Kids constantly knocking on door!!

[babyoda]

I’m a little embarrassed to write this but for the last couple of months (since the evenings have been lighter) the kids that live on my estate keep on knocking on my door. It started as every now and then, then once a week, then a couple of times a week, then every day and some days it’s even 2/3 times. I never answer the door because they just knock and run and I think if you react, it makes them want to do it more?

They aren’t doing it to anyone else and I’m wondering if they’re doing it to me either because I’m a young woman who lives alone (my husband died in December 2021) or maybe because I’m young they’ll think I find it funny? I don’t really know what to do about it, I’m just dreading the 6 weeks holiday when they are at home all day.

I don’t know if it’s worth speaking to the parents as one of them literally watches her child knock on my door from her window. I have a ring doorbell (and cameras) so I have it all on video.

I hate confrontation and making a big deal out of something. I also worry that the mum might take it the wrong way and then spark off something even bigger. I just want to be left alone. I feel like it wouldn’t be happening if my husband was still here.

I keep spending time at my parents house because they are driving me mad and then I think maybe I’ll just rent the house out? But I love my house, it has so many memories for me and my husband.

I think they are of primary school age, can’t be totally sure on their exact age but they def aren’t teenagers.

Any advice please?

I don’t understand. They do act as deterrents and are used to collate evidence. You can check who is at the door before you answer. Others have suggested the same. I’m not sure what point you are making

I think that the point was that the OP & others have said multiple times that she has a ring doorbell & cameras

We have the motion alerts set up on our Ring doorbell. It pinged one evening, so I opened the app to see about 5 kids, (12 ish?) about to ring the bell….so I opened the microphone and yelled BUGGER OFF! It worked, and they’ve not been back.

OP, you have to either scare them off or talk to the parent(s). You can’t just put up with it.

I don’t understand. They do act as deterrents and are used to collate evidence. You can check who is at the door before you answer. Others have suggested the same. I’m not sure what point you are making

She said in her opening post that she has a Ring doorbell and she has cameras.

I had similar with kids playing on our property in our old house and generally being noisy nuisances. I used to go out and tell them to go away. They mostly did. 2 or 3 occasions i knocked on parents doors and they were mostly fairly apologetic.

Get a ring door camera,

If you have a ring cameea already report it let the police talk to their parents, their kids are unsupervised unruly and causing nuisancr

Maybe try a cctv sticker first. They may not have realised you have the doorbell/cameras.

eg https://amzn.to/43zsRiu

Keep a notepad and pen by the door, as soon as you see them approaching and walking up your steps, flung open the door with notepad and pen in hand and say you want their addresses so if they knock on your door again you will send the police to speak to their parents and their school as you have recordings of them on your doorbell camera. That should be enough to make them scatter and not do it again.

If they get mouthy, tell them you’ll put a picture of them from your doorbell on the community Facebook page to ask people to identify them.

That should scare them off. If not, contact 101 and ask them to send a PCSO as this is anti social behaviour, has escalated to multiple times a day, you are aware a parent is watching them do it and you don’t feel safe in your own home.

I know exactly what you're going through. My back garden backs onto a carpark. Kids play football in the carpark and use my back fence as a goal. As well as the ball constantly being kicked against my fence, it then gets kicked over multiple times in an evening. I have asked nicely for them to stop using my fence as a goal but of course they say yes but all they want is their ball back. This has now escalated into cherry knocking on my front door every day and today a ball was kicked against the door. My door is literally on the foot path, so they can bang the door and be gone before i even reach the door. I have always been polite and given the ball back. I'm not sure where these children live and I don't want anymore of a backlash. I know some will say its harmless fun but it has such an impact on the person trying to mind their own business and live their life. I am trying to ignore this behaviour hoping they will get bored but with the school holidays just beginjng , I'm dreading the next 5 weeks. Unfortunately looking into it there's not alot that can be done.