POLICE claim their 'robust' policing plan prevented a large 'gathering' of young people on York's Knavesmire last night.

Three police cars and a police van were photographed by The Press parked behind York Racecourse at 8pm yesterday evening, with another van parked on Knavesmire itself.

However, there wasn't a single teenager in sight.

Beforehand, North Yorkshire Police had said it was still making preparations for a large party which teenagers were thought to be planning at a location in York in the evening, which it declined to reveal.

The force said it would have a 'large policing presence' in the city and would robustly deal with any offences at the gathering.

Superintendent Mark Khan, Senior Commander for York, said then he made no apology for taking the event seriously.

"Our residents’ quality of life is something I feel strongly about and we won’t allow a large party in a public space to get out of hand," he said.

"We all have a responsibility to look after our communities and ensure everyone can enjoy the local area safely.

“I am also asking parents to please make sure you know where your children are."

A spokesman said yesterday afternoon that police had not received any information to suggest the party would not take place.

The force said today that the 'gathering in York didn’t go ahead as planned.'

A spokesman said officers had been made aware of a post circulating on social media last week, which was encouraging young people to meet up on the Knavesmire.

"Senior police officers put a robust policing plan in place and publicly responded to the social media post," he said.

"As the evening progressed and the numbers didn’t show up, the deployed officers were diverted to deal with other local priorities."

He said that members of the public and local councillors had this morning contacted North Yorkshire Police to thank it for its proactive approach which had prevented the gathering.

Supt Mark Khan, said:“We know the impact that anti-social behaviour can have on peoples lives, so we were quick to coordinate a measured response to prevent this gathering becoming a problem.  

“I am pleased that last night passed without incident and would like to thank parents who assisted the police by discouraging their child from attending.“

There was anti-social behaviour in a different area of York last nigtht.

North Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service said its Acomb crew attended reports of a small fire burning in the open at Fulford, at just before 7.30pm.

It said that whilst tackling this fire, a further five small fires were lit by youths and crews worked to also extinguish them using knapsack sprayers.

A spokesman denied this could have been the location where the pre-arranged party was actually held.