Dyfed-Powys Police and partner agencies will be in the area of Tenby harbour, St Julians Street, and Bridge Street from 4 pm on Friday, April 23, to engage with local residents whilst also keeping a close eye on the area after the anti-social behaviour that was witnessed last weekend at the seaside town.

“Residents of these areas are invited to tell us of any concerns directly while we patrol the area,” said a police spokesperson.

Calls for stronger action from the community were made in the aftermath of last Saturday (April 17) night, after reports of around 300 people gathering in the harbour at one point, were made and subsequently acts of anti-social behaviour occurred - including vandalism; under age drinking; drug taking; and public urinating, with people living in the area stating that they were left ‘horrified’ with what they witnessed at times, and asking why weren’t Covid regulations being enforced by the authorities.

The fallout from Saturday night’s unsavoury also left authorities and local volunteers with the task of cleaning up the harbour area early on Sunday morning, after shards of broken glass were left strewn across the sands of the beach and around the harbour area where those gathering had been drinking.

Following the weekend, the Mayor of Tenby, Clr. Sam Skyrme-Blackhall said that she and her fellow Town Councillors were ‘utterly disgusted’ at the ‘appalling behaviour’ in the Harbour area and other parts of Tenby.

“Let me be clear in my message - whether the offenders were from Tenby, wider Pembrokeshire, the rest of Wales or further afield - your actions were unacceptable, intimidating and utterly disrespectful. There are no excuses,” remarked the Mayor.

“We are not prepared to let a shameful minority tarnish our town. We now need a clear action plan to stop this happening again.

“Whether it be greater enforcement, restricting access, controlling drinking, improved CCTV and surveillance, dispersal orders, targeted policing or any other measure, every option should be considered and acted upon.

“I know that Pembrokeshire County Council and Dyfed-Powys Police and all agencies will work together and commit resources to finding both immediate and long term solutions.

“We have tolerated this for too long. This has to stop now. The good people of Tenby and the good visitors to our Town deserve no less,” she continued, before going onto praise those that conducted the clean-up on Sunday morning.

“After the disgraceful scenes in Tenby Harbour and surrounding area over the weekend, cleaning staff from Pembrokeshire County Council, their contractors at Danfo, our Harbourmaster, his colleagues and local people worked tirelessly to clean up the filth left by others.

“I want to praise them and thank them for the contribution they make to this Town.

“We now need action to make sure that they are not faced with such appalling scene ever again,” she added.

Dyfed-Powys Police and Pembrokeshire County Council condemned the anti-social behaviour that occurred on Saturday evening in Tenby.

Chief inspector Louise Harries said: “We recognise the concerns of residents and businesses after the anti-social behaviour seen in Tenby on Saturday evening. We are working with partners to avoid these issues re-occurring in the future.

“Police officers will be patrolling the area over the coming weeks and while the priority will be to engage with the public, enforcement action will be taken where necessary.

“We want to see people enjoying and the majority of people are doing so in accordance with the regulations, however the minority who don’t are spoiling it for others.

“We will continue to engage with our communities and visitors to the area to ensure that everyone enjoys in a safe manner.”

County councillor for Tenby’s North ward Clr. Michael Williams called for stronger action from the authorities following last weekend’s incidents.

“From as early as late afternoon, the situation at the harbour has become threatening with residents feeling unsafe due to the considerable numbers of individuals in the area consuming large quantities of alcohol,” said Clr. Williams.

“Police Officers appear to be overwhelmed by the numbers and are unable to take the necessary firm action to disperse a crowd that I estimated to be about 200. These kind of events are becoming a regular occurrence and action must be taken to address it.

“We appear to have taken several steps backwards to where we were a number of years ago when Tenby was becoming regarded as party central for groups of stag and hen events.

“Certain parts of the harbour estate are being used as a public urinal causing distress to families attempting to lawfully use the area.”

“I am not in any way well versed on the legal difficulties that might arise when enforcement bodies need to take action to control drunken anti social behaviour of the kind that we are witnessing ever more frequently in the harbour area, but I believe the Police and the Licensing Authority might have powers to impose orders banning the carrying or consumption of alcohol in specific areas such as Tenby harbour.

“To facilitate this I would ask that Section 60 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994, or a Public Space Protection Oder, which has been used in parts of Ceredigion, and should be enacted as a matter of the utmost urgency.

“This might be construed by some as drastic action, but I am convinced that it is necessary for the safety and well being of residents who see their quality of life being despoiled by a minority of individuals on a regular basis.

“The situation in Tenby harbour over recent days has resulted in a complete break down of law and order in the harbour with four police officers trying to regulate up to 300 mainly drunk individuals!

“The following days its not an exaggeration to say that the harbour area stank of urine and beer with huge amounts of broken glass everywhere, and its completely unfair to expect the harbour staff to have to clean this up,” he added.