THE number of arrests made at Boardmasters Music Festival at Watergate Bay more than doubled this year as police clamped down, working with organisers and event security to deliver a safer event.

In 2025 six arrests were made. This year that figure rose to 15, with 30 crimes being reported during the course of the five day event.

However, police say overall crime was down from last year, and encouraged anyone who is yet to report a crime that occurred during Boardmasters to come forward.

Superintendent Joe Mathews said: “For months we have been working alongside Boardmasters organisers ahead of the festival which took place at Watergate Bay, Newquay, over the past week.

“We continued to work with the organisers, event security and other partners during the festival to deliver as safe an event as possible for all.

“Our officers were present at the festival, in the town and on the roads as tens of thousands of visitors from across the UK and beyond descended on Newquay for what is one of the highlights of the summer for so many.”

Superintendent Mathews confirmed enquiries into a number of the reported crimes remain ongoing and anyone who is yet to come forward with information is encouraged to call the non emergency 101 line or report it via the police website.

He continued: “Over the course of the festival 30 crimes were reported to us with 15 arrests made at this time.

“We received 12 reports of drugs offences, three thefts, nine reports of violence and four sexual offences.

“Overall crime was down at the festival from last year, however if you have been the victim of crime and have not yet reported it, we would still ask you to report it through 101 or our website.”

Police took a robust stance on drugs, anti social behaviour and assault to ensure all had a positive time.

Superintendent Mathews said: “Drug seizures and arrests were mainly for possession. Given the ages of some of the people involved, we worked with Boardmasters and where necessary parents to deal with these incidents.

“A robust approach was taken when dealing with any reports of assaults or sexual crimes – with event security taking the initial lead.

“We will not tolerate individuals who seek to exploit or put others in fear and this was demonstrated with a number of swift arrests of suspects. All victims were provided the necessary support.”

New for this year was the live facial recognition van which was deployed for the first time in Cornwall around Newquay town centre to coincide with Boardmasters.

The high-tech vehicle featured two high-definition 360-degree cameras, and the technology to convert facial features from live video feeds into a biometric template that can be compared against a specific watchlist in real time.

This all formed part of the force’s ongoing assurance to work with event organisers and partner agencies to ensure a smooth-running festival.

Superintendent Mathews added: “We are already looking forward to working with event organisers again next year to help deliver another fantastic Boardmasters.”