Dispersal order sees Halloween pass without major incident

The dispersal order put in place on Friday night (31 October) saw Welwyn Garden City town centre safe from crime and anti-social behaviour (ASB) on Halloween.

Two Section 35 Dispersal Orders had been put in place in the area from 2pm to 11pm on Thursday (30 October) and from 1pm to 11.59pm on Friday (31 October). 

The orders were part of the constabulary’s efforts to deter anti-social behaviour linked to Halloween and to keep the local area a safe place. They mean officers can direct people to leave the area should it be required. Failure to comply with the direction is an offence. 

The two dispersal orders resulted in:

Consequently, those in the area were free to celebrate Halloween or go about their usual business in a safe manner.

The increased police presence also saw a missing person located in the area.

Sergeant Neil Gordon, from the Welwyn Hatfield Community Safety Unit, said: “This area of Welwyn Garden City is sadly a hotspot for ASB so we wanted to be proactive and prevent Halloween from being used an excuse to cause nuisance behaviour. We are glad the dispersal order was a success and we will continue working to tackle ASB in the area.

“We also had resources across the borough but thankfully the vast majority of those celebrating Halloween did so in a peaceful and law-abiding way.”

Temporary dispersal powers are given to police under Section 35 of the Anti-social behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014.

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