Tens of thousands of revellers heading to this year’s V Festival in Staffordshire are being warned to behave or face eviction.
With headliners including Oasis, The Killers, Elbow and Snow Patrol, 180,000 music fans are expected to flock to the festival at Weston Park at Weston-under-Lizard, on the Staffordshire and Shropshire border, on August 22 and 23.
Chief Insp Pete Owen, of Staffordshire Police, one of the event’s commanders, said a trouble-free environment was the force’s number one priority at this year’s V Festival.
“As in previous years, a premises licence has been granted by the local authority to cover the site from August 21 to 24. This means anyone involved in violence, disorder or any other crime faces immediate ejection along with criminal prosecution.”
Chief Insp Owen said a “significant number” of uniformed and plain-clothed officers would be keeping an eye on revellers while Automatic Number Plate Recognition cameras would scan registration numbers and weed out known offenders as they entered the site. CCTV coverage would be “extensive”.
He added: “Recorded crime at V Festival again fell last year along with the number of arrests.”
V Festival organiser Dawn Woodhouse said: “We’re proud to be one of the safest festivals around and it’s our mission to make the event as safe as possible for everyone who attends.
“The excellent work done by Staffordshire Police means that our goal is, again, well within reach.”
About 90,000 people are expected to attend the festival each day – of whom 85,000 are ticket holders and 75,000 campers.
