Police dealing with illegal rave at colliery site

Officers have been dealing with the large-scale gathering for more than 12 hours

Roads have been closed and cars have been seized after police shut down a large-scale illegal rave at a disused colliery.

Nottinghamshire Police said they started receiving calls about loud noise and disruption at the former Bevercotes Colliery, near Retford, from about 23:50 BST on Saturday.

A Section 63 notice preventing any new people and vehicles from entering the site has been served by the force.

Officers have spent much of the night and day dealing with the "large-scale unlicensed gathering" and said they were "working towards a resolution" at about 13:00 on Sunday.

The force added no arrests had been made.

People were pictured leaving the site on Sunday afternoon

Illegal raves have been held at the site previously, including in 2012 and 2013 as well as - according to local media reports - 2018 and 2019.

Insp Rob Harrison said the force understood these events have a "hugely detrimental impact on communities".

"I want to reassure people that our priority is the safety of the people in the locality, including on the site itself, alongside that of our officers at the scene," he said.

"We are doing everything we can, in line with our existing powers, to ensure people's safety, to prevent any escalation, and to bring this event to a safe conclusion."

Nottinghamshire Police also asked the wider community to avoid the area to avoid a build-up of traffic as it continues to deal with the gathering.

Insp Harrison added: "As we continue to deal with the incident and closely monitor it, our officers are turning people away from the site.

"We are informing people of this legislation and that we will take positive enforcement action if they do not adhere to it.

"Nearby roads have been shut to prevent further people from entering and we have already seized a number of cars that were parked dangerously and were obstructing the highway."

Numerous country roads near the site have been closed, police said