Mounted police to patrol drinkers in an Oxfordshire town centre

Mounted police are to patrol the streets of Didcot, Oxfordshire at pub and club closing time on Friday nights.

A spokesperson for Thames Valley police denied there were particular problems with anti-social behaviour in the town.

He said: “Mounted officers provide high visibility reassurance in cases where people are exhibiting anti-social behaviour. They tend to make people stop and think more. People tend to react differently to an officer on a horse.”

Mounted PCs Louise Watson and Holly Metcalf will patrol the pubs and clubs of Didcot town centre on Fridays from 10pm to 3am, with the aim of preventing alcohol related anti-social behaviour. The Thames Valley mounted section, which is based in Milton Keynes, has nine horses.

Sgt John Thurston, from the mounted section, said: “We are increasingly supporting the work of neighbourhood teams across the Force. With people seeing us more and more, we are encouraging them to come and meet us as well as the horses.”

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now