A 57-year-old man from Stevenage has been arrested on suspicion of common assault and racially aggravated public order offence following an incident outside a Wetherspoon pub in the town centre.

Two members of staff were allegedly assaulted during what police have described as a racially-aggravated attack on customers who were in the outside seating area of The Standard Bearer pub at 7pm on Thursday.

A man allegedly began directing racially abusive comments towards customers who were sat outside.

When he was asked to leave by two male members of staff, he reportedly grabbed one by the arm and punched another across the jaw. Neither suffered any injuries.

A man was subsequently arrested, but has been released under investigation while enquiries continue.

DC Darren Lomax said: "The incident happened on a very warm evening and as a result the pub was busy, so I believe many people would have seen what happened.

"I would like to hear from anybody who was sat in the seating area and witnessed the altercation. I am also keen to trace the people who had racial abuse directed towards them.

"If this was you, or you have any more information that you believe could prove useful to my investigation, please get in touch."

You can email DC Lomax at darren.lomax@herts.pnn.police.uk, report information online at herts.police.uk/report, or call 101 quoting reference 41/67612/19.

Alternatively, you can call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or report information online at crimestoppers-uk.org.