THE clear-up operation to transform Britain's largest club venue back into the field it was before the Homelands festival has got under way outside Winchester.

More than 28,000 clubbers turned the green-field site at the Matterley Bowl near Winchester into a massive dance arena during the 17-hour event that started on Saturday afternoon.

Police say the event went off without a hitch, with arrest figures for drug offences down 30 per cent on the previous year. Officers from Winchester City Council's environment department also confirmed no complaints were received after midnight when, as promised, the volume on the massive sound system was turned down.

Even before the noise watershed, only 11 complaints were received. Police figures show 46 arrests - mostly for drug offences though there were also two public disorder offences and several minor incidents of theft.

Superintendent Bob Rose said the organisers had taken a tough stance against drugs.

All the £50 tickets to the event warned that anyone caught with drugs would be excluded, and police say that of 228 searches undertaken, only 77 produced positive results with the person barred. In total 400 police officers were deployed, with 12 passive drugs dogs also used.

Superintendent Rose said: "We felt that overall the event went really well and there was excellent co-operation between the organisers and the police.

A Homelands spokesman said: "We think there were about the same number of people at the event as last year, though we haven't had any final figures through yet, but it was no doubt helped by the fact it stayed dry throughout most of it."