ASB reports at The Vine fell from nine in 2023 to one last year, and 75% of consultation responses back keeping the order until December 2029.

The anti-social behaviour order covering The Vine in Sevenoaks is set to stay in place until December 2029. A council report going to councillors next week says police reports of trouble at the ground have fallen from nine in 2023 to one last year, and that three quarters of consultation responses back keeping the order. (Sevenoaks District Council, PSPO extension report, The Vine)

The Public Spaces Protection Order was introduced in December 2023, after a spate of anti-social behaviour at the ground and a consultation that drew more than 200 responses. It carries two restrictions, and both would stay exactly as they are:

  • engaging in anti-social behaviour likely to cause harassment, alarm and distress to people in the area
  • returning to the area within 24 hours of being asked to leave

Breaching the order is a criminal offence. It can be dealt with by a £100 fixed penalty notice or by prosecution, and fixed penalties are not issued to anyone under 16. (Sevenoaks District Council, PSPO extension report, The Vine)

What the numbers show

Kent Police logged nine anti-social behaviour reports at The Vine in 2023, covering rowdy gatherings, drunken behaviour, fireworks and vehicle nuisance. That fell to two reports in 2024, the order’s first full year, and one in 2025. The council’s Community Safety Unit took five calls about the ground over the same period, all duplicates of the police reports. Police have kept The Vine as a regular patrol tasking, alongside detached youth workers from the Kenward Trust. (Sevenoaks District Council, PSPO extension report, The Vine)

Two charts: police ASB reports at The Vine fell from 9 in 2023 to 2 in 2024 and 1 in 2025; of 143 consultation responses, 107 said yes to keeping the order, 27 were not sure and 9 said no
Graphic by Sevenoaks Online

Who responded, and what they said

The council’s consultation on extending the order drew 143 responses. Just over half came from residents, and 60 responses, 42% of the total, came from young people under 18. The results were clear:

  • 107 (75%) agreed the order should continue for up to three more years
  • 27 (19%) were not sure
  • 9 (6%) said no
  • 129 of the 143 backed each of the order’s two restrictions

(Sevenoaks District Council, PSPO extension report, The Vine)

Sevenoaks Town Council agreed to support the continuation at its meeting on 23 March 2026. It also put the question to the Sevenoaks Youth Council, which now numbers 80 young people. According to the report, many youth councillors favoured renewal, noted that police have rarely needed to enforce the order, and suggested posters at The Vine about littering and smashed bottles. (Sevenoaks District Council, PSPO extension report, The Vine)

What happens next

The report goes to the People & Places Advisory Committee at 7pm on Thursday 10 September, at the Council Chamber on Argyle Road. The committee is asked to support extending the order; the decision itself sits with Cabinet on 22 September. If agreed, the order runs until December 2029. The full papers are on the council’s committee pages. (Sevenoaks District Council, People & Places Advisory Committee agenda, 10 September 2026)

What it means for you

Nothing changes on the ground: the rules at The Vine would be the same ones in force since December 2023, and they target anti-social behaviour rather than everyday use of the park. The report is a rare public look at how well the order has worked, and the numbers back the council’s case that it has. For the wider picture of what police record across the town, see our monthly Sevenoaks crime figures.

The same committee will also consider the car-meets order at London Road, Halstead, where enforcement has been a much harder job; we cover that report separately.

Sources

Image: Vine Cricket Ground, Sevenoaks by Robin Webster, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Geograph. Chart by Sevenoaks Online.