New laws to crackdown on anti-social behaviour in Thanet were delayed by two months because officers were not ready to carry out their new duties.

The Public Space Protection Orders (PSPOs) were introduced in four wards in Ramsgate and Margate last July to tackle specific anti-social behaviour offences.

But in its first six months there have been no fines issued as council officers admitted introducing PSPO activity "into daily activities has been slow".

The report - being considered by Thanet District Council's (TDC) executive, policy and community safety scrutiny panel on Thursday - highlights issues with installing signs and training for council and police officers with the power to hand out fines and enforce the rules.

The wards - Margate Central, Cliftonville West, Central Harbour and Eastcliff - make up 53% of all anti-social behaviour in Thanet.

Although the order was brought in on July 30, the "first focussed activity event" only took place in September, the papers showed.

But the council says several have happened after this first day and more are planned throughout the rest of the year.

Police and council officers are allowed to issue a fixed penalty notice to anyone believed to be breaching an order.

Kent Police does not issue penalties to under-18s and TDC says it takes "an incremental approach" to enforcement and will explore "other options" before handing out fines under PSPO rules.

The report pointed out the council's community safety team only has four members of staff - three officers and one manager - meaning there could be "potential risk" for PSPO roles to veer away from their "core duties" and needed to be kept under review.

The paper noted: "Despite the introduction, enforcement activities did not commence until September 2018. It is too soon to have position on the effectiveness of each of the elements of this PSPO."

The update is recommended to be noted and call for another review in 12 months.