Teenagers who hang around on a troubled Henbury street claim they do it because there is nothing else for them to do in the area.

The Bristol Post spoke with a number of youngsters on Crow Lane, which residents say is plagued by anti-social behaviour, during a high-profile police patrol last night aimed at reassuring the public.

But despite the presence of officers in the area, some of those hanging around – teenagers and some in their 20s – were openly swigging from bottles of alcohol.

And one teenager admitted that he had been stabbed and bottled three or four times in nearby streets.

Residents spoke out about the area after two Brazilian men were badly beaten and robbed earlier this month. And in January, a 15-year-old girl was dragged into bushes at knifepoint while on her way to school.

The youngsters the Bristol Post spoke to claimed they had nothing to do with the anti-social behaviour which residents say is intimidating and blights the neighbourhood.

Courteney Hoyi, 17, used to live in Brentry but now lives near Cribbs Causeway and said he was at Crow Lane to meet friends.

He said: "What can you do when you are my age? It makes it look like we are causing trouble, but we aren't.

"The people who are pointing the fingers say it is those who hang around the shops are causing trouble, but they aren't. The ones who are causing trouble aren't the ones outside the shops.

"The youth club is boring and rubbish, and there is nothing to do. If there was more PlayStations, music we could listen to or a studio, I would go there.

"There is nothing, so we just hang around and chat about what everyone has been doing in the week."

But Courteney did say that a lot of people drink and fight on the street and get into trouble.

And he told the Bristol Post that he had been slashed across the face with a knife just three weeks ago, in nearby Ellsworth Road.

He said: "I don't know who it was, but I was with lots of girls. All I remember is waking up in hospital."

Police said they were not aware of the incident.

His 16-year-old friend, who claimed his name was Levi McQ, came down from his home in Southmead to meet with his friends.

He said: "I have got mates in Southmead but they do different stuff to me, so I come here.

"We do hang around the shops but we don't cause problems. If I see any trouble, I will walk away. The main reason there is trouble here is because there is nothing to do. If the youth club had a pool table and a TV, we wouldn't be out on the streets."

About 20 officers and PCSOs went to Crow Lane as part of Safer Bristol's day of action, and promised a greater police presence in the future.

But some residents were worried that it was just a "show of force", and said the problems went deeper than just anti-social behaviour.

Michael Mullen, 42, from Roselarge Gardens, has lived in Henbury and Southmead all his life.

He said: "I know a young man who is part of the problems, and they need somewhere to go. In Southmead, they have quietened down a lot, but in Henbury we don't seem to be getting anywhere. I don't want my partner coming down here and being intimidated."

Mr Mullen said that in the past police action had just moved problems on.

He said: "It is all right chasing them around the place, but it gets nothing done. I would like to see the police having officers walking the streets constantly down here. What we have to do is put something together with all of us, the residents, the councillors and the police."

Jean Sallabank is a member of the Henbury and Brentry community council, as well as a local action group to tackle problems in the area.

She said: "As a community we have to back the police. Those constantly moaning about them not being here, it is demoralising for the police, when we should be supporting them as a community."

One of Bristol's top police officers says that most of the problems in Crow Lane are caused by a small minority.

Superintendent Ian Wylie said: "The problem for police is that there are 31 young people who are causing the majority of the anti-social behaviour, and Safer Bristol, together with youth services, are now working extremely hard to provide bespoke support to these individuals and their families, some of which could result in law enforcement."

Sergeant Terry Scoble, who is in charge of policing the Henbury area, said four people had anti-social behaviour orders banning them from Crow Lane, and that 30 youngsters were being worked with in youth inclusion projects.

He said: "Staff have been redeployed at key times, we will have more high-visibility patrols and we are piloting a scheme of management of kids on behavioural contracts."