Project Servator lined up for Fringe Festival

Police Scotland will be fully utilising Project Servator, the innovative and very effective policing tactic designed to deter, detect and disrupt criminal and terrorist activity in the lead up to and during the course of the Edinburgh International and Fringe Festival 2017.

Project Servator is an innovative and collaborative community approach which aims to protect the local areas and build upon the safety and security plans already in place to ensure a safe and secure International Festival.

Project Servator will see highly visible yet unpredictable deployments of specially trained officers around the clock to keep people safe – at venues, on the transport network and on the streets themselves in the run up to, and during the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2017.

The operational deployments involve both overt and plain-clothed officers working together with local businesses and communities to report suspicious activity.

There will be personnel from other organisation undertaking roles to support Police Scotland. We will have a full range of physical assets on the ground – from high tech search equipment to city-wide CCTV capability. The operational deployment of these resources is to deter and help detect anyone intent on committing illegal activity and provide reassurance and confidence to law-abiding visitors and members of the public.

Superintendent Lesley Clark said: “Committed to safety and security, Police Scotland have been planning the policing operation for quite some time. We want everyone – residents, businesses and visitors to the city, to have the best possible experience.

“We have no intelligence to suggest that there will be any threat to the Festival, however Police Scotland have planned and prepared, to ensure that we are ready to respond to a wide-range of crime from pickpocketing to any potential threat.

“We are deploying this unique tactic to further complement the operational activity during the Festival and will continue to build upon our relationships with partners as well as businesses and communities.

“Support from members of the public is also vital to the success of the safety and security operation. I would ask that everyone is vigilant and alert and reports any suspicious activity immediately via 101 or 999 if its an emergency.”

Servator will provide an excellent tactical tool to ensure the safety and security of everyone in the city during the fringe festival.

“Our role will be to supplement the work of Police Scotland with Community Enforcement Officers and CCTV staff in our new state of the art Operation Centre.

“The Festival is a fantastic showcase for Edinburgh. By deploying a broad range of tactics, Project Servator will ensure that people visiting our Capital can enjoy Edinburgh’s vibrant shopping and social scene safely and encourage people to behave in a responsible way.”