's proposals for legal action to deal with anti-social behaviour in the town.

The proposal for a Public Spaces Protection Order wasn't welcomed by all councillors at last night's Policy and Management Committee meeting, however, with Charterhouse councillor Chris Neill saying he was 'extremely concerned' about the idea.

"There are laws which prevent people from behaving in ways which are antisocial which can be applied," he said. "There are a number of things in here I am extremely concerned about, such as erosion of freedoms for people."

Godalming Central and Ockford councillor Adam Duce said he had "some reservations" about the order, which, among other things, would ban the consumption of alcohol on Waverley-owned public space across the borough, as well as prohibiting barbecues. It would also give officers the power to order people to leave public parks and open spaces if they are shouting, screaming, using foul language or causing damage.

Charterhouse councillor Steve Cosser threw his weight wholeheartedly behind the idea, saying it would give the authority and the police more powers to deal with "antisocial and sometimes threatening behaviour by a small minority of young people in our community".

The order would help police and local council officials who, he said, had "apparently been unable or unwilling to take any action against these perpetrators, who have been able to continue their behaviour, it seems to some of our residents, with impunity."

Saying the proposal had been "a long time in coming forward", he urged the council to back the idea immediately, adding that any working party would replicate work already done on the issue by the Safer Waverley Partnership.

But town mayor Penny Rivers said she objected to the background papers supplied by Waverley, pointing out that on the first page Wilfrid Noyce's name had been spelt incorrectly.

And she said the documentation made several references to 'youths' causing trouble and intimidating people, which she said was 'very misleading'.

"There are no issues being experienced in our area," she said. "None at all."

"If there are antisocial behaviours they are not being committed by the youth."

She added that the information referred to "the youth of 2019, not the youth of 2021".

"The youth of 2021 are locked in as they are in their homes and schools. What we might be sending them into is a locked-up outside as well," she added.

Town council leader Paul Follows said: "Councillor Rivers, in the first year she was mayor, convened a meeting to discuss anti-social behaviour.

"At the Waverley level we did seek to use all the powers we have in order to help the police. The most the borough council can do is an order such as this.We were promised it would be discussed here by the town council because we are the most impacted area."

He said when antisocial behaviour had been reported in 2019 it had sometimes been wrongly attributed to young people.

"Antisocial behaviour as we would normally class it has gone," he said. And he highlighted recent cases of cruelty to animals in Milford, where two swans were recently shot, saying the issue of violence against animals 'has spread to Broadwater, which is disturbing."

"This is more nuanced than 'let's just slap a PSPO on this and move on," he added.

Town clerk Andy Jeffery advised councillors to set up a working group to look at the details of the proposed scheme and report back to Waverley. That party will be made up of councillors Adam Duce, Chris Neill, Alex Adam, Heather Hullah and Gerry Boyle.

Waverley is seeking views on the proposed order. The consultation runs until Friday, April 2nd.