Violence at this year's Warwick Mop Fair may have been mostly prevented, but traders still want the event moved out of the town centre.
Police made only one arrest at the annual street fair, which took place over the past two weekends. A team of 12 officers and special constables as well as six police community support officers patrolled the streets and used new powers to prevent tro
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Officers arrested one man in Market Place on October 19 and separated two groups of people the following day on the first weekend of the mop.
There were no disturbances during the ‘Runaway’ Mop on October 26 and 27, despite traders’ fears that gangs of youths were likely to clash at the event.
Many shopkeepers believe the event’s reputation causes people to avoid the town centre during the weekends when it takes place.
Warwick Chamber of Trade chairman Sue Butcher repeated the group’s insistence that the mop had “outgrown” the town centre and needed to be moved to Warwick Racecourse or St Nicholas Park.
She said: “It appears to have been considerably better than last year, but that is entirely due to a much improved police presence. And who is paying for those police if that is the only way it can be kept safe?”
Mrs Butcher said the traders’ main complaint was of dropping sales, especially as the fair took place over the two weekends around the school half term. She felt many people avoided coming to town during the mop because of its history of violence.
The mop’s present licence runs until 2014 and town centre manager Adrian Smith told the Courier the mop would not be moved, even though work will begin next year on a bus station at the present Westgate car park site.
He said: “Many people ask why it is still here but it is not going anywhere. Next year the mop will be smaller because the bus station will be redeveloped but the Showmen’s Guild are aware of that and will have to adapt to it.”
Warwickshire Police Sgt Michael Smith said officers had ordered one 16-year-old boy and a girl in her late teens to leave the ‘runaway’ mop after they judged the drunken pair were likely to harm themselves or others.
The only other incident was when a teenage boy was fined £80 for verbally abusing a policeman.
He added: "Officers patrolling in Warwick during the ‘runaway’ mop were pleased that early intervention tactics to prevent nuisance behaviour led to a problem free event.”
