Northamptonshire Police 'relieved' 'biggest public order operation in two decades' passed peacefully
A senior police officer in Northamptonshire has said he is “relieved” that the “biggest public order operation in two decades” passed peacefully.
Hundreds of counter-protesters gathered at around 7pm at the junction of Kettering Road and Clare Street on Wednesday (August 7), after Northampton was one of dozens of locations singled-out earlier this week, as information spread across social media that far-right groups would meet at 8pm.
In response to the threatened violent disorder, Northamptonshire Police deployed dozens of officers to the protest site. A road closure had to be put in place and around 200 counter-protestors turned up, but no demonstrators appeared and crowds dispersed peacefully.
Deputy Chief Constable Ash Tuckley said he was “relieved” the evening passed off peacefully and paid tribute to his officers.
He said: “In the end, this turned out to be a good-natured event and we really saw the best of Northamptonshire on display last night. Our officers had worked tremendously hard engaging with communities in the area affected, trying to reassure them that they had our full support.
“It’s not lost on anyone just how difficult the experiences of some sections of the community have been in the past several days, but the response of the police in terms of support has been outstanding.
“We needed the community to come together and work with us and they absolutely did that and we will keep on that path in the coming days, weeks and months.”
Detective Chief Superintendent Rich Tompkins, who ran the police operation, added: “This was a really well-planned operation which had to be put into place in relatively quick time and a great number of officers came forward when the call went out for support.
“I’m extremely proud of how our officers managed the situation and there was some really positive engagement between them and the communities who had come together to show their solidarity.
“I’d like to thank the protesters who were a positive demonstration of a community pulling together and also to our partners, particularly Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service and West Northamptonshire Council, who had done so much in the background in the run-up to last night.”