From Friday 17 April 2020 – Sunday 19 April 2020, police were called to 432 reports of house parties across Greater Manchester. Friday saw 141 reports made whilst 85 were received on Saturday and 206 on Sunday, a 52% reduction on reports from the previous weekend.
Between Friday 10 April 2020 and Sunday 12 April 2020, police were called to 894 reports of house parties with 293 reports made on the Friday, 362 on the Sunday and 239 on the Sunday. As well as house parties, Greater Manchester Police have also seen a reduction in reports of other types of gatherings.
A total of 97 fixed penalty notices have been issued across the region, five of which were issued over the weekend (Saturday 18 – Sunday 19 March) to individuals breaching Coronavirus Legislation.
Personalities from across Greater Manchester have continued to spread the #StayHomeSaveLives message and in light of the forecasted good weather this coming weekend, fresh pleas have come from Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne and local boxer Anthony Crolla.
Their messages – alongside other familiar faces such as Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford and Coronation Street’s Dan Brocklebank – will continue to be shared across Greater Manchester on a mobile media van. The van started its tour of the region on Saturday 18 April 2020 and is currently scheduled to finish on Monday 11 May 2020. The aim is to remind people of the vitally important stay at home message and encourage communities to follow government advice.
Assistant Chief Constable Chris Sykes said: “Despite the warm appealing weather, we’ve seen a reduction in reports made concerning house parties across Greater Manchester which is really encouraging as it demonstrates that the vast majority of the public are following government regulations and staying at home.
“Whilst we are comparing the number of reports made this weekend to Easter Bank Holiday weekend, it’s still a reassuring analysis as the #StayHomeSaveLives message seems to be reaching an increasing number of people. We will get through this together as a community.
“I want to thank everyone for complying with the emergency Coronavirus legislation, it’s there to protect the NHS and save lives and the majority of people across Greater Manchester are clearly doing their part to accomplish this. We will continue to engage with our communities at this challenging time.
“I would also like to thank everyone who has helped us to urge the public to say home over the last couple of weeks – from footballers, to frontline nurses and firefighters. I can only reiterate the vital words in their messages – let’s stay at home, let’s protect our NHS and let’s save lives.”
