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Nottingham will become one of the first cities to introduce a balaclava ban as new powers aimed at tackling intimidation in the city come into force on Tuesday.
LBC's George Icke has exclusively obtained statistics from Nottingham police revealing the largest group of suspects who had 'ballied up'.
Evidence gathered by Nottinghamshire Police identified more than 180 city centre incidents involving face coverings or balaclavas between June 2025 and June 2026.
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0:00
Here in Nottingham, balaclava-clad teenagers have terrorised the community for too long
0:05
but today that might all be about to change. Bro, let go of me, bro. I didn't do nothing
0:11
Right. Bro. Mate, and a minute. Ow! Young people have been able to commit crimes and intimidate members of the public wearing balaclavas
0:19
brazenly admitting when there's no face, there's no case. Not there, mate
0:23
The message is really clear. There is no requirement to be wearing a balaclava in Nottingham City Centre
0:28
It's intimidating to members of the public. We know, sadly, they are a precursor to ASB, to antisocial behaviour and crime
0:36
From today, it's now illegal to wear one of these inside the city centre
0:41
a balaclava ban brought in to combat antisocial behaviour as part of a public space protection order
0:47
So will it really make a difference in the fight against corrosive crime here in Nottingham
0:52
I've had a report of five to six males in balaclavas potentially causing a bit of a disturbance in the city
0:59
So we're just trying to locate them at the moment. I'm LBC's George Icke and that's exactly what we're looking to find out
1:07
Balaclavas have been firmly on the news agenda lately, not only because of Nottingham's pending ban
1:13
but because of massed anti-immigration protests in Portsmouth, where police had to bring in temporary measures to stop people wearing them
1:21
But here in Nottingham, it's anti-social behaviour by young people who cover their faces to avoid being caught, that's the problem
1:29
And while some people say that the young individuals wearing balaclavas are just being mischievous wannabe hardmen
1:37
LBC has seen footage of these individuals climbing onto the roofs of buildings
1:41
and throwing eggs, water and stones on people below. And statistics that LBC has exclusively obtained from Nottinghamshire Police
1:50
tell a very different story. Young adults aged 18 to 24 were the largest recorded group of suspects who had ballyed up
1:58
including for reports of criminal damage and vehicle theft. But when the identity of the offenders concealed getting a charge and conviction becomes much harder Between June 25 and June 26 there were 147 reports to the police including balaclava bali or face covering
2:16
That led to 73 arrests, but only 39 charges. That means around three quarters of people who'd worn one
2:23
to allegedly commit a crime were never brought to justice. Superintendent Chris Pearson is in charge of city centre policing
2:31
We know a lot of young people are wearing balaclavas and other face coverings to be able to be involved in crime and ASB
2:37
and we don't know who they are. So being able to remove those face coverings and take them away
2:43
will further strengthen our approach. I think hopefully it will lead to some even greater reductions in ASB around the city
2:51
But we are tackling a number of key areas, a number of other key areas as well
2:55
So retail crime, serious violence and knife crime. and we are working with the biggest number of partners around the table that I've seen in my
3:04
career and I'm really proud of the approach that we're taking so far. So I'm really hopeful that
3:09
we'll see some strong reductions in shoplifting, robbery, serious violence as we move through the
3:15
programme. LBC's been told that a lot of the children that are causing issues here like
3:18
climbing onto the roofs don't actually live in the city centre but travel in on public transport
3:24
like the trams or use the c paths. So if you were to travel around 10 minutes away to Rushcliffe
3:29
you could still wear a balaclava. But here, police are able to enforce this new public space protection order
3:35
that was brought in by Nottingham City Council because people no longer felt safe in the city
3:41
with people wearing these face coverings. So what do people here in Nottingham think
3:46
Is it a good idea or does it still need to go further yet? You don't know what we're up to
3:50
You don't know what we're going to do. and sometimes it's all dressed in black
3:54
The bit I've got to show and not cover it. My grandson's got..
4:00
There was two lads come after them because he'd got an electric scooter and he pulled my chest out of his trousers
4:07
and he got a balaclava on. That was in Arnold. I think it'll be effective
4:11
because I guess it can be quite scary really, can't it? Seeing all these masked men and women So I guess it be really effective in ensuring that around the area maybe people start feeling more safe in the community
4:25
It's hiding their faces for a reason, so they don't be recognised, so they're immune from the law, I suppose
4:33
What do you think when you see people wearing balacar? Do you feel intimidated or just feel angry
4:38
Just intimidated. And just, well, I feel as though it's another... A group of people I don't understand, I suppose
4:47
It's nationwide, there's the Barclava thing at the moment, isn't it? Protesting and whatever, like, so..
4:53
Some people agree with it, some people don't agree with it. Would you ban them nationwide
5:02
No, I don't think so, no. I don't think so, no. I mean, you know..
5:08
It depends how it's interpreted, doesn't it? It's... It's a spin of a coin
5:14
You know, some people use it for the right reasons, some people use it for the wrong reasons
5:18
I mean, bankrupts have used in the past, so if you're going to do that, then you sort of eliminate everything
5:24
And for the police, they're now hoping that because people will have to show their face
5:28
they'll be able to gather evidence and bring a case. Absolutely, the message is really clear
5:33
There is no requirement to be wearing a balaclava in Nottingham City Centre
5:37
It's intimidating to members of the public. We know, sadly, they are a precursor to ASB
5:43
to antisocial behaviour and crime. there is no legitimate reason to be fully covering your face with a balaclava in the city centre
5:51
So the message to parents is really clear. If you know that you have a young person at home who is wearing a balaclava in the city centre
5:57
tell them not to. Take it off them. There is no need for it whatsoever, especially with the warm weather that we've had this year
6:03
We are very close to signing off the updated public space protection order
6:08
at which point the restrictions will be in place. We will take them away and we will take enforcement action
6:14
against those young people and that will involve probably with young people them having to come into the city centre
6:20
take part in our immediate justice program, which will see them remove graffiti
6:26
from shops from walls from other public spaces and be involved in cleaning up the city centre So if they want to avoid being part of that then clearly I ask they do not wear balaclavas in our city centre
6:36
It was Nottingham City Council that brought the balaclava under their public space protection order
6:42
meaning anyone who wears one to engage in crime or antisocial behaviour
6:46
can be fined £70, have their balaclava confiscated, and face having to do community service on the immediate justice scheme
6:53
where offenders have to go out and clean up litter or scrub graffiti off walls
6:58
The idea was it would give police here in Nottingham more powers to be able to tackle the scourge of anti-social behaviour
7:05
and make the city a nicer place for people to visit, live and work
7:10
But politically, the discussion around face coverings has been gaining momentum, with Reform UK pledging a national ban
7:17
But differently to Nottingham, they've also pledged to ban the burqa. Reform UK's Leila Cunningham told LBC about her own frustration when it comes to balaclavas
7:26
Under my house, someone was getting busted by the police for drugs. And there were two guys there watching in full balaclava
7:32
And it was like 30 degrees. We were all in shorts. And it's obvious that they're trying to hide their identity
7:37
And so when they arrested, I went to the police. I'm like, are you not going to talk to those guys? And the guy laughed and he goes, ha, balaclavas are not illegal, madam
7:44
And for me, that's a real problem. And I think it's since COVID, it's become more brazen
7:48
because I don't feel that criminals should be allowed to roam around with a cloak of anonymity
7:53
And I've been a prosecutor where people have covered their face with various... It's very, very difficult to get a conviction, obviously
7:59
beyond, you know... People cannot be sure that they committed the crime
8:03
You can go on shoes, gait, whatever, but there is always that element of doubt
8:07
And I speak to police. Crime has become more brazen, as, you know, you can wear COVID masks and balaclavas
8:12
So I would like to see face coverings. It's how can you ban them, people say
8:19
Well, you can make them a reason to stop and search. Critics of Nottingham's new Balaclava ban say it's stifling people's freedom of expression
8:26
and forcing them to be captured by new facial recognition cameras being used in the city
8:31
But the police say it's going to help them keep people safe, particularly when day turns to night
8:38
So could this be the start of the end for the Ballyboys
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