Magistrates in Liskeard on Monday granted police a closure order on a house in Saltash after hearing neighbours' lives had been made a misery by the actions of its 21-year-old tenant,

The court was told that noisy late-night parties, fighting in the streets, drug use and abusive behaviour had been features of life in Wentworth Way, St Stephen, during the past three years and accounted for 80 per cent of all calls to local police about disorderly behaviour in Saltash.

One resident, who lives next door to the premises, told the magistrates he had had people calling at his door asking for drugs and becoming abusive when told they had the wrong house. Using recent legislation, the order, concerning 32 Wentworth Way, was successfully applied for by the police, following consultation with Cornwall Council, after serious and repeated incidents of anti-social behaviour in and around the property.

This is the first time such a closure order has been granted in respect of a property in Saltash.

Tenant Catherine Jenking cannot now return to the property for three months after police, officials from Cornwall Council and landlords Sanctuary Housing closed the property which has been boarded up.

Thomas Bradnock, applying for the order on behalf of the Devon and Cornwall Police Authority, said it had come about as the result of the anti-social behaviour of Miss Jenking and others using the premises.

There had been 'significant and persistent disorder' originating from the semi-detached, two-bedroom house in an area where most residents were either young families or elderly people.

Some of the trouble, said Mr Bradnock, was caused by Jenking's former partner, Karl Skeldon, who was subject to a court order preventing him from entering Wentworth Way but who regularly appeared in adjoining Sunningdale Road, throwing stones at Jenking's property, arguing with her or being abusive.

Other problems facing residents included late-night parties and drinking, drug taking, loud music playing until 4am, large groups of young people congregating in the street or garden and verbal abuse and threats of violence to neighbours when they complained.

Neighbourhood beat officer Rachel Short told the court that since the closure notice had been put up outside the premises, prior to the case coming to court, it had been ripped down and the family next door, along with other witnesses, had been subjected to threats from Jenking and Skeldon.

Neighbour Gordon Blair said things had got so bad that his children had had to stay elsewhere. He described some of the behaviour referred to by Mr Bradnock and added that on occasions he had had people knock at his door asking for drugs and becoming abusive when they were told they had the wrong house.

Jenking denied the premises were used for drug taking but agreed she had a caution for possession of cannabis. On one occasion she said she had been away and a man staying in her home had played music loudly into the early hours.