Sightings of drug deals being conducted in a public park in Ferndale have led to fears for the safety of local residents, with a children’s play area among the popular spots nearby.

Police have said they are aware of drug activity in the vicinity of Ferndale Road. A gang have been spotted wearing ski masks to hide their identity in the adjacent Rodbourne Recreation Ground, which also borders Great Western Way, and drug users have been seen frequenting a wooded area in the park.

One local resident, whose children play in the park, said he had contacted police about the problem on three occasions. He said he had been asked to keep reporting the crime, to help them build a body of evidence.

He said: “Over the last week, I’ve walked the dogs there every day, and it’s increasingly getting worse. My wife reported it to the police, and they have done nothing at all.

“There’s a wooded area there, and there are a lot of drug addicts going in. This is next to a kids park.

“There was a large group of youths there – about 10 of them, some of them wearing ski masks – and there are elderly people walking past.”

He added: “I know what drug dealing is, you can tell by the sort of people that are going in and out. There are drug users in the park. It even looked like they had lookouts on either side of the recreation ground.”

A spokesman for Wiltshire Police said that the force were taking steps to address the problem. He said: “We are aware of the drug activity linked to the area.

“We have been working closely with partner agencies and the local parish council to make positive adjustments to the park.

“It is part of a bigger picture that we are tackling in Swindon and extra patrols have been put in place.

“The police’s Dedicated Crime Team has made recent proactive stops and arrests in the vicinity and further enquiries are ongoing into these cases.”

Des Moffat, a Swindon councillor who lives close to the site, said: "I’m aware that we have a drugs problem in Swindon.

"It's because of the proximity to Great Western Way; all the way along there we have had exchanges taking place.

"The police do the best they can to deal with it, but when they do, they move to another location."

Anyone with information is encouraged to call police on 101, or anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.