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Jul 2021

Last Updated: 27/07/2021

Business

Council: 17 'unacceptable risks' at Harrogate Town forced us to ban fans

by Thomas Barrett

| 27 Jul, 2021

The risks included an inadequate level of stewarding, the CCTV system not being tested under match conditions and the ground's control room, which oversees fan safety, not being connected to a phone line or the public address system.

The Envirovent Stadium, Wetherby Road.

North Yorkshire County Council has revealed 17 "unacceptable risks" led it to ban fans from Harrogate Town's friendly against Sunderland on Saturday just 24 hours before kick-off.

The risks included an inadequate level of stewarding, the CCTV system not being tested under match conditions and the ground's control room, which oversees fan safety, not being connected to a phone line or the public address system.

In a statement sent today to the Stray Ferret, Matt O’Neill, assistant director for growth, planning and trading standards at NYCC, said the council sent a trading standards officer to last Wednesday's friendly against Rotherham after safety concerns were raised.

It said the club submitted a risk assessment and stewarding plan on the morning before the Sunderland fixture that identified seven unacceptable risks. This was reviewed by NYCC officers, who found another 10 risks.

The statement said:

"We therefore concluded that there were 17 areas of unacceptable risk in total."

The statement added the council was in discussions with the club to overcome the issues before the first home fixture of the new English Football League Division Two season against Rochdale on August 7 but that "the safety of everyone entering the facility must come first".

Harrogate Town fans fear season opener will be played behind closed doors

Fans barred from Harrogate Town match vs Sunderland due to safety fears

The Stray Ferret requested an interview with Harrogate Town's managing director Garry Plant today but was told he was on leave. Nobody else from the club was put forward for an interview.

The club released a statement this afternoon that said it was "working hard behind the scenes to rectify the issues raised".

It added:

"We would like to reiterate our sincere apologies to those supporters who had planned to attend but could not, through no fault of their own.

"Clearly this is a testing period for the club and we appreciate your continued support as we work through the issues raised."

Fans have voiced concerns that the club’s opening home game of the new season will be played in front of an empty stadium due to unresolved issues.

Katherine Swinn, speaking on behalf of the Harrogate Town Independent Supporters Club, told the Stray Ferret yesterday that fans had “numerous unanswered questions”.

She said:

"I think the club have dealt with the situation very poorly. The lack of communication is appalling. This situation needs to be addressed urgently and a full and frank statement provided by the club otherwise the speculation will continue."

Here is the full statement from Matt O’Neill, assistant director for growth, planning and trading standards at NYCC.

"Following safety concerns raised with us, our trading standards officers attended the match held last Wednesday night between Harrogate Town FC and Rotherham United.

"At this point it was clear there were a number of urgent matters to be addressed at the football ground, if the Sunderland match was to go ahead as planned last Saturday.

"The risk assessment and stewarding plan the club subsequently provided on Friday (23 July) morning identified seven unacceptable risks. Our officers reviewed the risk assessment and found that mitigation measures in place for a further ten risks were insufficient and we therefore concluded that there were 17 areas of unacceptable risk in total.

"These included an inadequate level of stewarding and a lack of effective communication between stewards and lack of confirmation about medical support. They also included the fact that the control room where safety of the ground is overseen, was not connected up to the public address system or the fire panels, had no phone line and a CCTV system which had not been tested under match conditions.

"Discussions now continue to see what can be done to find a safe solution looking ahead. The safety of everyone entering the facility must come first."

“Together with partner agencies in the Safety Advisory Group we pulled out all the stops to try to support the club to deal with a range of safety measures that had to be addressed to enable the match to go ahead.

“Safety standards are put in place to protect the spectators and ensure a safe match by the Sports Ground Safety Association (an executive non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport) and, as the public would expect, they must be met."

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Council: 17 'unacceptable risks' at Harrogate Town forced us to ban fans

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