Drink-fuelled violence in Wallingford has once again been criticised by town leaders.

Teenagers brought traffic to a standstill in the High Street on Friday night as they fought a pitched battle after the pubs shut.

Police estimated between 20 and 40 youths were involved in the fracas which erupted near a kebab van shortly before 11.30pm.

Officers in four patrol cars were called to deal with the running battle, in which youths were seen punching and kicking each other and overflowing into the road, bringing traffic to a halt.

Police said they received the first report around 11.25pm and were on the scene within 10 minutes.

A spokesman said: "By the time we arrived the fighting had stopped and we spent the next half an hour dispersing them. No-one was injured and no damage was caused to nearby property."

Pat Hayward, chairman of the Wallingford Business Partnership, described the incident as "appalling."

She said: "I'm afraid this is something we've been trying to fight for some time now. It's appalling we all have to suffer from this sort of behaviour."

Mrs Hayward said town representatives had met licensees to discuss the problem and to try and limit the amount of alcohol sold to young drinkers, but the situation had not improved.