Man jailed for biting police officer in Harrogate

A notorious thug has been jailed for biting a police officer following a disturbance in Harrogate town centre.

Adam Snowdon, 31, was arrested following a drunken incident in Parliament Street and brought into Harrogate Police Station, where he bit one officer and allegedly assaulted two others.

He was charged with affray and assaulting three police officers. 

He initially denied all allegations but admitted affray on the day of trial. 

Snowdon, of Lupton Close, Glasshouses, was tried by a jury on three allegations of assaulting a police officer.

At York Crown Court yesterday (Monday, September 12), he was found guilty of one count of assaulting a policeman but not guilty of attacking the two others.

The substantive charge on which he was found guilty was biting a named officer at the police station on Beckwith Head Road on May 1. 

Prosecutor Ben Whittingham said that Snowdon was on a community order at the time for previous offences, including violence against police officers. 

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Defence barrister Allan Armbrister said Snowdon was “very much a loner” who desperately needed help after years of mental-health issues. 

He said Snowdon had not yet received that professional help and would now “lose that chance” due to the inevitable jail sentence for his “awful behaviour” in the town centre in May.

He added that Snowdon had recently become a father but any hopes of family life were now “completely lost” because his now-ex partner didn’t want “anything more to do with him”.

Snowdon, who was no stranger to prison, had been diagnosed with behavioural problems as a child.

Judge Sean Morris, the Recorder of York, said he had “taken a chance” with Snowdon when he gave him a community order earlier this year, but jail was now the only option because of his “bad” record for violence.

He said although Snowdon didn’t start the violence in the town centre, it was a “prolonged incident thereafter, on a busy street where people are fed up with…drunken violence”. 

Jailing Snowdon for 19 months, the judge said he would reserve all future cases involving the Harrogate man to himself and would “come down on you like a tonne of bricks if you cause trouble in North Yorkshire’s towns and cities”.

Snowdon will serve half of that sentence behind bars before being released on prison licence.

Companies ‘unlikely’ to receive pay-out from Bleikers Smoke House, say administrators

Administrators dealing with the collapse of a food company founded in the Harrogate district have said it is “unlikely” its 108 unsecured creditors will receive any of the money they are owed.

Bleikers Smoke House Ltd fell into administration in April, when it was also revealed that the company was being investigated for possible food fraud.

Now, administrator FRP Advisory Ltd has revealed a growth in the price of raw materials and difficulty in finding temporary staff at Christmas put “pressure” on the company. The latest report said:

“In late March 2022, the company’s biggest customer (approx 50% of sales) notified the company of concerns regarding the provenance of goods supplied and withdrew its products from sale in its stores, ceasing all orders.

“Despite an ongoing dialogue and a number of audits being undertaken by the customer and its agents, no resolution could be reached.

“A confidential settlement was subsequently reached with the customer on April 26, 2022, which ended the relationship.

“The sudden loss of this customer’s business, combined with the already weakened financial position meant the company was no longer viable.”

The latest update reveals a sale of the company, founded in 1993 at Glasshouses Mill, was attempted in April but a buyer was not found. After the company entered administration, there were two parties interested in buying it, but they pulled out when news of the Food Standards Agency’s investigation emerged.

However, a sale to Sixto Strategic Sourcing LLC for a total price of £300,000 has since been agreed, and could see production restarted from Bleikers’ most recent home at Leeming Bar.

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As well as negotiating the sale, administrators reported they had secured the return of the company’s trademark and branding rights from a company owned by the children of Bleikers’ directors, Charles and Annabel Andrew.

The rights had been transferred within the last 12 months but were returned in order to facilitate a sale of the business, the report said.

Of the company’s 86 members of staff, just three have been retained on a self-employed basis to assist with specialist knowledge. A food hygiene specialist has been appointed to liaise with the environmental health office.

Administrators said the prospect of any of the company’s 108 outstanding creditors receiving any payment is “unlikely”.

Meanwhile, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) said it continues to investigate Bleikers Smoke House over allegations of food fraud.

Dogs saved after falling down hole near Pateley Bridge

Two dogs had to be rescued when they fell down a hole while their owner was walking them near Pateley Bridge.

Mountain rescuers from Upper Wharfedale Fell Rescue Association were called when the owner, who has not been named, was unable to help the dogs escape.

The incident happened at Guise Cliff, near Glasshouses in Nidderdale, shortly after 2pm on Wednesday. Seven rescuers were in attendance for more than two hours.

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The association’s incident log said:

“Once there, the team set up a rope system allowing them to abseil down and rescue little Terrier Pippet, and fox red Labrador Pidge.

“Apart from being a little dirty the dogs were unharmed and were able to carry on with their walk home with a very grateful owner.”

Upper Wharfedale Fell Rescue Association dog rescue

Rescuers head down the hole.

Upper Wharfedale Fell Rescue Association dog rescue

Pidge is brought to the surface.

 

 

 

Builder fined for burning demolition waste in Glasshouses

A builder has been fined more than £1,300 for burning demolition waste on land at Harewell Wood Cottage, Glasshouses.

Harrogate Borough Council visited the property on April 29 last year and witnessed remnants of a fire from the previous evening, which consisted of timber and some corrugated roofing sheets.

Philip Snow, 31, from Glasshouses had carried out demolition work – operating under PR Snow Services – at the former butchers in Summerbridge and then disposed of some of the waste on land owned by his parents, in order to burn it, rather than disposing of the waste at an authorised waste disposal site.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue had extinguished the fire at the property on the previous evening.

The blaze had been emitting dark smoke caused by the burning of timber, insulated sandwich panels and corrugated roofing sheets.

The fire sent large amounts of black smoke into the atmosphere, causing environmental pollution and potential harm to health.

This dark smoke caused by the burning of these materials is an offence under the Clean Air Act 1993 so Harrogate Borough Council took Mr Snow to court.

The Environment Agency provided a witness statement stating there was no environmental permit or exemption in place for the burning of waste on the land at the time of the incident.

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Last month York Magistrate Court fined Snow, who pleaded guilty, £678 for the offence under section 2(1) of the Clean Air Act 1993 and ordered him to pay prosecution costs of £635.

Cllr Mike Chambers, Harrogate Borough Council’s cabinet member for housing and safer communities, said:

“Mr Snow has shown a complete lack of awareness or consideration for the law, as well as the environment, by disposing of commercial waste in this way.

“I’d like to thank the concerned residents who raised the alarm, North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service for dealing with the fire swiftly and safely as well as the council officers.

“I hope this is a reminder to business owners that the illegal disposal of waste is a criminal offence and we will, with proper evidence, seek to prosecute the offender.”

Waste disposal law

Anyone employing an individual or business to remove waste from their property or business has a responsibility to ensure they dispose of it legitimately.

The easiest way to do this is to check they have a waste carriers licence (Upper Tier). This can be done on the Environment Agency’s website or by calling 0370 850 6506.

The council also advise asking for a receipt documenting the waste that was taken, by who and at what cost.

More information about fly-tipping is available on the council’s website.

Plans to convert landmark pub near Pateley Bridge into holiday cottage refused

Harrogate Borough Council has refused plans to convert The Birch Tree Inn in Wilsill into a holiday cottage.

The pub is a notable landmark on the main road from Pateley Bridge to Harrogate and has stood there for over 100 years.

Much of the building was converted into three holiday cottages five years ago, with the pub continuing to trade in a smaller area.

But documents submitted on behalf of the landlord said two tenants tried and failed to make the pub work since 2016.

It has been closed since the beginning of the covid pandemic in March 2020.

When a landlord wants to convert a pub into housing, HBC asks that the building be marketed as a pub for at least 12 months. This is to show that there is no longer interest in it operating as a public house and that the community would not be unnecessarily losing an asset.

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Documents submitted on behalf of the landlord said they had discussed opportunities to take on the pub with local restauranteurs and bar operators including William & Victoria in Harrogate.

However, they said the pub was now “unviable” as a business and so wanted to open a fourth holiday cottage, which have proved to be popular.

“[The pub] was already proving unviable, with social distancing and reduced opening hours simply reinforcing this. Now as ‘accidental landlords’ they find themselves with ongoing liabilities, without the prospect of income, even in the long term.

“These are extraordinary times the entire country finds itself in, with the whole hospitality industry under incredible pressure and all parties desperately trying to keep their heads above water”

However, HBC was not satisfied the landlord had sufficiently marketed the building as a pub and refused the plans.

Case officer Mark Williams wrote:

“In the absence of a sufficient marketing effort, the proposed development would lead to the loss of a community facility and service.”

 

Flood warning issued for River Nidd near Pateley Bridge

The government’s flood information service has issued a flood warning for the River Nidd just south of Pateley Bridge.

The warning, which was issued shortly before 4pm, says flooding is expected at Low Laithe between Dacre Banks and Glasshouses.

It adds roads and farmland are expected to flood and immediate action is required:

“Levels on the River Nidd are rising at Pateley Bridge. Please be aware that persistent and heavy rain is forecast until Thursday. Please avoid walking or driving through flood water.”

Two hours earlier the flood information service issued a less severe flood alert for the Upper Nidd around Wath and Lofthouse, just north of Pateley Bridge.

The Upper Nidd alert says:

“Areas most at risk are low lying land and roads.

“Please avoid using low lying footpaths near local watercourses and do not walk or drive through flood water.”

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Storm Christoph is beginning to saturate the Harrogate district and beyond.

Five flood warnings and 30 flood alerts are effective in North Yorkshire, where rain is expected to fall until midday Thursday.