John McIllmurray stands beside a dead tree on the green outside his house.AN Amesbury missionary wants youths who play on the recreation ground behind the town's Spar shop to curb their antisocial behaviour and respect the area in which they live.

John McIllmurray said some of the children who gather on the field opposite his home in Harvard Way cannot have any respect for the area as they frequently vandalise the play facilities and drop litter on the ground.

He said their language was appalling and residents living nearby were often forced to shut their windows to avoid hearing the swearing.

But the final nail in the coffin for Mr McIllmurray (33) has been the destruction of several chestnut trees that line the field.

He said a group of mindless individuals seemed to have taken it upon themselves to systematically kill them by stripping off their protective bark.

"Put this together with the litter, sometimes deliberately dropped within feet of a bin, the vandalism, and the awful language from even the youngest of children and you have a very sad situation indeed," he said.

"My blood is boiling at the young people who are just ruining this area and my blood is boiling at the local authorities for their lukewarm response to my repeated appeal.