Nantwich officers have warned parents of teenagers to keep them at home in lockdown after Cheshire Police issued more than 300 fines in January.
They say parents of children caught breaking lockdown rules could be fined, after complaints in the Stapeley area of groups of youths hanging around, some involved in anti-social behaviour.
A Nantwich police warning on social media said: “We are getting reports via social media of youths gathering at Stapeley Community Centre, breaching Covid restrictions.
“We regularly patrol this location and have had youths run off on our arrival.
“Parents, do you know where your children are when they leave the house?
“Youths caught in breach of Covid regulations will be taken home to their parents, where parents will receive a fine.”
Since the start of the year, the force has issued more than 300 Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs) for “blatant and repeated breaches”.
Last weekend alone, 70 FPNs were issued across Cheshire despite the recent flooding.
These were for breaches such as being out without a reasonable excuse and mixing with other households who were not in their support bubble.
Three FPNs were issued in Crewe after a family travelled from Preston to visit their friend’s house.
And in Warrington a FPN was issued to a homeowner who had invited friends round for a ‘get together’.
While in Chester, two FPNs were issued after a personal trainer was found to be having clients round in their garden.
And in Widnes FPNs were issued to multiple friends from separate households who were out in a vehicle without a reasonable excuse.
Assistant Chief Constable Jenny Sims said: “I know the majority of residents will continue to stay at home and do all they can to limit their contact with others and I would like to take this opportunity to say thank you for all the sacrifices you have had to make.
“There are, however, still a minority who will flout the rules and when our officers are faced with these blatant and repeat breaches, they will enforce this to protect the NHS and save lives.
“The rules are clear – you must stay at home except for very limited exceptions.
“We all need to continue to use our common sense when leaving our home and ask – ‘is my journey necessary?’
“By checking each time we go to leave our house, we will be limiting the potential spread of the virus. We must have these personal boundaries in place to help drive down the rates of infection.
“At the end of the day, we all have a personal responsibility to do everything we can to prevent further deaths.”
Police officers are patrolling beauty spots such as Bickerton Hills, Beeston and Peckforton to ensure residents are staying safe.
ACC Sims added: “Now it is more important than ever to stay at home as much as possible.
“We may have seen cases decrease recently but we must not get complacent and must continue with the hard work to drive down infections.
“Our officers will continue to be inquisitive and will be engaging and explaining with those who are outside of their home and ensure that they are doing so safely, for blatant breaches we will continue to enforce.”
For further advice and guidance visit https://www.gov.uk/guidance/national-lockdown-stay-at-home
To report a coronavirus breach visit https://www.cheshire.police.uk/tua/tell-us-about/c19/v7/tell-us-about-a-possible-breach-of-coronavirus-covid-19-measures/
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