Northamptonshire Police have confirmed preparations are underway for a policing operation covering next month’s British Grand Prix F1 race at Silverstone.

With more than 480,000 people expected to attend the four-day event between July 3-6, Northamptonshire Police will be delivering what they describe as, “a robust policing operation in the run up to and during the race event, to ensure visitors to the circuit have a safe, and enjoyable experience.”

A range of policing resources will be used during this year’s event to help prevent crime, both at the circuit and in the local community, and deal robustly with any incidents.

Uniformed and plain-clothed police officers will be patrolling the circuit, the campsites and the surrounding road network, while there will also be specialist officers including armed officers, search teams, disruption officers and Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) units.

Officers will have use of policing powers introduced under the Public Order Act 2023 as part of the contingency plans should anyone attempt to unlawfully disrupt the event, and Live Facial Recognition (LFR) will again be in operation at the circuit.

LFR technology has been used at the event for the past two years and works by scanning faces with a camera to match biometrics against those held on a watchlist. This list is generated by the police and focuses on those who pose the greatest risk of danger to the wider public in attendance.

They include suspects wanted for offences or have an outstanding warrant for an arrest issued by the courts, those who pose a risk of harm to themselves or others and vulnerable missing people.

This year’s policing operation will be led by Event Commander for Northamptonshire Police, Superintendent Pete Basham.

He said, “We are working closely with the event organisers, other emergency services and partner agencies as the event approaches, to ensure Formula 1 fans attending the event have a safe and enjoyable experience, and that anyone looking to commit a crime doesn’t succeed. 

“We have many years of experience in the policing of this event. However, this doesn’t mean we can afford to be complacent and detailed and rigorous planning still takes place. Each year brings its own challenges and the security measures in place will be as stringent as ever.

“Extra resources will be in place over the four days, made up of uniformed and plain-clothed officers, PCSOs, police staff, police dogs, specials, specialist vehicles and volunteers as well as policing colleagues from neighbouring forces. They’ll be patrolling in and around the Silverstone circuit, as well as the campsites, local villages and surrounding roads.”

Bumper crowds are expected again this year with racegoers also able to enjoy live concerts by big names including Sam Fender, RAYE, Fat Boy Slim and Becky Hill. However, police have advised against anyone turning up without a ticket and to be aware of counterfeit tickets.

Superintendent Basham added, “I would urge people to be aware of potential counterfeit tickets being sold, particularly on social media platforms, and I would strongly advise against coming to the event if you don’t have a ticket.

“Finally, the many thousands of people coming to the event can be a huge help to us in preventing any incidents, by being extra vigilant and reporting anything or anyone that looks out of place or suspicious. We would rather have a well-meaning report that turns out to be nothing rather than not being told at all.”