Glastonbury Town Council has spoken out on the town's growing anti-social behaviour problem — but warned that they don't hold the power to fix it alone.

In a frank statement released this week, the council admitted that the town is grappling with serious disorder issues, particularly around the High Street and St John's Churchyard.

But it also made clear that staffing shortages, budget pressures and a limited remit mean there's only so much they can do.

"The Town Council has been working with various partner agencies for some time on the ongoing issue of Anti-Social Behaviour in Glastonbury," the statement began. "Our town suffers from this issue in much the same way that other towns all across the country do. However, Glastonbury town centre's layout and compact nature serves to exacerbate this issue."

The council stressed it isn't sitting on its hands. Through its Town Centre Crime Reduction Advisory Committee, it's been working with police, Somerset Council, businesses and residents to understand and tackle the root causes of the problem.

But those meetings, it said, often hit the same wall: "Staffing shortages and budgetary pressures at Somerset Council and the Police are frequently cited… when measures to reduce ASB are discussed."

It went on: "The Town Council works hard with these agencies to improve the town centre, but has a small role to play itself given its limited powers."

The statement is likely to be met with mixed feelings among residents, many of whom have been calling for stronger action after a string of disturbing incidents — including the temporary closure of St John's Churchyard, the arrest of individuals on dispersal orders, and a weapons scare that saw three schools briefly locked down.

Despite those high-profile incidents, the council's tone remained cooperative rather than combative.

It praised Glastonbury's neighbourhood policing team as "excellent" and said these "dedicated officers need to be better supported by wider Police resources."

"We will continue to work with these agencies and partners to improve Glastonbury and we welcome feedback from the public to be directed through our Advisory Committee."

Police continue to urge residents to report non-urgent concerns via 101, and to call 999 in emergencies.