Thousands have gathered on a city’s streets in a show of unity ahead of an expected protest.

Parts of Newcastle’s West End were packed with crowds who turned out to show support for communities expected to be targeted in anti-immigration protests.

Earlier, Northumbria Police’s Ch Supt Steve Wykes said the force expected to see further demonstrations following a week of riots across the UK.

Shortly before 20:00 BST, more than 3,000 people were gathered around Westgate Road in anticipation. One woman said: “We are a strong, multi-cultural community and there’s no place for fascists here.”

She added: “I was born in the general hospital and I’ve grown up here, I taught at Wingrove Primary School.

“This is my community.”

Among the crowds was a young man who said he was there to show that a minority would not succeed in tarnishing the image of Newcastle as “one of the best cities in the world”.

He added: “I’m here to show solidarity for the people who feel afraid of the racists in this country.

“Wherever we’re born, it’s about where we are and the one thing we’ve all got in common is we’re living in Newcastle, so we’re all Geordies.

“We’re not for violence, we just want to show them they cannot come and do whatever they want and ruin our city.”

Another man told the BBC he wanted to be present to show his support to the community.

People held signs celebrating Newcastle’s diverse community, with one saying “Geordies are of all colours” and another saying “Newcastle loves black and white”.

Ahead of the gathering, viral social media posts had suggested some anti-immigration demonstrations could take place in cities and towns in the North East.

In response, Northumbria Police cancelled officers’ rest days and told the public that “every deployable officer in uniform is out in the community”.

Ch Supt Wykes urged people to get information from trusted news sources or by speaking to police officers.

“There is a lot of misinformation out there at the moment, in particular on social media,” he said.

Large crowds also gathered in parts of Middlesbrough throughout the evening, including on Parliament Road and outside a mosque on Waterloo Road, in anticipation of further disorder following days of riots across the UK in the aftermath of the killing of three girls in Southport.

Cleveland Police said one man was arrested in the town after failing to comply with a request under special police powers to remove the face covering he was wearing “to hide his identity”.

After refusing to remove it, he was searched and also found to be carrying drugs and a weapon.