Hi-tech policing helps ensure safe V Festival

Staffordshire Police used on-site CCTV, including infra-red cameras that helped to monitor the site during the night, to ensure another safe and successful V Festival at Weston Park last month.

ANPR (automatic numberplate recognition) cameras were also deployed to identify known offenders, or people linked to crime, as they entered the site.

Festival-goers were also able to take advantage of a text messaging facility to report crime, as well as at the on-site police post or by calling Crimestoppers.

Superintendent Dave Holdway, one of the event commanders, said: “Months of extensive planning with the organisers to ensure another safe and successful V Festival again bore fruit at this year’s event.

“With 90,000 people on site each day, crime levels were very low. Our intelligence-led policing operation meant that we acted positively on information received about crime and took swift action against suspected criminals, making a significant number of arrests.

“Highly-visible police patrols were on site to keep festival-goers safe and reassured and to minimize disruption to local residents. We were able to identify people who tried to enter the festival with drugs and proactively used ANPR to weed out offenders on the roads. Our officers also worked closely with G4S Events – which carried out searches and patrols with them. The joint working between the police and G4S this year has gone to a new level of integration.”

G4S deployed its new specialist Event Tactical Support (ETS) team for the first time at this year’s V Festival.

The ETS team worked closely with police on site to provide additional specialist event security and safety management expertise. The team took on a number of the roles previously undertaken by the police, as well as carrying out joint patrols with officers around the arena, campsites and village area.

G4S Events deployed 1,600 specially trained personnel for the event and Eric Alexander, managing director for G4S Events, said: “The experience of our ETS team in event and crowd management allowed us to design and deliver safety security solutions with the festival organisers and police that ensured the comfort and enjoyment of all those attending.”