A large group of teenagers between 13 and 17-years-old have been on an extended rampage of vandalism and trespassing in Hundested, a tiny northern Zealand coastal town. The problem has been growing steadily over the past few months.

Hundested harbourmaster Søren Brink said that there had been vandalism in and around the harbour and that youngsters had been swimming in restricted and dangerous areas and that they give false names and addresses to authorities when they are caught.

Malene Nyenstad, the head teacher at the Lemberg section of Hundested School has received complaints about 100 of her pupils. She met on Monday with about 150 parents of the school’s oldest pupils to discuss ways of curbing the disturbing trend.

“t was enormously constructive,” Nyenstad told Frederiksborg Amts Avis.

“There was an understanding that the problem is not the responsibility of the school, community or municipality, but that parents need to be part of the solution.”

Limits and oversight
Nyenstad had already met with students from the 7th and 8th grades for a similar discussion on what can be done to make them feel more a part of the community.

Suggestions including a harbour bath and a permanent youth centre are being discussed, and parents said that they would be more vigilant when it came to supervising the spontaneous, pop-up type parties that kids often put together quickly via social media.

Nyenstad said that there needed to be consequences for those children who simply refused to respect others.

“We need to set limits,” she said “Some young people think they can say anything to anyone.”