A FAST food outlet in Wrexham town centre has been unfairly and wrongly branded a hotspot for crime and anti-social behaviour.

The police team responsible for providing help and support to people in the town centre say not only is the McDonald's outlet in Regent Street a safe place to go, it is also at the centre of efforts to engage with the community.

In January, North Wales Police released figures about incidents at fast foot restaurants in North Wales as the result of a Freedom of Information request.

The figures showed that 457 crimes had been reported at McDonald's outlets in North Wales with more than half - 234 - taking place at the Regent Street branch.

However, the Wrexham town centre policing team say the true number of incidents at the restaurant is a fraction of this.

Wrexham police have been working in partnership with Wrexham County Council and McDonalds over the past 12 months.

In this period, there were 156 calls reporting incidents at McDonald's. Of these 76 were recordable crimes due to Home Office guidelines.

But when police examined the figures they found that just 55 of these incidents took place in or in close relation to the McDonald's in Regent Street.

This means that just 4.6 incidents requiring police action take place at the Regent Street outlet each month.

With hundreds of customers frequenting McDonald's everyday, Neighbourhood Policing Sergeant Simon Williams says that any reputation the Regent Street eatery has as a crime hotspot is undeserved.

Neighbourhood Policing Sergeant Simon Williams said: "The truth is McDonald's is a safe place to go. Thousands of people go there week in week out and to have such a low number of calls reflects this."

But he added that he would no discourage anyone needed support of help from the police to use McDonald's as a reference.

The priority is delivery that help and support and the "Golden Arches" of the franchise are an effective shorthand.

Sgt Williams added: "We are about getting people the help and support they need, not postcodes.

"If you are asking for help and you are near McDonald's or HSBC then it makes sense to say that as we will know where to go."

Wrexham Police said they welcomed the opportunity, through the Leader, to explain the real picture behind the alarming statistics.

And, through McDonalds, they have been able to engage with the community.

On March 26, PCSO Helen Holden was due to be available for a meet and greet sessions known as "Cuppa with a Copper". However, the sessions are currently suspended due to the coronavirus situation.