Southampton officers put plans in place to make sure everyone has a safe Halloween

We are using a variety of powers at our disposal to make sure everyone in Southampton can enjoy Halloween safely.

Chief Inspector Marcus Kennedy said: “Halloween is an enjoyable time of the year, and our job is to make sure the vast majority of people who do celebrate the festivities sensibly are able to do so safely.

“Last year we saw disorder in the west of the city, so hopefully the plans we are putting in place reassure our communities that we are being proactive in preventing antisocial behaviour.

“Our officers will be on patrol across the city during the evening so if you see them, feel free to say hello.”

• In the west of the city, dispersal zones have been put in place in Maybush, South Millbrook and Lordshill shopping precinct from 3pm on Monday, 31 October to 3am on Tuesday, 1 November.

• In the north of the city, dispersal zones have been set up in Portswood around the university campus, in Bitterne Park and the Yeovil Chase and Bentley Green area. These will be in place from 4pm on Sunday (30 October) to 4am on Tuesday.

This means officers have the power to move on people involved in antisocial behaviour or they will be arrested.

More zones can and will be added depending on the intelligence received in the days leading up to Halloween.

• We also plan to use Section 60aa of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 which gives officers the power to make people take off facemasks and similar disguises that might be hiding their identity.

• Officers will be out on patrol across Southampton. In the west of the city, we will have officers in vehicles, PCSOs on foot and units on bikes. We also have officers and PCSOs in place to respond to any incidents in the city centre.

• In preparation for Halloween this year, we have given presentations to schools about the powers we can use and also worked closely with partners, such as Testlands Wellbeing Hub in Green Lane, Millbrook, who are offering a variety of activities including a scare maze, sports, arts and crafts and a games room, to keep young people occupied on the night.