POLICE are “extremely pleased” with the policing operation at the Creamfields music festival at Daresbury which this year attracted 10,000 more people than last year.
About 40,000 music fans were at the event on each day, with the majority of ticketholders choosing to camp on the site overnight.
There were no reports of serious incidents.
Nicola Linder, who was part of the police planning team, said: “We are once again extremely pleased with the policing operation for this year’s festival. We worked closely alongside the organisers of the event to build on the success of last year. Our main aim was to ensure the safety of festival goers and to minimise disruption for the local community.
“We are pleased with the results-especially given the fact that there were an extra 10,000 people attending the event this year.
“There were no reports of any serious incidents during the event and, as a result of meticulous planning, a high-profile police presence and a proactive approach by police and the organisers, a good natured crowd were able to enjoy the event safely.”
A total of 32 people were arrested during the event. This was on suspicion of a variety of offences including possession of drugs with intent to supply, possession of Class A drugs, theft, assault, robbery, public order, drunk and disorderly and obstructing a police officer.
Of those arrested two were for drink driving offences and two were for disqualified driving.
Festival goers were warned before the event that positive action would be taken against anyone caught carrying drugs or weapons.
Searches were a condition of entry and festival goers were asked to place any drugs or weapons in the amnesty bins provided at the entrance to the event arena.
A total of 122 people received a caution on site – 119 of those were for possession of drugs, two were for public order and one for theft. Fifteen people received a street warning for possession for cannabis.
There were 18 thefts from tents reported to police during the event. Twenty six other incidents of theft were also reported. There were also six reports of assault and four reports of robbery.
Twelve “Direction to Leave” notices were also issued over the course of the weekend.
There were a few problems with traffic heading to the site on Saturday morning – with some congestion on the M56 and on local roads, which caused some delays for festival goers trying to get to the site. But overall drivers listened to the advice they were given and followed the official routes.
Chief Superintendent Tim Jackson said: “I am really pleased with the policing operation for this year’s event. This is the fifth time that Cheshire has hosted the Creamfields music festival and I am grateful for all the continued hard work of our officers and staff and of the police planning team. As in previous years, there was really good co-operation between the organisers and all of the partner agencies, which resulted in a highly successful event for all concerned.”
A special phone line was set up and any residents who had any policing issues or concerns arising directly from the event could call the number and speak to a local community officer. Any policing issues or concerns that were raised were fed back to the community beat managers within the local villages.
Inspector Gary McIntyre said: “The team of dedicated community officers responded to any calls from local residents and visited anyone who had any issues or concerns. The majority of the calls were from residents seeking advice and guidance in relation to the event. There were only a few calls regarding noise and traffic. We would once again like to thank members of the community for their co-operation and understanding prior to and throughout the event.”
A number of people complained at being able to hear the noise from the festival late on Saturday night, as far away as Appleton and Stockton Heath.
