PUB BOSSES were left with “no choice” but to ban glass-throwing youngsters and only serve punters over the age of 21 to crack down on a spate of bad behaviour.

The Bull Inn and the White Hart, both in Hockley, announced they would no longer be serving customers under the age of 21 after trouble over the weekend.

The decision was made after groups of boys were seen urinating in marquees, and girls have been buying lemonade and topping it up with their own vodka.

Julie Oliver, manager of the White Hart pub on Main Road, said: “We had a couple of incidents during the week on Tuesday and Wednesday where groups of lads were throwing glasses in the bushes and weeing in the marquees.

“We asked them to stop and they just carried on. They came back on Friday and we said we didn’t want them back in and they kept saying they didn’t understand why.

“Then there was trouble up at the Bull Inn and this just isn’t that sort of pub. It’s more a middle aged pub and all of a sudden we had 30 kids turning up.”

Julie claims a group of girls brought their own alcohol into the premises.

She added: “The girls were walking around with bottles of vodka, just ordering lemonade.

“I had to physically stand on the car park and stop them from coming in.

“When you have 30 kids at the entrance of your car park its quite intimidating. We will review it on May 17.”

The decision caused a divide among the community. However, the majority of Echo readers supported the pub’s move, with 69 per cent of people agreeing with the decision, 29 per cent disagreeing and two per cent saying they didn’t know if it was the right decision.

A spokesperson for the Bull said: “Providing a safe and welcoming environment for our customers is of paramount importance and we do not tolerate any kind of unsociable behaviour in our pub.

“We understand who our customers are and have been excited about returning to their much loved local pub and to ensure it’s a positive experience for all we’re tightening our Challenge 21 policy as we work through the easing of national Covid restrictions on hospitality.”