BUS company bosses are refusing to lift a ban on late-afternoon services to a Waterside estate where vehicles have been pelted with stones.

Solent Blue Line says the Heather Road estate at Blackfield will continue to be a no-go area until the safety of passengers and crews can be assured.

Managers have held talks with police and also plan to meet representatives from Hampshire County Council, which subsidises the services.

Solent Blue Line suspended its late-afternoon buses on November 23 after vehicles were repeatedly attacked by gangs of stone-throwing vandals - some thought to be just six years old.

Buses no longer enter the estate after 3.30pm - the time when the attacks started.

Bob Dorr, the company's service delivery manager, said: "We had five separate incidents in which windows were smashed. We couldn't carry on under those circumstances, especially when the incidents involved the threat of injury to passengers and staff.

"We are having a dialogue with the police and also plan to have a meeting with the local authority to determine a way forward.

"We hope a solution can be found that will enable us to re-introduce the services, but until then the situation remains as it is."

A county council spokesman said: "We would be happy to meet representatives from Solent Blue Line and talk through any ideas they have."

Meanwhile Mary Potter, chairman of Blackfield Neighbourhood Centre Community Association, has defended the Heather Road area.

She said: "Like every estate in the country we have a few problems and a few young people who engage in antisocial behaviour.

"But there are many people who are working hard to overcome these problems and make the area a thriving, active and responsible community."

Mrs Potter said that facilities on the estate included a youth club and a group that offered support to people with children aged under four.