TWO residents will take up the challenge of patrolling the area's criminal hotspots as street wardens.

The pavements of Stanwell and Sunbury Common will be pounded by the crime-fighting duo early in the new year after statistics revealed the centres were among Spelthorne's most dangerous black spots.

Spelthorne residents face higher crime rates than neighbouring boroughs, with a rating of 79.14 crimes per 1,000 residents compared to the nearest ranking town of Guildford at 75.55 for the past year.

Householders in Stanwell south were particularly affected with crime figures rising to 89.26 incidents per 1,000 residents. Stanwell north had 86.14 and Sunbury Common 78.11.

The survey also showed that residents in these areas have grave concerns about criminal damage, anti-social behaviour, burglary and are dissatisfied with police performance.

Although the civilian wardens have no powers of arrest, Spelthorne Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership hopes they will help stamp out neighbourhood nuisances such as graffiti, abandoned cars and litter while becoming reassuring faces in the community. To this end, the council has secured £70,000 from the government for a two-year trial.

Cllr John Packman said: "Now we can get down to the job of carefully planning the kind of roles we would expect the street wardens to carry out. We believe they have a major role to play in reducing vandalism and tackling problems."

Nearby Hounslow has had six neighbourhood wardens patrolling five of its estates since May and is heralding the scheme as a success after wardens proved themselves invaluable in a series of arrests.

While co-ordinating and feeding intelligence to the police, the wardens have also rushed to the rescue of a toddler after she was scalded with burning fat and stopped kids climbing into and vandalising an electricity sub-station, while also dealing with abandoned vehicles and litter problems. Spelthorne's street champions will be deployed where they are most needed and will be looking to work with community groups to reduce crime and fear of crime.