Metal detector 'puts revellers off' bringing knives into clubs
Revellers have been put off bringing weapons into a Shrewsbury nightclub after metal detecting machines were brought in, it has been claimed.
An "arch" detector has been used at The Buttermarket in the town this year, alongside a hand-held detector which has been used at random for a number of years.
Now operations director Grant Lees has said nightclub goers are becoming more aware of the club's safety measures and are being put off bringing in weapons.
He said: "We have a hand-held metal detector for all events that we host, every time we open as a night club.
"As part of our admission policy we do random bag and body searches, we also have a metal detection arch which we launched earlier this year, it's been received really well.
"People feel safer and more secure. We get great support from the local police teams for a lot of our events and they always have police outside the venue for traffic calming measures as we have a lot of parents who drop the kids off for under 18 nights, and also for reassurance.
"The arch was brought in as a reassurance measure and a preventative measure."
Earlier this year a group of men were jailed for a New Year’s Day attack outside the nightclub that left one victim with 16 stab wounds.
The aftermath of the attack featured on the BBC documentary Ambulance in May.
Mr Lees added: "With what we live in in today's day and age, it's a sensible option to safeguard not only our customers but our staff as well. It was the next step of ensuring customer safety.
"We're widely known as having these detectors and it's used as a preventative measure, people know they can't get in with anything they should not have with them. That in itself is fantastic, we're really pleased."
The news comes after a campaign was launched in Shropshire last week calling on people to surrender weapons.
Between September 18 and 24, there were bins at Monkmoor Police Station, Shrewsbury, and Malinsgate station in Telford.
Chief Superintendent Kevin Purcell said the Save A Life, Surrender Your Knife campaign had been launched in response to a number of high profile incidents in recent months.
