DOZENS of police officers joined community safety chiefs to patrol the towns of North Somerset to ensure a peaceful Halloween evening. Around 40 officers, police community support officers and special constables took to the streets of the district last Tu

DOZENS of police officers joined community safety chiefs to patrol the towns of North Somerset to ensure a peaceful Halloween evening.Around 40 officers, police community support officers and special constables took to the streets of the district last Tuesday evening. Police in Portishead and Nailsea were joined by members of the Local Action Teams (LAT) to carry out patrols of the two towns.The extra patrols resulted in a massive drop in calls from the public to incidents of anti social behaviour. Across North Somerset there were just six arrests for criminal damage, drugs and public order offences. Deputy Chief Constable Steve Otter joined officers and LAT members on anti social behaviour patrols in the Nailsea area to the north of the district.In Portishead police received just two calls about anti social behaviour and in Nailsea three youths were issued with on-the-spot £80 fines after being caught throwing eggs in Somerset Square.Police Sergeant Sarah Treweek said: "Overall it was a very successful operation."A number of groups were spoken to and handed leaflets about being safe when trick or treating and also to be aware of the more vulnerable members of the community."There were no incidents of criminal damage."Chief inspector Nick Walker confirmed: "It was generally a quieter Halloween than last year with people taking note of the police appeals for them to have a safe and enjoyable time. "People I spoke to were extremely impressed by the joint police/council operation in North Somerset last night. "It was a much quieter night than previous years." "A total of 40 letters have been sent to parents of youngsters who were involved in anti social behaviour."In one incident a youth in Winscombe had 36 eggs confiscated."The police combined with colleagues from North Somerset Council in a joint operation to ensure that anti social behaviour was stamped on and people enjoyed the festivities.They worked with CCTV staff and North Somerset Council provided staff with a water bowser to clean up the mess resulting from flour and egg-throwing incidents.