CLOSED-circuit TV cameras are set to roll across Fair Oak as parish council chiefs step up the war against vandals who have cost the village thousands of pounds.

Last night Eastleigh Council's Bishopstoke, Fair Oak and Horton Heath local area committee gave the village authority the go-ahead for a plan which will have security cameras zooming in on the village hall at Shorts Road and nearby New Century Park.

The parish council had asked for permission to put up a six-metre pole which will have four security cameras.

Determined to crackdown on the vandalism which has escalated over the past three years, a leading parish councillor has hinted that more cameras could be on the way.

Councillor Roger Smith, chairman of the parish council steering committee on security, said he was delighted that the go-ahead had been given for the cameras.

They will zoom in on a large area of the recreation ground, the village hall, the scout hut and trees planted by local schoolchildren to mark the millennium.

Mr Smith said later: "This will be the first step in a line of surveillance cameras in and around the village. We hope to extend into Fair Oak Square and other places to ensure the safety of residents and protect facilities."

The parish has warned that it will prosecute anyone who is captured on camera causing damage.

In three years £25,000 has been spent on transforming the Shorts Road recreation ground into a showpiece park, but the parish council has been left to pick up the pieces after vandals have gone on regular wrecking sprees.

In a trail of destruction new seats and fencing have been set on fire and attacked with a pickaxe, dog excrement has been smeared across play equipment and the tops ripped off trees.

Yobs congregating around the village hall have shouted obscenities through the letterbox while people have been in the building.

And villagers have been put off from walking across the park for fear of being intimidated by gangs of youths. Other areas of the village have also been targeted by vandals.

Stepping up security with cameras is likely to be reflected in villagers' council tax bills. The parish council will dig into cash reserves to pay for the cameras and cover the cost of vandalism.

One resident, who wrote to the borough council, was concerned about the possible big brother aspect of the cameras which might lead to a loss of privacy.

In approving the camera application the local area committee said there must be appropriate safeguards for the privacy of nearby residents.

Giving an assurance that privacy would be protected Councillor Smith said that as the cameras scanned there would be no intrustion into private houses.