The Christmas party season began last weekend, and Cheshire Police have also started their Christmas crackdown on crime.

And in the past weekend, 21 arrests were made in the Macclesfield area.

Cheshire Police is urging the public to make the right choice this Christmas, or face action from officers.

The warning comes as we enter the festive period, which will see officers continue to target perpetrators of anti-social behaviour, violence against women and girls, domestic abuse and drink and drug driving – particularly focussing on night-time economy hot spot areas with high impact policing activity.

Throughout the month the Constabulary will also be highlighting the consequences people faced last Christmas with hope that this year, people make the right choice.

Across the county, officers secured more than 600 charges for a number of offences carried out last Christmas, and the campaign - which will be shared on the Force's social media accounts – will use officers body worn footage to highlight action taken to keep people safe.

The takeaway message - if you choose to commit crime or cause harm in Cheshire then you will be made to face the consequences of your actions.

Lead for the Force's Christmas operation, Chief Inspector Matt Charnock, said: "We want people to have a great Christmas with friends and family, and we will not allow a small minority of people ruin it for everyone.

"We want people to see our campaign and make the right choice. If you behave safely and responsibly you can have a great Christmas. However, if you choose to commit crime - even after we have warned you on the consequences of doing so - then you will have no-one to blame but yourself.

"It is not ok for good people to suffer at the hands of criminals - especially at Christmas time - and there is no place in Cheshire for people to commit crime and cause harm."

There will be extra measures put in place across Cheshire to help keep people safe.

High visibility patrols will take place throughout December in targeted areas across the county with local officers doing all they can to ensure communities are free from criminal activity.

There will also be specially trained officers deployed to identify and tackle predatory behaviours such as harassment, loitering without reason and stalking behaviour.

Safety buses will be stationed across the county to provide valuable support to those who feel vulnerable or need assistance.

With support from specialist units within the Constabulary, officers will also be working hard to locate outstanding offenders and capture individuals wanted on recall to prison, 'fail to appear' warrants and any outstanding offences – making sure they are made to face the consequences of their actions.

Chief Inspector Charnock added: "I want to reassure the public that our efforts to keep people safe continues and we will do all we can to prevent and disrupt crime occurring in the county."

The Macclesfield Policing Ward (which includes nearby towns like Wilmslow and Knutsford) has had 21 arrests over the past weekend, this was one more arrest than this time last year.

Macclesfield Local Policing Unit had the third most arrests last weekend in Cheshire, behind Chester and Warrington. Macclesfield had 7 more arrests than Crewe.

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