The Police - what's their job nowadays?

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Over a year ago, shortly after moving into our new property, my partner and I were suffering harrassment and criminal damage by our nuisance neighbour and his friends. This matter was reported to the police on two separate occasions, after (both times) the neighbour and friends had put a rock through our kitchen window, after demanding money and cigarettes from us, then yelling abuse when we refused. The police attended hours later, and wouldn't take action (other than a slap on the wrist of the neighbour for the verbal abuse), as there was no video evidence of the attack, and as neither of us was in the kitchen at the time. Luckily for us, karma played a part, and our tormentor (who enjoyed getting into arguments with all of the neighbourhood) ended up with his own windows being smashed and his home broken into by some other local folk, so moved away. Has anyone else had experience of intolerable criminal acts being carried out against them, and the police doing nothing? Is this the reason for growing crime in communities, despite falling numbers of reported crimes in government figures? Should policemen patrol the streets as they used to a decade ago? Surely CCTV on every street won't be as much of a dissuading factor to potential criminals as a police officer walking down the road! Are we to rely on karma as justice? What are your thoughts and experiences? Vigilanteism is definitely not the answer, but isn't an ineffectual police force is likely to push people that way?