Halloween turned nasty for one couple when yobs threw paint and eggs at their home.

Pat Sandle arrived home on Sunday night to find white paint across the driveway, on windows and along the side of her home in Beach Approach, Warden Bay.

Eggs had also been thrown at the lounge windows.

Cllr Sandle, chairman of Warden Bay Parish Council, and her husband Derek were forced to spend several hours clearing up the mess.

Cllr Sandle said while she had been out, Derek had been at home, giving out sweets to trick-or-treaters knocking on the door.

He later heard a bang and went out to discover the damage but had been unable to spot the culprits.

The couple, who reported the incident to police, believe the paint had been inside plastic bags which were used as missiles.

Cllr Sandle, also a Swale borough councillor, said she believed her home was the only one in the area targeted with paint.

She said: "People round here have had eggs and flour thrown in the past at Halloween but not paint.

"I am very, very disappointed that this has happened, especially when the parish council is trying so hard to get things up here for the kids.

And she believes someone must know who was responsible.

"There must be parents whose children came home on Sunday night with paint on their clothes," she said.

"If they know, an apology wouldn't go amiss."

The incident happened only days after the launch of the Warden Bay Cold Calling Control Zone (CCCZ).

The zone, covering the Emerald View area, is only the second on the Island.
Launched last week, it aims give residents the confidence to turn away uninvited traders and warn rogue traders and cold-callers they are being monitored.

Cllr Sandle, who was at the launch, said she hoped the zone would also help deter anti-social behaviour.

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Street signs and window and door stickers will be going up in Emerald View, Warden Bay, which is the Island's second Cold Calling Control Zone (CCCZ).

Working together through the Community Safety Partnership, Kent Police, Neighbourhood Watch, Trading Standards and Swale Borough Council have already distributed information packs to all households within the zone.

The packs contain information on the best way to deal with cold or bogus callers as well as rogue traders; "no canvassers" window and door stickers; and some basic home security information.

Bona fide companies and traders will still be able to work in the zone, but they need to be prepared for their representatives to produce their ID to be checked by residents, and they need to adhere to agreed appropriate practices.

The top seven energy suppliers have signed up to an agreement that they will observe the zone.

The first CCCZ was launched in the Kent Avenue area of Minster last year. Jacqui Blake, Neighbourhood Watch liaison officer and initiative coordinator, said: "These zones give the community the tools and confidence to say 'no' to cold callers; and enable them to feel safer in their homes."