Boroughbridge news from the Boroughbridge district - Page 173 of 178

Man jailed for breaking police officer’s leg and threatening ex-partner

A Harrogate man has been jailed for breaking a police officer’s leg and terrorising his ex-partner.

Shane Povey, 38, started berating officers when he turned up at an incident in Boroughbridge.

As officers were breaking up a fight between two men, Povey – who knew one of the warring parties – turned up in a friend’s car, got out and started shouting and swearing at police, York Crown Court heard yesterday.

Prosecutor Stephen Littlewood said:

“Mr Povey was remonstrating with police, asking who had reported the incident.”

Police told him to leave the scene, whereupon Povey, who was drunk, walked back to the vehicle, hurling a volley of abuse as he did so.

When police tried to arrest him, Povey grabbed two of the officers by the arm and shoved them away. One of the officers lost his balance, fell to the ground and felt his ankle crack.

Povey was restrained by other officers using pepper spray. The injured officer, who was lying “in agony” on the ground, suffered a broken ankle, fractures to his shin bone and ligament damage.

He needed two operations for his broken leg and was left with severe mobility problems and relying on crutches.

The incident had left deep psychological scars and the officer suffered lost earnings due to absence from work and restricted duties thereafter. He had been receiving ongoing orthopaedic treatment and was still unable to run.

Making threats

Povey, of Dene Park, Harrogate, was released on bail following the incident on August 1, 2019, but on January 17 last year he decided to seek out his ex-partner.

The victim, a mother-of-one who was named in court, had ended the relationship a few weeks before, but Povey bombarded her “throughout the day” with unanswered phone calls and a flurry of text messages “demanding money from her”.

In the evening, he turned up at her home in Boroughbridge and started banging at her door and windows, shouting dire threats and threatening to “do her car in”.

The victim – who had ended the relationship with Povey “because of concerns over his behaviour and the way he was treating her” – was in the living room “shaking” and refused to answer the door. She called police but then heard a “smash” and the car alarm going off.

Povey eventually left, but when she went outside, she found that all four tyres on her three-day-old Audi A1, a special mobility vehicle, had been slashed and were completely flat. Her front door had also been damaged.

The victim found a kitchen knife on the ground near her vehicle. Subsequent police analysis showed that the knife bore Povey’s DNA.

He was charged with criminal damage, putting his partner in fear of violence, causing serious injury to the officer, albeit without intent, and possessing a knife.

Previous convictions

After his initial denials, Povey ultimately admitted three counts including the attack on the officer and possessing a knife. One other charge was allowed to lie on file.

The court heard that Povey had six previous convictions, mainly for drug offences including production of a Class B drug.

Ian Cook, for Povey, said his client had only taken the knife to the scene to slash the tyres and not to use against the victim. He said his life had been marred by drug and alcohol abuse which had exacerbated mental health issues.

Povey had been “greatly distressed” following the break-up of his relationship with the victim, but he had never been violent to her nor any other women previously, added Mr Cook.

Judge Simon Hickey said although he recognised that Povey wasn’t habitually violent and was remorseful for his actions, he had no option but to send him straight to prison due to the seriousness of the offences against his ex-partner and the attack on the police officer which had had an “extreme” effect upon him.

The judge also noted the “significant damage” caused to the woman’s Audi and the fact she was “terrified” during the incident.

Povey was given a two-and-a-half year jail sentence but will only serve a tiny fraction of that because of the time he had already spent on remand in Hull Prison. He was also slapped with a 10-year restraining order banning him from contacting his ex-partner or entering the road where she lives.

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Harrogate district venues ‘frustrated’ by abrupt tier change

Pubs and restaurants in the Harrogate district have spoken of their frustration at the abrupt move into tier three just hours before their “biggest day of the year”.

Hospitality venues across the district would usually be buzzing with excitement on New Year’s Eve.

But instead most venues are closed, with only takeaways possible.

All the restaurant and cafe owners the Stray Ferret spoke to today agreed with the need for stricter restrictions but insisted more notice should have been given, as they have been left with unused stock.

Simon Cotton, managing director of the HRH Group whose properties include the Fat Badger, White Hart Hotel and the Yorkshire Hotel, said:

“I agree stricter restrictions are needed to get a grip on the virus but giving us such little notice is unacceptable. It’s a kick in the teeth for the biggest day of the year taken away with just a few hours notice.

“Frustration — that would be the word I use to sum up the year.”

Mr Cotton said food would be wasted this weekend as charities are unable to make use of perishable items at such short notice.

Many businesses have been trying to use up stock.

The Smiths Arms in Beckwithshaw posted on Facebook it would donate to the Harrogate Hospital and Community Charity.

The Little Ale House micropub in Harrogate said it would be selling cask and keg beers at reduced prices.

The Dining Room restaurant in Boroughbridge changed its business model this year by moving to daytime-only trade during the week and saving its fine dining for Friday and Saturday evenings.

The owners will continue with their plans to serve takeaways this evening but said yesterday’s announcement would have a major impact on trade. Co-owner Chris Astley said:

“Luckily we won’t waste stock because we can still go ahead with our takeaways but it doesn’t make the past year easier.

“I am relieved because when you have people turning up, clearly from different households, it is very difficult to manage. We just have to keep going.”

Takeaway from The DIning Room, Boroughbridge

The Dining Room in Boroughbridge will go ahead with its plans to offer takeaway food tonight.

Sarah Williams, runs Scarlett’s Vintage Tea Rooms in Knaresborough, said she was expecting the announcement:

“It’s not unexpected especially when you look at the data. Of course it’s not what you want to do but it is the right thing to do.

“We had a successful summer and have received grants, which mean we are surviving and aren’t in any danger of closing but not everyone has been so lucky.”

Fire crews called to Langthorpe after dog bed warmer overheats

Fire crews were called to Langthorpe last night after a dog bed warmer was left in a microwave for too long.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service said two crews attended the incident at the village near Boroughbridge at about 10.30pm last night.

The incident filled the kitchen with smoke, making it difficult for the crew to pinpoint the source. A thermal imaging camera was used to overcome this problem.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service said in a statement the microwave had overheated because the dog bed warmer had been left in the microwave for too long.

No details of the extent of the damage were given although it is believed to be purely smoke-related.

The crews ventilated the kitchen before leaving the address in the evening.

Plans for Great Ouseburn caravan park could see it double in size

A caravan park in Great Ouseburn could double in size if planning is approved by Harrogate Borough Council.

The Burrows Park currently hosts 60 pitches for campers and caravaners but if plans were approved it would have capacity for approximately 100 pitches.

The park’s co-owner, Richard Kay, said this year had been “challenging” but over summer the park saw an influx of visitors as the staycation trend grew.

The 4 acres of land signposted for planning is already owned by the caravan park and currently used as an overspill area.

The plans include 57 further pitches, improved access, a toilet and shower block and a reception building.

The park said it has many eager people waiting to book a holiday and hoped this planning would allow it to facilitate everyone.

Mr Kay said:

“We’ve been talking about the plans for two years, my daughter only has one year left at college and she’s eager to get involved in the site so it seemed like the right time. Once it’s done it should look great and it’ll offer a mixture of seasonal and touring pitches.”

“We had a very busy summer especially with new caravaners which was great to see. But it has been a challenging year too, so we will just have to see how next year goes.”

Mr Kay has co-owned the site with his wife for seven years. As an avid caravaner himself he hopes the plans will bring more visitors to boost the local area.

CAMRA lists district pubs open this weekend to encourage visitors

The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) in Harrogate and Ripon has pulled together a list pubs that are opening this weekend to encourage visitors.

Under the new restrictions only those selling substantial meals can reopen meaning many pubs in the Harrogate district are remaining closed.

CAMRA has put together a list of all of the pubs across the Harrogate district able to open this weekend. The group has also put together other lists including pubs offering an alcohol takeaway service.

The branch has warned that without public support some pubs may not make it through to the new year.

The branch secretary, Steve Fairweather, said:

“Pubs in our area face a very uncertain future following the tier two restrictions and reevaluation of tiers on the 16th December.

“Please show your support for your local pubs over the next few weeks, either by going for a meal or using take away services offered as government support is minimal and we fear that if we don’t support them now, it will be too late for most come January.”

The group is also encouraging people to write to their MP. It says it is important to gain government support for local pubs that are struggling.

What classes as a substantial meal caused controversy this week after the government was forced to correct a statement made by George Eustice, the environment minister, who said a scotch egg “probably would count”.

The government has confirmed bar snacks are not substantial meals. Guidelines state it must be a “table meal”, it is expected to stand alone as a person’s main meal day or evening.

Harrogate and Ripon CAMRA has said the smallest meals it has seen being served locally are half a pizza and a ploughman’s meal at £3 each.

Christmas joy set to arrive in Boroughbridge next month

A Boroughbridge pub has joined forces with the Boroughbridge Lions to set up a Santa’s grotto to bring some festive cheer to the town next month.

The Grantham Arms is hoping to set up an outdoor winter wonderland for local children on December, 20. The Boroughbridge Lions will be bringing along Santa and his sleigh to add to the Christmas spirit.

This year, The Grantham Arms and Boroughbridge Lions have missed out on income due to the pandemic.

The Lions are hoping the donations they earn from this this will give them a chance to earn vital funds to donate back to other local community efforts.

Simon Wade, owner of The Grantham Arms, is hopeful he will be able to reopen his doors next month to allow the event to go ahead. He has said all the necessary measures will be made to ensure the event is safe.

“There’s so many kid’s events being cancelled and we wanted to offer something for them. I got the Lions involved because it gives them a chance to earn some extra money and they do great things within the local area.

“I’m still hopeful we can open the first week of December but I don’t think it’ll be for long. It’s frustrating because how can we plan for anything? It is really challenging this time.”

The Grantham Arms has been decorated for Christmas.

As well as this event, The Boroughbridge Lions are still planning to take Santa and his sleigh round the town and the local villages at the beginning of December.

This year will be different, the volunteers won’t be knocking on doors or carrying buckets as they need to limit contact.

Paul Bullivant, president of Boroughbridge Lions, said:

“We will miss out on a significant amount of money from this year’s sleigh so any money raised from the event at The Grantham will be grateful received. Providing it’s safe and within guidelines we will do whatever it takes to bring a little joy.”

Harrogate binman caught by paedophile hunter group

A 57-year-old father-of-three from Harrogate who tried to sexually groom a 12-year-old ‘girl’ on WhatsApp has been spared jail.

Former binman Gary Milner sent the ‘girl’ pornographic sketches and urged her to send him a lewd picture of herself.

But in fact he had been set a trap by a paedophile hunter group called Dark Light, one of whose members set up an online decoy profile as a pre-teen girl on the dating app Mingle, York Crown Court heard.

Milner was given an 18-month suspended prison sentence and placed on the sex-offenders’ register for 10 years.

Prosecutor Chris Dunn said the vigilante group turned up at Milner’s home in the Harrogate area following the entrapment and uploaded the video on Facebook. Milner was immediately dismissed from his job at a recycling waste service.

“(The vigilante group) contacted police, informing them that representatives (from Dark Light) had attended the home of the defendant following him communicating online with their decoy profile set up to mimic a (named) 12-year-old female,” added Mr Dunn.

The decoy profile had lain dormant until Milner contacted the ‘girl’ on the dating website, which was for adults.

“For just over a fortnight (in August 2018) the defendant corresponded with this false profile of a child thinking it was a 12-year-old girl,” said Mr Dunn.

“The initial chat took place via Mingle (but) shortly after that, the conversation moved to the personal messaging app, Whatsapp.”

Asked for lewd image

Milner, whose username was ‘Gazza1Gazza’, became “more intimate” in his conversations with the ‘girl’ after only a few days, manoeuvring the chats towards “messages of a sexual nature”.

He talked to the ‘girl’ about “how to have sex”, asked if he could perform a sexual act on her and sent her pictures and sketches from an adult sex manual.

“On a number of occasions throughout this Whatsapp correspondence, (the ‘girl’) told him she was 12,” added Mr Dunn.

“Thereafter, he sent her a picture of his car, asking her if she’d like to go in it for a drive.”

Milner — formerly of Harrogate but now of Horsefair, Boroughbridge — asked the ‘girl’ to send him a lewd shot of herself and sent her a picture of a woman in a state of undress to give the ‘youngster’ a better idea of the kind of image he was expecting, said Mr Dunn.

After being arrested at home, Milner told police he had talked to the ‘girl’ about sex but claimed it was “more educational”.

He claimed he didn’t get any sexual gratification from the debauched chats and didn’t intend to meet her, but these claims were rubbished by both the prosecution and the sentencing judge.

History of dishonesty

Milner — who lived alone following the collapse of his marriage about 11 years ago — claimed he was looking for a long-term adult relationship on the dating site and that he “happened” to talk to a ‘child’ “for friendship”.

However, he ultimately admitted attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child and attempting to cause a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity.

The court heard that although Milner had an extensive criminal history, mostly for “dishonesty” offences, there was nothing on his record for sexual matters.

Susannah Proctor, for Milner, said her client was “deeply ashamed” about his behaviour but that he had not gone onto the dating site looking for children.

She said he had lost his job as soon as his employers became aware of the Facebook video, bringing an end to a 30-year career as a binman and causing him severe financial difficulties.

Moved to Boroughbridge

Since his arrest, Milner had lost all contact with his family. He had moved from Harrogate to Boroughbridge a few years ago following the death of his father.

Judge Simon Hickey said it was clear that Milner thought he was chatting to a real 12-year-old girl and that he had been sexually grooming her.

However, he said that Milner had already been punished of sorts following the “opprobrium” he had received following the Facebook video and the loss of a job he had held since 1989.

Milner was made subject to a 10-year sexual-harm prevention order and ordered to complete a 30-day rehabilitation programme and sexual-offending prevention course.

Harrogate district recovers from floods — but alerts remain

Knaresborough, Pateley Bridge and Masham have all been hit by flooding today — and alerts remain in place.

Parts of Knaresborough close to the River Nidd appear to have been the worst affected.

An Environment Agency spokesman said there were no confirmed cases of people having to leave their homes.

However, Andrew Weatherhead, owner of Weatherhead Butchers in Pateley Bridge worked through the night unblocking drains and mopping two inches of water from his High Street shop.

Mr Weatherhead, whose shop opened as usual this morning, told the Stray Ferret he planned to buy some flood gates to prevent further problems.

Mr Weatherhead, who finally got home at 3am only to be woken by his house alarm going off at 5.30am, said the town’s river flood defences worked well but added:

“I think there is something wrong with the state of the drains. So many are blocked. We had to unblock them with shovels and sticks and when we did the water went down quickly.”

No other shops in Pateley are believed to have been affected.

Cars moved

Vast swathes of Knaresborough were under water this morning. The area near the Vantage Toyota dealership, close to the River Nidd, was particularly bad.

Kyley Price, a medical administrator who lives in the area, said:

“We are surrounded by water but I’m hoping it wont be too bad. Just the usual clean up to come.

“We got a warning at 5.30 this morning so moved cars etc. We are now just sitting watching TV and waiting.”

Ms Price questioned the effectiveness of the flood prevention measures in the area:

“The water rises and fills the surrounding flood plane and fields faster than ever.”

Ure rising in Ripon

A flood warning remains in place in Ripon for Ure bank and the racecourse.

The government’s flood information service posted at 11.28am today:

“The level of the River Ure at Ripon Ure bank is 3.44m and rising. We expect river levels to continue rising with peak levels expected around 3.61m this afternoon.

“Please avoid using low lying footpaths near local watercourses and plan driving routes to avoid low lying roads near rivers, which may be flooded.”

The water is rising in Ripon.

Many rural roads, including the bridge at Masham, were treacherous this morning.

The forecast is improving but a flood alert is in place for the upper Nidd. The flood information service said at 11.28am:

“Further rainfall is expected on Monday, and river levels will fluctuate through the day. Flooding of low-lying land, roads and footpaths remains possible.”

Boroughbridge late night shopping cancelled

The annual late night shopping event in Boroughbridge has had to be cancelled this year leaving shops without the festive boost in sales.

The popular event normally attracts hundreds of eager shoppers wanting to support local businesses. Community groups and shops also get involved by dressing up and decorating shop windows.

However, this year the Boroughbridge Chamber of Trade has had to cancel the event in order to discourage huge crowds.

During the evening the Christmas tree lights are usually switched on but this year there will be a low-key switch on with the mayor and chamber president, Derek Hufton.

The chamber will still organise the town’s Christmas lights which is match funded by local councils. The budget for the lights this year is £5500.

Derek said:

“It is such a shame, it is one of the highlights for the town. It’s possibly one of the best days of trading for shops in the year. It won’t stop anyone trading throughout the festive season but it is a little extra that they will miss out on.

“We still want people to shop in the town. I think people feel safer here and they know they’re supporting local businesses.”

The chamber is still encouraging shops to decorate their windows and dress-up for its annual competitions and encourage shoppers.

The Boroughbridge Lions are still hoping to have their annual Santa sleigh fundraiser. Usually it travels through the town at night but the group is currently discussing how it can go ahead safely this year.

Boroughbridge farm shop hopes to boost trade with artisan market

A Boroughbridge farm shop is hoping to raise its profile and promote other small businesses by hosting an artisan market this weekend.

When the pandemic put a stop to their events catering business, owners Linda and Andi Aikman had to adapt. They used their local suppliers to start delivering food boxes.

This took off and they opened The Langthorpe Farm Shop and cafe over the summer. The pair are determined to support other small, local businesses.

The market, being held this Saturday, October 31, will stand on the shop’s large car park and across two fields it has rented behind.

It is being organised by Little Bird Artisan Markets and will include 40 traders.

A range of small, local businesses will set up their stalls for visitors this weekend. Photos: Little Bird Artisan Markets.

To be covid-safe, a one-way system will be in place to direct visitors around the food, craft and art stalls. Visitors are also encouraged to wear a mask and only touch items they are going to buy.

The farm shop will also have its own stall to encourage visitors to come inside.

Linda said:

“Our events business came to a bit of a stop in March. So we took to crazy risk in July to buy the shop.

“It’s steady, but people still need to know we’re here. I’m hoping this market will raise our profile and support other small, local businesses too.”

Linda is passionate about supporting other local traders and also the community. Like many other food outlets, she is currently offering free takeaway lunches for those in need during half term.

Jackie Crozier, events coordinator at Little Bird Artisan Markets, said:

“We want to help serve local communities with the best artisan stalls, whilst giving traders the best opportunities to showcase and sell their handmade goods. When the opportunity came along to work with the team at Langthorpe Farm, it was the perfect match.”

Live music will be playing throughout and one of the stars of The Yorkshire Vet, Julian Norton, will be there to sign his book. A pumpkin competition will also be held in the afternoon.