Thanks to effective community policing the Royal Welsh Show 2010 was enjoyed safely by more than 225,000 revellers over four days.
Held between 19-23 July, the show is a high-profile part of the local event calendar and passed without any significant incident as only a few minor offences were recorded.
In fact, only 5 arrests were and made and there were no cases of violent crime recorded compared with 11 during the previous year – as total crime for the event was reduced by an impressive 58 per cent.
Dyfed-Powys Police operated high-visibility foot patrols around the town to ensure the safety and confidence of both the visitors, vendors and local residents. This approach was coupled with a media campaign, which focussed on highlighting child safety to parents about the dangers of underage drinking, and the implementation of the innovative and successful Behave or Be Banned Scheme (BoBB).
Prior to the show police and partner agencies also highlighted the dangers of swimming in the River Wye during the show period and displayed a host of initiatives to showcase its wide range of innovative services in the police marquee.
Visitors had the opportunity to watch the Armed Response Unit perform a Taser display, chat to Dog Handlers and meet the clever canines, and checkout the Mobile Data Programme.
In addition to discovering the benefits of ANPR – Automatic Number Plate Recognition – the Powys Cadets were on hand to engage with our younger visitors, who had the chance to win a prize in a fun quiz competition.
In addition to learning about the state-of-the-art gadgets; people could also chat to senior Dyfed-Powys Police officers and discover what makes this one of the best performing forces in England and Wales.
Powys Superintendent of Operations Huw Meredith would also like to thank key community members who assisted with the event including the considerable work undertaken with partners such as Trading Standards, Licensing, Ministry of Transport and Gypsy Liaison.
Superintendent Meredith said: “The Royal Welsh Show is a significant event considering the size of the town, so policing it can provide a variety of challenges and demands on our officers and resources.
“However, this success highlights our commitment to community engagement, and our effective proactive policing to ensure that the members of the public in Powys continue to live in one of the safest places in England and Wales.”
Another significant success at the event was traffic management; with the vast number of vehicles entering the town on the first day it’s inevitable that issues can arise. However, the influx across all routes into Builth Wells was handled effectively by police and their partners to ensure a ‘benchmark’ was set for efficient traffic management.
Dyfed-Powys Police also conducted badge checks on private security door staff at all licensed premises in Builth town, on the RWS showground and the Young People’s village. They found two premises in the town to be in breach of licensing conditions; two unlicensed door staff and incorrect ratio of door staff on duty.
