TROUBLEMAKERS banned from a single town centre pub could find themselves blacklisted from them all, under a tough new initiative between publicans and Wiltshire Police.

Timed to coincide with the busy Christmas and New Year period, Pub Watch is an updated and improved version of a previous scheme, which enjoyed a run of success up until a few years ago.

All of Chippenham's town centre pubs have signed up to take part in the crackdown, which gives pub owners the power to ban troublemakers from their premises for 12 months, or longer, depending on the seriousness of an incident.

Wiltshire Police licensing officer Christine Clare said the scheme will be an effective deterrent to trouble.

"Up until now, publicans banning an individual from their premises for serious offences such as fighting or violence against customers or staff, would just see them go down the road to drink and maybe cause trouble somewhere else," she explained.

"But Pub Watch is an effort by all of Chippenham's town centre pubs to instil the message into offenders that they cannot get away with this behaviour.

"Door staff will be contacting their fellow workers at neighbouring pubs when individuals are ejected for causing trouble or offences involving violence or drugs.

"And publicans will have the power to ban people outright from their pub for a year, if they deem an offence serious enough."

Lionel Hadland, licensee of the New Inn in New Road and chairman of Pub Watch, said: "Individuals facing a ban under Pub Watch would have the opportunity to come to one of our regular meetings of the licensees and have their right to reply people won't be banned just on the say-so of one person.

"But if the ban is enforced, all the licensees in the town will be shown a picture of the offender to make sure they are not given entry.

Posters are now going up around the town giving details of the Pub Watch scheme.