Tenby's police chief has said that the town's 'Party By The Beach' events, held at the harbour during the summer, were well policed, despite a number of incidents and arrests.

Inspector Tim Hoad, of Tenby Police Station, told members of Tenby Town Council at their meeting on Tuesday night that there was a high police presence at the events run during July and August, along with further security and door staff laid on by the organisers involved.

At the meeting, Clr. Mrs. Tish Rossiter voiced her concerns to the inspector that some of the events had got out of hand and that police and security didn't act quickly enough on some occasions.

She was also concerned that a number of revellers managed to bring in their own alcohol to the events.

"The events were policed really well, we had six to eight officers down there, the charities who organised the events took on extra security as well, and we also had the transport police involved too, to make sure that there were no problems when outsiders were exiting the town," explained Insp. Hoad.

"We had a few incidents that were nipped in the bud where some arrests were made, one involving a local person and two outsiders, and another where some trouble was brewing on the beach when there was a showdown between some local youngsters and a group of lads from Pembroke Dock, but we sent out the right message to any troublemakers that this behaviour will not be tolerated."

Clr. Trevor Hallett felt that a change to the name of the 'Party By The Beach' events should be considered.

"I think that a lot of youngsters see the words 'party' and 'beach' and it suggests to them a wild party for youngsters in Tenby, so maybe a change would be wise," concurred PC Nigel Lewis, who attended the discussions along with Insp. Hoad.

The inspector felt that a lot of problems still stemmed from parents not taking responsibility for their children, who somehow manage to get their hands on alcohol and arrive in Tenby already drunk.

"Underage drinking is an ongoing problem and we've seized an awful lot of alcohol during the summer and issued a number of section 27 tickets to those causing trouble, to temporarily ban them from the town, and I think it's important to take this approach," he stated

"I have a lot of sympathy with licensees in the town, as youngsters around 14 to 15 years of age use false IDs to get into pubs and clubs, but we've been very proactive over the summer and made sure that there is a higher police presence in Tenby, especially during Friday and Saturday nights.

"We've received a lot of positive feedback for our high visibility control on the streets and at a lot of events," continued Insp. Hoad, who felt that it wouldn't be long before local event organisers were contracting police to patrol their events, something he said occurred regularly in other towns across the UK.

"It's been a very busy summer for the police in the area and we've had a lot of volunteers and specials help us manage, which has been fantastic and a big, big help," he added.

Mayor, Clr. Mrs. Julie Evans, thanked Insp. Hoad and his colleague for attending the meeting and praised the police's zero tolerance attitude on troublemakers.

"There's a lot to learn from some of the issues and incidents that have arisen at the harbour summer events and in future maybe it seems that the organisers will have to pay for more security, but on the whole, we've seen a greater police presence in the town which is excellent to see," she said.