STOP and search tactics are being used by police on armed gang members who have been blamed for a rise in violent crime.

Section 60, which allows officers to carry out searches on suspects, was brought into force in the Dearne and Mexborough over the Easter bank holiday in a bid to deter crime involving firearms and knives.

One gang - the so-called Pitsmoor Shotta Boys - originated in Sheffield but took hold in the area after several members were rehoused there, leading the surrounding villages to be swamped with drugs, police say.

The stop and search action follows recent incidents of threats of violence in the area, including those involving weapons, as part of an ongoing project which has seen more than 100 raids take place at houses associated with the group in the last year.

Eight organised crime groups, referred to as OCGs by police, were identified in Barnsley earlier this year and dozens of people remain on investigating officers’ radars, with 50 per cent of the gangs assessed as being armed.

Chief Superintendent Shaun Morley said: “The force has been granted the Section 60 authority under the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994.

“This authority gives our officers the power to stop and search people who they think are carrying offensive weapons.

“Officers do not have to have reasonable suspicion about the individual being stopped and searched.

“Instead, the authority is intended to deter people from carrying offensive weapons and keep everyone safe by preventing violence.”

Almost 1,000 reports of violent crime were reported across Barnsley in 2018, police figures show, leading to Operation Armenia and Operation Fortify - both of which target gangs and those involved in the supply of drugs - to be launched.

Violent-related offences topped the list from January to December with 997 incidents, accounting for 23.9 per cent of overall crime reports received by police during the year.

Stop and search checks have historically proved controversial because some elements of the community have faced the greatest likelihood of being challenged by police and national guidelines were issued advising forces to reduce reliance on those tactics.

However, that advice has now been withdrawn, with Barnsley’s officers actively encouraged to conduct such work but to do so only if they have reason to believe a person is carrying a weapon.

Chief Constable Stephen Watson said: “One of the most practical things we do is increase the chances of being stopped and searched.

“Numbers are starting to lift and I can predict they will continue to grow. Very pleasingly, the number of arrests are also going up, so we are obviously targeting the right people.

“Complaints continue to plummet.

“We are targeting the right people, politely and professionally. That is what people want to see.”