South Wales Police has been working with Kenfig Nature Reserve and local school children to combat anti-social behaviour in the area.
Pupils from Ysgol y Ferch O’r Sger, Afon y Felin and Corneli Primary School have been designing posters for the ‘Keeping Kenfig Safe’ campaign.
The competition saw Reserve Warden Graham Holmes and School Liaison Officer Steve Carpenter delivering lessons to the children around how to look after the natural beauty area.
Pupils then designed posters to highlight to visitors how to use Kenfig Nature Reserve safely, and with consideration for others. The winners were invited down to Kenfig Nature Reserve on Thursday to watch the helicopter in action and have a tour with the crew.
To add to the children’s action-packed morning, the Crimewatch Roadshow also broadcasted live from the event, as part of a 3 day filming schedule with South Wales Police. The BBC1 production documented the work of the force’s specialist operations teams across the South Wales region.
Kenfig Nature Reserve, which is known for its natural beauty and wildlife, experiences problems such as off-road biking, littering, dog fouling and youth annoyance. At over 1300 acres in size, the reserve remains vastly inaccessible for many police vehicles.
South Wales Police has developed ways to effectively combat these issues, despite the difficulties presented by the park’s terrain. Sergeant Mike Davies, from the Porthcawl and Pyle neighbourhood policing team explained:
“We now have mountain bikes, which are funded by the Kenfig Trust, as well as a 4 x 4 vehicle for the area, so we are able to get to most places within the Reserve. Due to this, we have seen much success with regards to scrambler bike seizures and warnings.”
The local policing team and Reserve wardens also receive help from the skies, as the South and East Wales helicopter team assist with incidents in Kenfig, such as searches to find vulnerable and missing persons who have wandered onto the Reserve.
Sergeant Davies continues:
“By far the best tool we have is the South Wales and Gwent helicopter WO99, as it can search huge areas of land day or night in a fraction of the time it takes ground based officers to do so. It is a fantastic resource to prevent and detect crime, and also to keep both the public and the safe.”
Commenting on the ‘Keeping Kenfig Safe’ event, Inspector Gary Smart, from the South and East Wales Air Support Unit said:
“This has been an excellent event, on both a local and national level. It’s been great to show the children around the helicopter, and most importantly, demonstrate to the community what the police working as a team do to reduce crime on the reserve.
“Thanks to the Crimewatch Roadshow, we’ve also been able to show the rest of the UK how Gwent and South Wales Police work together to police the skies of the region, using local knowledge to assist our colleagues on the ground in keeping our communities safe .”
Kenfig Nature Reserve Warden Graham Holmes said:
“Our relationship with our police friends will carry on well into the future, and we’ll continue to work together to keep Kenfig Nature Reserve a safe and beautiful place for people to visit.”
