Harrogate man with PTSD given suspended sentence for 16 offences

A Harrogate man has been handed a suspended prison sentence after magistrates told him they were giving him a chance to avoid getting into more trouble.

Aaron Peter Wilson, 44, of Russell Street, appeared at Harrogate Magistrates Court to be sentenced on 16 charges on Friday.

The offences were committed on six separate dates between July 2022 and March this year.

They included six counts of assaulting people by beating them and one of using threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour with intent to cause fear of violence.

There were also eight counts of criminal damage, all of which were committed on cars in Harrogate and Knaresborough. The value of the damage caused ranged from £11.85 to £510.

Prosecuting, Alison Whitely told magistrates the victims had often encountered Wilson in the street:

“These people are members of the public minding their own business who have been randomly picked on, either by their property being damaged or being assaulted.”

Ms Whiteley highlighted Wilson’s history, which included 26 previous offences.

She said some of the crimes he was being sentenced for on Friday were committed while he was subject to a community order for a separate offence.

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However, in defence, Martin Townend of Watson Woodhouse Solicitors told the court that most of the offences took place between July and September 2022, with just one incident in March 2023.

He said Wilson had been out of trouble since his last conviction in 2018, a period when he was “in a good state of health”.

He said:

“Mr Wilson has been diagnosed with PTSD [post-traumatic stress disorder]. When he was younger, he did some voluntary work in Bosnia when the conflict was in force.

“He saw things in that country that have affected his mental health. When he has flashbacks, he drinks to make those flashbacks stop.”

Drinking problems

Mr Townend said all Wilson’s offending had occurred when he had been drinking. He often then made loud comments in public, such as accusing people of being drug dealers or paedophiles, causing strangers to object, which led him to lash out.

Since the last offence, Mr Townend said Wilson had found work through one local charity and was volunteering with another. He had also joined an organisation offering support with staying sober.

Mr Townend added:

“In the main, he is sticking to not drinking, because he realises the drink is the catalyst for this behaviour… he has started to look at himself, not really like what he has seen, and he has taken steps himself to do something about it.”

The magistrates were given a lengthy report to consider, including psychiatric assessments, before deciding how to sentence Wilson.

For all 16 offences, he was given a total prison sentence of 26 weeks, suspended for 18 months.

He was also ordered to wear an alcohol tag for 120 days, meaning if he drinks during that time he will be made to return to court if he drinks. He must also complete 30 days of rehabilitation activity.

Magistrates imposed a victim surcharge of £154, but did not award costs because of Wilson’s limited means. Nor did they award compensation, saying no invoices had been submitted to account for the value of the damage done to the cars.

Wilson was warned that some of the three magistrates had wanted to send him straight to prison. The suspended sentence, he was told, was a “very serious order” and if he got in any trouble during its term, or failed to comply with the other requirements, he would be jailed.

Pioneering young Harrogate barrister appointed judge

A Harrogate barrister has been announced as the youngest ever black and minority ethnic crown court judge in the UK.

Ayesha Smart, 34, can now sit as a Recorder in crown courts across the north east of England.

As well as being the youngest non-white person to take up the role, she will be the third youngest person from any background to be selected.

The process of becoming a judge is complex, involving two sets of exams, a role play exercise and an interview – and the final approval has to be given by the King.

Ayesha told the Stray Ferret:

“Everybody says it takes several goes at the process to get through, so I thought I would give it a go and at least I know what it’s like.

“I anticipated I might be one of the youngest ones in the exams, so I assumed I wouldn’t get anywhere. It was a bit of a nice surprise when I got it!”

Ayesha, who lives near Killinghall, attended Ashville College when she moved to Nidderdale with her family when she was 14.

She went on to study A levels in biology, chemistry and maths, as well as music which she sat early, at St Aidan’s and St John Fisher Associated Sixth Form, before completing an undergraduate degree in medical sciences at the University of Leeds.

Her first professional job was as a pathologist at Harrogate District Hospital, but she decided to turn to the law and completed a conversion course in Leeds.

Quickly securing a pupilage place to complete her training, she was called to the bar in 2014, and has since been working in crown courts around Yorkshire.

Her appointment as Recorder, confirmed on Wednesday this week, means she will undertake an induction before sitting in the role for at least 30 days a year.

Ayesha says she is not nervous about the appointment, adding:

“I come from a science background before I went into law. For me, analysing things and coming to a decision is the bit I find easier.

“For the induction course, we get packed up in a group of other Recorders. Having to do it all in front of them will be slightly nerve-wracking!

“I’m kind of excited – I just want to get going.”

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To begin with, Ayesha will continue to work as a barrister part-time. She can then decide whether to continue the dual role or move to be a full-time judge.

She hopes she will help the justice service to tackle a huge backlog of cases that has built up in recent years. She added:

“One of the two-day trials I’m working on, the earliest date we could get for the trial was next October. That’s how backlogged everything is at the moment.

“If one of my trials [as a barrister] collapses and I end up with a bunch of dates free, they may say, ‘we’ve got some cases you can hear’.”

And that is not the only way in which Ayesha hopes to make a difference.

As a pioneering BAME woman, she is aware that her presence will be noticed by the people in front of her.

She said:

“The bar, as a profession, is all old, white, posh people. At least with people like me coming through, it’s a bit more representative of society.

“So many defendants aren’t white. If they see people more like them, it just helps in giving a better perception of fairness.

“Having somebody slightly younger probably helps as well – a more modern way of thinking rather than an old-fashioned approach to everything.

“The drug sentencing guidelines, they’ve had to put a reminder to judges that Blacks and Asians typically get a harsher sentence and ask them to remember that.

“Having someone who appreciates cultural differences and biases, you are a bit more alive to making sure people are treated equally.”

Man denies wounding Harrogate pub landlord

A man will face trial at crown court after allegedly assaulting the landlord of a pub in Harrogate.

Christopher Roy Adamson, 30, of Woodfield Avenue, Harrogate, is alleged to have been at the Claro Beagle in Coppice Gate when the incident happened shortly after 10pm on April 9 last year.

Mr Adamson appeared at Harrogate Magistrates’ Court today to face a charge of wounding landlord Alan Hutchcraft, leaving him in need of hospital treatment for cuts to his head.

The defendant pleaded not guilty to that charge, as well as one of damaging Mr Hutchcraft’s glasses, said to be worth £485. Mr Adamson will now face a jury at York Crown Court.

He was given unconditional bail to make an initial appearance in York on Monday, July 3.

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Buy a pint of Crimple Valley and support Harrogate hospice

A Harrogate man with a lifelong career in beer is brewing up a project to support the hospice that cared for a relative in his final days.

Mark Noble has paired up with Bosun’s Brewery to create Crimple Valley IPA, which will be sold in aid of Saint Michael’s Hospice.

Mark’s father-in-law was cared for at the hospice, on Hornbeam Park, until he died two years ago. Mark said:

“It’s a fantastic place. They really cared for him. He went very peacefully and calmly in there. It was a very dignified end to his life.

“The hospice have chosen the pump clip and design — they’ve incorporated the viaduct across Crimple, which is one of the last things people there see.

“It’s a beautiful view and it has made a really nice design.

“We’ve chosen an IPA because they’re popular beers at the moment. It’s 4.2% so not too strong and palatable for most people.

“It’s a pale colour with fruity notes. The key thing is it’s brewed locally.”

The IPA will be officially launched tomorrow (Saturday, June 3) at Bosun’s beer festival at its tap room in Sandbeck Park, Wetherby.

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Mark, who spent his career working for large breweries before retiring briefly at Christmas, set up The Crafty Caskman in January and is working independently this year to sell beer into bars and restaurants on behalf of Bosun’s and several other local breweries.

He hopes to do the same with the Crimple Valley IPA and has already found it a spot on the pumps at the Shepherd’s Dog on Otley Road, Harrogate.

For every pint sold, 15p will be donated to Saint Michael’s Hospice, making each barrel worth £10 to the charity.

Mark said:

“The more we can sell, the better. It’s still early days, because it’s not officially launched until Saturday, but people are saying they’re interested in having it.

“Next week I’ll be out there promoting it to pubs, hotels and restaurants. I want to get it in as many places as possible, and I hope people will look for it when they’re out.

“The way they economy is, there’s less funding going towards charities, but everyone still finds the time to go and have a pint. If you have a pint of Crimple Valley, you’re doing something you enjoy and also contributing to a good cause.”

Any pubs, hotels or restaurants interested in buying Crimple Valley IPA to support the fundraising can email Mark Noble for more details.

Wanted: Field with boggy corner for new wildlife pond in Harrogate district

An environmental organisation is looking for land around the Harrogate district to create a wildlife pond.

Wildscapes community interest company is hoping a landowner with at least 150sq m – equivalent to around 10m by 15m – will come forward to host the project.

The creation of the pond would be funded by Natural England, which works with Wildscapes to improve biodiversity through habitat creation and conservation.

Jordan Porter, pond programme manager for Wildscapes, told the Stray Ferret:

“If someone comes forward with a site, we come and assess the site and meet the landowner.

“We look at the surrounding land usage and test the subsoil. They are natural ponds, not lined ponds, so we have to have quite a good clay content or very high water table in the area.

“If you have a field corner or a patch that’s always wet, that’s a good sign a pond would fill in that area. If it’s farmland, those are often the areas that are the least productive anyway.”

Wildscapes has already created around 250 wildlife ponds across South Yorkshire, Derbyshire and Lincolnshire, and has begun working in North Yorkshire in the last two years.

The primary aim of the ponds is to encourage great crested newts, a protected species, to colonise.

Mr Porter said once the newts had moved into a pond, it was a good indication other species were thriving in the area.

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After a pond was created, Mr Porter said Wildscapes would maintain it for the next 25 years – though landowners are not obliged to have the pond for the full 25 years.

Fences can be installed, all funded through the scheme, to ensure nearby livestock could not access the area.

Funding for the ponds often comes from housing and other developments, through compensatory requirements when planning permission is granted.

Mr Porter said:

“Whoever is doing the development, the mitigation isn’t their main priority.

“The idea is this is given to us, as an arm of the Sheffield and Rotherham Wildlife Trust, and the money comes to us to use in target areas where those compensation payments came from.

“It goes back into local landowners through the creation of habitats, and we do offer one-off landowner incentives for signing up.

“If they stay in the scheme, there’s a 25-year monitoring and maintenance programme which we deliver.”

Anyone interested in taking part in the scheme can find out if their land is in the target area by using the government’s Magic Map.

Select ‘Land Based Schemes’, then ‘Other Schemes’, then ‘Great Crested Newts Strategic Opportunity Areas’ to see which parts of the Harrogate district are being considered for wildlife ponds.

Alternatively, call Wildscapes on 0114 303 5123 or email info@wildscapes.co.uk.

Village pub near Boroughbridge put up for sale

A village pub near Boroughbridge which was once well-known as a wedding venue and dining destination has been put up for sale.

The Crown Inn at Roecliffe has been listed by Christie & Co, with an alternative option for it to be let to “an experienced and credible operator”.

The pub, which has a function room seating 80 people as well as space for 80 covers in its restaurant and bar, is on the market for £875,000.

It includes five en-suite letting rooms as well as outside dining space and a car park, and the purchase would include “the majority” of its fixtures and fittings.

The description by Christie & Co says:

“The Crown Inn presents an excellent opportunity for an experienced operator to purchase a large, characterful hospitality property in an extremely desirable location. An established business which previously upheld a fantastic reputation.

“Historically, annual turnover was [circa] £1.2m (£25k per week net of VAT). In the hands of an experienced operator there is huge, tangible potential for The Crown Inn to re-establish itself as a bustling village pub, wedding/events venue and destination restaurant with rooms.”

The particulars say the owner’s preference is for it to be sold, but it could be rented for £60,000 per year on a 10- or 15-year agreement. A one-off payment of £15,000 would be required for the fixtures and fittings.

The Crown Inn has been closed for around a year, with the particulars saying this was down to “being underfunded and significantly impacted by the pandemic”.

Its lessee was Chris Hannon, who ran a number of pubs around the UK, and was last month reported by the Mirror to be facing bankruptcy after his previous company fell into liquidation in 2020.

The pub is understood to be owned currently by a number of villagers who bought the premises in 2018.

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Knaresborough mayor wants to ‘give back’ to new home

A new Mayor of Knaresborough has been elected at the annual meeting of the town council.

Cllr Hannah Gostlow, who has been a councillor since 2015, said she hoped to use her year for the benefit of a town which had made her welcome when she moved there.

She said:

“Since moving to Knaresborough 10 years ago, I have been in awe of this beautiful town and welcoming community.

“It is a place you want to give back to – so I am honoured to be given this opportunity and promise to work hard to champion our wonderful town as mayor.”

As well as sitting on Knaresborough Town Council, Cllr Gostlow represents Knaresborough East on North Yorkshire Council after being elected for the Liberal Democrats last year.

Her election as mayor was witnessed by mayors of neighbouring towns and representatives of community groups in Knaresborough at the annual meeting.

Cllr Gostlow’s chosen charities for the year will be Inspire Youth and Knaresborough Community Energy Limited. She added:

“The sense of community is so strong. We are spoilt by the number of events throughout the year, delivered with such creativity and enthusiasm, thriving independent businesses, schools, church communities, and there are so many amazing community groups, run and supported by dedicated individuals.

“So, when it came to choosing the charity to support, it was a very difficult decision.”

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Harrogate student among top achievers in national physics contest

A Harrogate teenager attended a national awards ceremony in a historic venue after achieving one of the highest scores in a prestigious physics competition.

Patrick Fleming, a year 12 student at Rossett School, achieved a ‘gold’ in the British Physics Olympiad senior challenge.

As a result, he was one of just five students from around 6,000 entrants to be invited to the annual awards ceremony at the Royal Society in London.

Patrick said:

“Visiting The Royal Society was really inspiring, especially looking around the many portraits of previous fellows and heads of the society since it was founded in 1660.

“It was also amazing to talk to other young physicists and receive such a prestigious award. “

Patrick is currently studying maths, physics, computer science and further maths at A level, and was joined in the competition by a number of other talented students.

The Olympiad, hosted by the University of Oxford, aims to encourage younger students to study physics and recognises excellence among them through a series of competitions.

The senior challenge saw students sit a one-hour paper designed to test their problem-solving abilities.

Rossett School physics teacher Stephanie Hunt said:

“Well done to all our students who took part in the Olympiad, and congratulations to Patrick for his exceptional achievement – we are incredibly proud of him.”

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UPDATE: Police find 500 cannabis plants in raid at village pub near Harrogate

Police uncovered a farm of 500 cannabis plants during a raid at a disused pub near Harrogate at the weekend.

Officers swooped on the Star and Garter pub at Kirkby Overblow on the morning of Sunday, May 28, where they discovered the “large cannabis production farm”.

A spokesperson for North Yorkshire Police said the plants were at various stages of growth, adding:

“Officers remained at the scene to recover the plants and drug production equipment and to allow crime scene investigators to examine the scene.

“The investigation is ongoing and no arrests have been made at this time.”

Villagers told the Stray Ferret that police were on site for more than 24 hours after the raid and were removing large numbers of plants from the building.

The pub closed several years ago and was boarded up last year.

Police have raided the Star and Garter pub in Kirkby OverblowPolice were seen outside the Star and Garter pub from Sunday morning onwards.

Following the raid, North Yorkshire Police has urged people to report any suspicions of properties being used to grow cannabis.

As well as a strong, sweet smell of cannabis in the area, suspicious signs might include blacked out windows and blocked up vents, bright lights throughout the night, high levels of condensation on windows, noise from fans inside the building, and large amounts of rubbish including compost bags.

The police spokesperson added:

“We’re continuously tackling ‘cannabis farms’ – sophisticated set-ups in houses or other properties, used by organised crime gangs to produce several crops of cannabis over time.

“Cannabis production is extremely harmful to communities, and often used to fund criminal gangs involved in human trafficking, sexual exploitation and the distribution of other drugs including cocaine and heroin.

“Furthermore, the electricity supply may have been tampered with (to bypass the meter), creating a high risk of fire – which could spread to neighbouring properties.”

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Teachers back plans for specialist autism school in Harrogate

Schools across the Harrogate district have given their backing to plans for a specialist school for students with autism.

The proposal for the site of the former Woodfield Primary School will be discussed by North Yorkshire Council leaders today – and teachers are urging them to support it.

Samina O’Brien, special educational needs coordinator (Senco) and inclusion manager at Ripon Grammar School, said a specialist facility for students with autism across the Harrogate district was badly needed.

She told the Stray Ferret:

“We are getting so many more diagnoses of autism and a lot of these students can’t cope, to the point where they stop coming to school.

“When they come back, the school can’t change. The students can’t cope with the routine, the rigidity of the rules, and even when we make allowances they still struggle.”

Mrs O’Brien said schools did their best to help children with autism, but did not receive adequate funding to deliver the right support, such as one-to-one help or quieter rooms to work in.

She said Ripon Grammar School was not as badly affected by the situation as some schools because it was selective based on academic ability. However, she said many autistic students were highly academically able, but were unable to reach their full potential because they could not cope with the school environment.

When that was the case, specialist provision was often a significant distance away, she said, and students were not always able to make the journey.

There were private specialist schools students could attend, but cost was a barrier for most families. She added:

“There’s some stereotyping about the students in North Yorkshire, but the problems are the same wherever you are in the country. They don’t just change because you’ve crossed into an area that’s perceived as more wealthy or more rural.

“We’ve got a few students here who we know would be so much more suited to [a specialist school]. It would still be academic, but we would reduce the amount of stress the students went through.

“Our biggest concern is how unhappy some of those youngsters are. I think it would be so beneficial for all those students that are struggling.

“If this goes ahead, for some parents and more importantly the children, this will be what saves them and puts them back into mainstream where they should be and can thrive.”

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The proposal for the former Woodfield site is for a school catering for students aged between 11 and 19.  It would have capacity for around 80 children, who would not need to have a formal diagnosis of autism.

Rossett School is also in favour of the proposal. Newly-appointed headteacher Tim Milburn said:

“It is so pleasing to see significant investment being proposed for specialist provision in the area. This is such welcome news for children and families who have been seeking this support for a number of years.

“I will be really interested to hear how the investment will support children and families for whom mainstream education is the most appropriate setting.”

Liz Zoccolan, Senco and assistant headteacher at Harrogate Grammar School, added:

“Any increase in provision which will meet the needs of the growing number of students with education, health and care plans is to be welcomed in the area. This would further enable potentially vulnerable young people and their families timely access to specialist support if that is their choice.

“We would be keen to work alongside and collaborate with the proposed provision so that as many students as possible may benefit.”

If the plans are approved by NYC’s executive member for children and young people’s services and corporate directors today, a consultation could be launched in two weeks’ time, running until late July.