POLICE are to step up patrols in Bury town centre during the Easter weekend to stop a repeat of the alcohol-fuelled violence of last year.

Uniformed and plain-clothed officers will maintain a "significant" presence on the streets and are likely to visit several licensed premises to prevent under-age drinking.

The decision to increase patrols is largely due to the trouble which broke out in Bury town centre on Good Friday last year when five people were injured and drunken yobs were involved in running street battles in the late evening.

Drinkers were forced to take refuge in pubs in Market Street and Silver Street while officers quelled the violence. Two men were arrested.

Officers will also be patrolling around the Hare and Hounds at Holcombe Brook, where hundreds traditionally gather before and after making the annual "pilgrimage" up Holcombe Hill. Strict rules, which came into force last year banning people from drinking alcohol in the streets, will be rigorously enforced.

Commenting on their Easter preparations, Superintendent Peter Scofield, of Bury Police said: "We will be enhancing police patrols in Bury town centre during late evening on Good Friday and throughout the weekend, largely as a result of last year's experience. We want everyone to celebrate the festival safely and we'll be doing our best to make sure that happens.

"We can learn from the experience of last year when revellers from the afternoon moved into the town centre in the evening. Before that, there was no history of Easter trouble in the town centre. If we need to visit licensed premises, as we do at weekend, we will make sure people are drinking in safety and that no-one under-age is drinking alcohol."

Supt Scofield added: "We want people to enjoy Easter and to get home safely. They should think carefully about the amount they drink."