Dispersal order in place from Friday as police tackle anti-social behaviour by young people in Stratford
Stratford Police are using special enforcement powers to tackle anti-social behaviour (ASB) in the town this weekend.
A dispersal order comes into effect at 5pm on Friday (19th May) and lasts until the same time Sunday.
The move follows a rise in the number of reports of ASB involving young people over recent weeks.
Under section 34 of the Anti-social Behaviour Crime and Policing Act 2014 officers will be given the power to disperse anyone for the purpose of or reducing the likelihood of members of the public in the locality being harassed, alarmed, or distressed, or the occurrence of crime and disorder.
Officers will be on patrol during the two-day period and if anyone fails to leave the area when told to do so they can be arrested.
Safer Neighbourhood Team Inspector Ben Hembry said: “We have noticed more anti-social behaviour in the town centre – particularly from young people – over recent months and this has begun to escalate.
“Anti-social behaviour is never acceptable. Everyone has a right to feel safe and we want to help build communities where anti-social behaviour is less likely to happen.
“We are keen for people to enjoy the town and its open spaces but doing so should never be at the detriment of anyone else. We would ask people to be considerate of others and always behave in a responsible manner.
“Our team will be patrolling the area so if you have any concerns about anti-social behaviour, please speak to them in person or get in touch via our website.
“By reporting incidents, the community plays a huge role in helping us to stamp out this behaviour – and I would once again like to thank all those who contact us, respond to appeals and provide camera footage.
“We believe implementing these measures will allow people to enjoy the town at the same time as enabling our officers to continue protecting people from harm.
“While this order is only in place until Monday, people should be under no illusion that this will be the end of our activity. We will continue to police the area and clamp down on people behaving in an antisocial manner.”
Anti-social behaviour can now be reported online. If you need to report an incident of anti-social behaviour and it is not an emergency, please visit the Warwickshire Police website but in an emergency, always call 999.
