Call for police action against Harrogate Asda car park ‘boy racers’

A Harrogate resident has called for police action against ‘boy racers’ who regularly descend on the town’s Asda car park.

The resident, who lives on Mayfield Grove within earshot of the car park, told the Stray Ferret he would organise a demonstration if nothing was done.

He said people on streets near the store were tired of the noise and had safety concerns about vehicles speeding.

According to the resident, who asked not to be named, about four to six cars belonging mainly to young men congregate nightly in the car park and rev their engines and pop their exhausts.

The resident said they had raised the matter with Philip Allott, the police commissioner for North Yorkshire, and a police community support officer had agreed to visit the supermarket this week to discuss the matter,

They said they would now wait to see what ensued before deciding whether to mobilise support for a demonstration.

“Every night for years these idiots gather in the rear part of Asda car park where they rev their engines then race out of the car park and round Harrogate.

“I have video and pics that I gave to Philip Allott of a Mercedes that is there most nights and which nearly wiped out a couple of customers.

“If the police don’t do anything about it, we are going to arrange a demo at Asda.”

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A spokesman for North Yorkshire Police said:

“We are aware of anti-social-behaviour problems around the Mayfield Grove area of Harrogate, in particular issues with speeding vehicles.

“We will be actively deploying specialist resource to the area which will include roads policing officers who will be robustly dealing with any offences.

“Officers will also be linking in other local organisations and utilising local CCTV to help us build intelligence.”

The spokesman said these measures were in addition to North Yorkshire Police’s ongoing Operation Crome initiative to tackle anti-social and illegal driving.

An Asda spokesman said:

‘’We thank the vast majority who use our car parks responsibly and we will work with the authorities to ensure that the spaces around our stores remain safe for our customers.’’

Police commissioner: 101 line deluged by ‘neighbours complaining about each other’

A police commissioner has told how fewer people going away on holiday this year has seen the force’s phone lines being deluged “with everybody complaining about each other”.

Philip Allott, North Yorkshire’s Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, said as a result of the pandemic on some days last month the force got record numbers of 999 and non-emergency 101 calls, even more than they do on the traditional busiest days of the year, such as New Year’s Eve.

Mr Allott was responding to fresh criticism of the force’s 101 line by elected community representatives at a meeting of North Yorkshire County Council’s corporate and partnerships scrutiny committee.

North Yorkshire’s 101 line has regularly struggled to meet demand since it was was introduced in 2011 as a national measure to ease demand on 999.

Despite Mr Allott’s predecessor Julia Mulligan launching a string of initiatives to increase capacity, the meeting heard South Selby division Cllr Mike Jordan claim “the phone just doesn’t get answered”.

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Eastfield and Osgodby division member Cllr Tony Randerson said those staffing the 101 line needed more training because when residents did eventually get through they were given useless or misleading information.

He said:

“A resident of mine was on the phone 20 minutes waiting for a response about antisocial behaviour. When he got a response he was told ‘it’s not a police matter, go to your council’, which is unbelievable.”

‘It’s not fit for purpose’

Cllr Randerson called on the commissioner to press the Home Office for a complete overhaul of the 101 system.

He said: 

“It’s not fit for purpose and it hasn’t been fit for purpose for the last eight years.”

Mr Allott said the situation had been exacerbated by far fewer people going on holiday and neighbours irritating each other.

He said: 

“So you’ve got a record number of people complaining about each other. The pandemic has created a lot of these record call numbers at a time when nobody else is willing to pick these calls up.”

He added the 101 number was being used for a spectrum of non-policing issues.

Call for funding to be tripled

Mr Allott said the police were having to deal with time-consuming calls over matters such as potential suicides and noise, which were the responsibility of the NHS and council environmental health officers.

He said: 

“The police will do the enforcement, but what we can’t be is a sticking plaster for everything.

“Unfortunately there is an expectation that the police and the 101 number are the number of last resort and the reality of it is unless we triple the funding it can never be that.”

Mr Allott said cutting the length of time 101 callers faced was “the number one thing on my agenda”, that more staff were being trained and yet more staff were needed.

He added he was investigating introducing software to the force’s website which displays call waiting times so non-urgent callers could then chose to phone back later. In addition, software which can model what the call situation will be like at specific times to enable the force to better manage demand peaks is also being examined.

He said when the force launches Home Online next month, people will be able to report issues such as antisocial behaviour on its website and demand for 101 should ease.

New citizenship scheme to be launched for young people

A new scheme to help young people become better citizens is to be introduced in the Harrogate district.

Philip Allott, the North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, is currently finalising details for the Good Ctizenship programme, which will be launched across the county this autumn.

Mr Allott, who succeeded fellow Conservative Julia Mulligan as commissioner this year, said the scheme would spread the message that it is an honour and privilege to live in this country but also comes with responsibilities.

It will recruit the likes of former police officers and teachers and operate in partnership with schools. A provider for the scheme has yet to be announced.

Mr Allott added the programme would not lecture young people but rather “get them to identify what they want to do to help their communities and then give them the tools to do that”.

He said:

“It could be giving them bags to collect rubbish or it could be about helping them engage with their neighbours.”

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The budget for the scheme has yet to be finalised but Mr Allott said:

“It won’t require a ton of money but it will require a ton of passion.

“Society has become less tolerant and young people will become a greater force for good if they buy into it. We will work with youth partnerships to roll this out.”

 

Academics to review speed limit enforcement in North Yorkshire

A police commissioner has unveiled plans to enlist academics to help tackle speeding across England’s largest county.

Philip Allott, North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, said he aimed to enable the force to deal decisively with safety on rural roads and in villages. But with more than 6,000 miles of roads and 800 villages to cover, demand for enforcement was outstripping police resources.

Mr Allott said universities had been invited to tender to review how speed limits are enforced in the county and he was hopeful work to come up with alternatives would shortly get underway.

He was speaking to North Yorkshire County Council’s Richmondshire constituency committee following years of controversy surrounding North Yorkshire Police’s speed camera vans.

While fixed speed cameras have repeatedly been deemed an unsuitable solution for the largely rural county, the force has insisted the vans are used to deter speeding at sites of accidents.

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Julia Mulligan, Mr Allott’s predecessor, frequently defended the use of the vans and denied they were a revenue generator.

Last year she tweeted: 

“Any cash raised is spent on road safety, but they are largely self-funding, and certainly not ‘cash cows’. We also have clear evidence of behaviour change and lives saved.”

Nevertheless, motorists, including former police traffic officers and a number of leading councillors, believe the vans have frequently been sent to sites, such as bridges over motorways or dual carriageway laybys, in a bid to maximise numbers of fines.

Just 35 traffic officers

After being elected Mr Allott said there were “big concerns” over the vans, which were introduced in 2011.

He told the constituency committee while speeding was a prominent issue for residents, the force had just 35 traffic officers to oversee enforcement.

Mr Allott said: 

“The issue for us is that for the safety camera vans there are 750 sites for 12 vans plus two motorcycle units, and they can’t possibly go to every location.”

Mr Allott said he wanted elected community representatives to be able to direct police towards the areas of greatest concern.

He said: 

“What I would like to move towards is a position where if you say ‘I want the camera van to go out here or there’, you can have that as a councillor three times a year.”

Referring to calls for 20mph zones in some built-up areas, he said neither the camera vans nor hand-held speed guns were calibrated as low as 20mph.

He added: 

“If you are a councillor and wanting a lower speed limit, I as commissioner will support it. There are some challenges and you can see why I want an academic institute to look at this.”

Ripon to get two CCTV cameras after ‘mini crime wave’

North Yorkshire’s police, fire and crime commissioner has pledged to pay for two CCTV cameras in Ripon following a “mini crime wave”.

The two cameras are set to cost £10,000 each, but Philip Allott, the county’s police, fire and crime commissioner, has said his office will foot the bill.

It follows a spate of anti-social behaviour in the city, including an alleged knifepoint robbery of a teenage boy Bondgate last month. A 17-year-old boy and a 21-year-old man were later charged and remanded in custody.

Mr Allott told a meeting of North Yorkshire County Council‘s Skipton and Ripon Area Constituency Committee today that his office was willing to pay for the extra cameras, but warned that other measures would have to be taken to bring down crime.

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He told councillors that police already had resources to investigate and apprehend offenders and that other measures to take kids off the streets were needed.

Mr Allott said:

“In Ripon where there has been a mini crime wave, primarily thanks to four families where the perpetrators have been held on remand pending court appearances. We need to work with partners.

“I can make sure the police have resources and indeed in Ripon they have, to investigate and apprehend offenders but we need to look at diversion stuff we can do.

“The city council yesterday evening is keen to get not one but two extra cameras from the borough council. We will fund that and the cost is £10,000 each.

“But somebody has to do that application to my office, I cannot do that application alone.

“Equally, we do need councillors in particular to help in terms of local partnerships and safety hubs to help us with the diversion stuff that we can provide to take kids off the streets.”

North Yorkshire Police not answering half of 999 calls on time

Half of 999 calls to North Yorkshire Police were not answered on time last month, according to the force’s own figures.

The force’s control room received 9,572 emergency calls — the highest ever number for the month of August.

However, 50 per cent of those were not answered within the 10 second target set nationally.

Half of calls met the target and 45 per cent were answered within five seconds, according to police.

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Deputy chief constable Phil Cain told a North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner accountability meeting yesterday that on average the force answered 999 calls within 22 seconds last month.

He said:

“We want to get a lot better at that.

“The challenge for us is balancing against the volume increase of three nines we are receiving since the easing of lockdown restrictions versus some of the staffing challenges we have got in the control room.”

DCC Cain said police were creating long and medium term plans, which include using technology and additional staff, to improve response times.

Overtime plan

The move comes as the county’s police, fire and crime commissioner, Philip Allott, approved £69,000 worth of funding in July for the force to create an overtime plan and hire six more call handlers for busier times.

An additional £70,000 was set aside should more funding be required until the end of October.

A decision notice on the commissioner’s website said:

“The requirement for this available funding will be reviewed at the end of October and the commissioner expects to see proposals brought forward through the next round of budget setting to ensure the longer-term sustainability of the force control room.”

Mr Allott told the Stray Ferret in July that he expected improvements in response times in the coming months following the easing of restrictions and after improvements to the service were made.

Ripon groups urged to bid for £20,000 grants to tackle crime

Organisations concerned about crime in Ripon are being urged to apply for grants of up to £20,000.

Ripon has been blighted by anti-social behaviour in recent months. In one of the latest incidents, a teenage boy was robbed at knifepoint in Bondgate a fortnight ago.

The North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner‘s office operates a Community Fund specifically for local organisations, groups or individuals who need money to help fund a new community safety project or scheme.

The fund, which awards sums between £500 and £20,000, is only available for new projects and is aimed particularly at areas in the county suffering high crime.

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Philip Allott, who was elected North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner this year, told the Stray Ferret he encouraged funding applications from groups and individuals in Ripon.

‘Funding can be used for setting up community activities like a youth club, theatre group, sports club, car maintenance, gardening group etc. The most important aspect is that the activity is designed for young people aged 11 – 17.
“I would particularly welcome enquiries from those looking to offer activities in Ripon as it will provide diversionary activities to stop young people getting sucked into low level criminal activities.”
Mr Allott is due to give Ripon councillors a briefing on Wednesday about disorder in Ripon.

 

‘Significant hurdles’ could delay moves to evict Ashville College travellers

North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Philip Allott has warned that attempts to remove travellers from Harrogate’s Ashville College face “significant hurdles”.

Travellers parked at the fee-paying school’s rugby pitch on Tuesday evening and remain on site. A spokesman for the college said the travellers had indicated they were prepared to leave immediately if they received £5,000.

Now the school has said it may have to delay the start of the autumn term on September 8 if the travellers do not leave because of safeguarding concerns. The college has already had to relocate outdoor summer sports activities to indoors.

But any prospect of a swift resolution to the matter seems remote.

A spokesman for Ashville College told the Stray Ferret police officers said they were powerless to take action when staff got in touch because it is a civil rather than criminal matter.

The Stray Ferret asked North Yorkshire Police about the incident but has not received a response.

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Harrogate Borough Council has said it is willing to give advice to the college but is also powerless to act because the encampment is on private land.

Mr Allott, whose job is to hold the police to account, told us police and local authorities were in a tricky spot when it came to travellers. He said:

“I know how frustrating it can be for residents who feel helpless when travellers arrive in their community, and how frustrating it can be for the police and local authorities who want to help but face significant hurdles doing so.

“The issue is that trespass is a civil offence and not a criminal offence. So if the encampment is on private land such as Ashville College, it is the landowner’s responsibility unless there are other crimes being committed.”

New law could speed up evictions

The situation may change if the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, which is currently going through Parliament, becomes law.

The bill proposes making “residing in a vehicle on land without permission” a specific offence.

It will also give the police power to seize vehicles and speed up the eviction process for councils and private landowners.

Mr Allott, whose home town of Knaresborough has also recently been visited by travellers, added:

“Although the instigator of the initial complaint will still mostly be the local authority or landowner, it will mean that things will happen much faster and that they can also use the police for enforcement purposes instead of bailiffs.

“Frankly, these measures can’t come soon enough for many here in North Yorkshire and I continue to urge the Home Secretary to get these powers written into law as soon as possible.

“We must support residents, schools and sports clubs – who often suffer the most from the impact of these illegal camps.

“These changes would, I hope, also be welcomed by the vast majority of travellers who get an unfair and negative image despite the majority abiding by the law.”

Police boss ‘confident’ officers have a grip on crime in Ripon

North Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner Philip Allott has expressed confidence that officers have a grip on crime in Ripon after another spate of incidents.

Mr Allott said he hoped an increased police presence in the city would send a message that “crime will not be tolerated”.

He also urged more residents to “break silence” and report anything suspicious.

In recent weeks there has been a spate of crime, including a teenager being robbed at knifepoint, with a 17-year-old boy and a 21-year-old man later being charged.

Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, Mr Allott said:

“I want to reassure the community in Ripon that police are on top of this.

“Officers know who the perpetrators are, they have made arrests, they have got a grip on the situation, and I am confident of that.

“One of the problems we have in Ripon is sometimes a wall of silence by certain families and that makes it quite difficult to apprehend people.

“The police will still get those people. It just takes a bit longer.”

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Other incidents in recent weeks include a 16-year-old boy being chased by a group believed to be around the same age. This is believed to have happened in the Southgate area in the early hours of August 18.

The night after, two men were arrested in connection with an incident on Bondgate and a 17-year-old boy was arrested on suspicion of affray after a separate incident on Mawson Lane.

Step-up patrols

It has prompted police to step up patrols once again. This was done earlier in the year after city councillors held a meeting with former Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Julia Mulligan.

Mr Allot, who replaced Ms Mulligan in May, said he hoped to meet with councillors in the coming weeks to offer more reassurances and also discuss other plans to tackle crime and help repeat offenders.

He said:

“Police are being extremely effective… but there are some fundamental issues which have to be addressed here.

“We try wherever possible to avoid putting young people through the courts system because we know that tends to lead to a downward spiral.

“But in some cases, this is not always possible because of the seriousness of what is involved.

“Policing can put a sticky plaster on the problem, but unfortunately history tells me in Ripon that every so often a small number of members of the community spill out and cause trouble.

“Our aim is to stop that happening and break this repeated offending.”

Have your say on police priorities for Harrogate district

North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Philip Allott has today opened a three-month consultation seeking views on what the priorities should be for the police and fire services.

Mr Allott, who was elected commissioner in May, said the responses would inform his Police and Crime Plan, and Fire and Rescue Plan for 2021-2024.

Mr Allott, who lives in Knaresborough, will go on a 16-stop tour of North Yorkshire and York to canvas views. Online surveys and focus groups will also feed into the survey.

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He said:

“These documents which we need to produce by law have long titles and complex requirements, but they are all about one thing – your safety, which is why I want to know your priorities to ensure they are your plans.

“Please get involved in this consultation and have your say. I promise it will be listened to.”

The Police and Crime Plan sets out the vision and priorities for North Yorkshire Police, community safety and victims’ rights, as well as the objectives and ambitions that the Chief Constable will be held to account against.

The Fire and Rescue Plan sets out the strategic vision, priorities and objectives for North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service for how it will better respond to the need of our communities.

Further details of the consultation and the draft plans are available at www.tellphilip.co.uk.