AN organiser of several illegal raves has been banned from Exmoor National Park.

Several revellers have also been sent warning letters and security has been stepped up to deter further trespass in and around Kennisham Wood, where most of the music events took place.

People in the area joined forces with West Somerset Neighbourhood Policing Team and landowner Forestry England to tackle anti-social issues associated with a spate of raves this summer.

Forestry England has now funded improved security around the woodland, while the police secured funding for additional local patrols over the summer.

The High Sheriff of Somerset, Jennifer Duke, who lives locally, supplied evidence to enable police to send warning letters to a number of revellers, as well as issuing one of the organisers with a Community Protection Warning, effectively banning them from Exmoor National Park for a year.

If the warning is ignored, it can be escalated to a Community Protection Notice, which can lead to arrest if the recipient breaches its conditions.

Sgt Max Priestley, of Avon and Somerset Police, said: "Issuing the Community Protection Warning with the support of our anti-social behaviour team is a great success, made possible by our collaborative response to these illegal events.

"Jennifer and local residents like her are our essential eyes and ears to provide evidence after events and ideally intelligence before they happen so we can stop them before they start.

"The public can help us by calling 101 and alerting us to anything suspicious they see, such as an abnormally large number of vehicles in a rural area or speakers being unloaded.

"This is unlikely to be the last time we deal with an illegal rave but, with support from communities, we can police them as effectively as possible.”

Forestry England forester John Ebsary said: “As a rural land manager, we are left with the fallout from illegal music events far too often.

"They cause misery for our neighbours and immeasurable harm to wildlife and forest habitats.

"We recently had to close a forest in Cornwall for three months to allow human excrement to degrade following an illegal rave, which kept local residents awake for three days. It’s selfish and unacceptable.

"I’m delighted with the outcome of our partnership effort in response to illegal events at Kennisham, and look forward to continuing strong relationships with our brilliant police team and nearby communities.”