Clippings (May - June 1999)Clippings (May - June 1999)Bid for updated crime cameras (T&A 29/6/99)
'Get them off the streets' (T&A, 18/5/99)
Neat way to boost our image (T&A Opinion, 18/5/99)
Security steps up a league (T&A, 17/5/99)
Action to reduce the fear of crime (T&A, 13/5/99)
The image and reality of crime (T&A Opinion, 13/5/99)
Where was he running? (T&A 7/5/99)
T&A 7/5/99
Mystery surrounding the death of teenager Stuart Lister deepened today after police released video footage of him running across a road.
Stuart was caught on Keighley town centre CCTV cameras leaving Oscar's nightclub at 1am.
Within half an hour, the 18-year-old was found unconscious with serious head injuries less than half a mile away from his home in Steeton.
He died four days later in Leeds Infirmary where he had been on a life-support machine.
Police have revealed they are not treating his death as murder but say it was related to a serious road traffic incident.
They say they are keeping an open mind about what caused the teenager's injuries, but one possibility is that he fell off, or from, a vehicle.
They now hope the picture - the last known sighting of Stuart before he was found on the roadside at Steeton - will help jog the memories of people who may have seen him during the early hours of Saturday morning. It shows him leaving the nightclub before crossing Worth Way-East Parade and going towards Hanover Street.
Half an hour later, a passing taxi driver found him seriously injured by Aireburn Garage in Skipton Road, Steeton, about half a mile from his Thornhill Road home.
Today the taxi driver, Craig Brierley, who was driving a dark green Ford Mondeo, spoke about how he discovered Stuart.
Craig, 26, a part-time driver with North Street-based Keighley Taxis, said: "He was lying about two feet into the road, just past the Aireburn Garage. I rang Keighley police and told them I thought he was drunk and needed to be moved because he was in a dangerous position."
He said he then got out of his car and realised the situation was more serious when he saw blood coming out of Stuart's ear.
He called for an ambulance and stayed with Stuart until the police and an ambulance arrived a few minutes later.
"I checked his pulse and he was still breathing. But he was unconscious," added Craig. "Other than the bleeding from his ear, he did not appear to have any injuries."
A police spokesman said they were releasing the CCTV picture as part of a renewed appeal for information about exactly how, when and from where Stuart left the town to return home.
Inspector Mick Hopwood added: "Did he get a lift, did he get a taxi, or did he walk? We would like to hear from anyone who was with or who may have seen Stuart, particularly between the time he left Oscar's and being found in Steeton."
Anyone with any information about Stuart's movements after leaving the nightclub or the incident itself, should call Keighley police on 01535 617059.
T&A, 13/5/99
A new initiative will be launched next month in a bid to reduce crime and the fear of crime in town and city centres across the Bradford district.
The scheme, which aims to make the district a safer place in which to live, shop and work, forms part of the Crime and Disorder Reduction Strategy.
A co-ordinating group involving representatives from more than a dozen partnership agencies such as the police, Council and Chamber of Commerce, will be up and running within the next fortnight.
And an action plan focusing specifically on Keighley, Bingley, Shipley and Ilkley town centres, as well as Bradford city centre, is expected to be in place by the end of the year.
Reducing the fear of crime is a key target of the three-year strategy. In the recent Crime and Disorder Audit 36 per cent of people questioned said they chose to avoid town and city centres in the district after dark.
But Sandy Needham, director of the Bradford & District Chamber of Commerce, who is also part of the co-ordinating group, says public perception is often a long way from the truth.
She said: "It is important that we continue with the café culture of opening more businesses in the evening. When people actually visit these areas they find that there is a lot on offer, and a lot to enjoy.
"Businesses can play an important part in helping to reduce this fear, particularly among the elderly, by sharing good practice and promoting the good work already being done."
She said businesses welcomed the opportunity to join forces with other partnership agencies such as the police and Council, and come up with specific solutions to the problem.
"It might be that we need extra CCTV and other security measures, or restricted access to certain areas at night. But we can only solve the problem by sharing information."
T&A Opinion, 13/5/99
The relationship between the perception of crime and the reality is difficult to assess. Is the level of crime really as bad as many people believe it to be? Or is life far less threatening and lawless than is generally assumed?
If the latter is the case, then are people staying away from the centres of Bradford and its surrounding towns unnecessarily, particularly in an evening, consequently undermining their commercial viability? A new co-ordinating group set up in the district believes that may well be the case and is to launch an initiative to counter what it considers to be a mistaken impression.
It is a move to be welcomed if it is able to clearly demonstrate that things are not as bad as many people believe them to be. Crimes do take place in Bradford and district, as they do anywhere. It is the job of the newspapers and other media to report them. Admittedly, this might increase some people's fears - just as the excellent BBC1 Crimewatch series, which has had some spectacular success in helping to solve crimes, has been accused of fuelling public anxiety.
The measures likely to be discussed by members of the co-ordinating group are said to include the need for extra CCTV cameras, and closer co-operation between the police, the Council and businesses. These are sensible proposals which suggest that this new partnership is set to do more than merely change the way people feel about the amount of crime. The welcome aim appears to be to make real inroads into the level of crime, too.
T&A, 17/5/99
Police chiefs will meet safety experts and representatives from Bradford City within the next fortnight to discuss plans for dealing with Premier League crowds.
High-profile fixtures against teams like Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool should lead to a succession of capacity attendances at Valley Parade.
And a derby against local rivals Leeds United will be just one of a number of home games testing the policing and security inside and outside the ground.
The officer responsible for policing matches at Valley Parade, Chief Inspector Ray Shepherd said: "The major difference will be bigger crowds and, because of television, it's unlikely all the matches will be on a Saturday afternoon.
"Although we've had no real football-related disturbances in the city centre this year, and very few outside the stadium, we may have to look at increasing the number of officers in the city centre.
"We want to make sure that the thousands of other people who are not involved in football can go about their business on match days without any fear."
Mr Shepherd said the club will, and always had, acted "extremely responsibly in terms of the way matches are policed".
Bradford City safety officer, Roger Holmes said that security at Valley Parade was already at Premiership standard.
"There'll be some minor tinkering - perhaps in the way stewards look after the players and referee at half time and the end of the game, but there's no need for wholesale change."
The are 28 CCTV cameras operating inside and outside Valley Parade, and well over 200 stewards monitoring the ground and car parks.
T&A, 18/5/99
Retailers are calling for beggars and litter to be removed from the city's streets.
They are telling Bradford Council that street cleaning is not acceptable and the beggars intimidate the public, putting them off revisiting the city centre.
Chairman of Bradford Retail Action Group Jeff Frankel said: "We want action to remove vagrants because it's a very bad image. The effect could possibly put people off in the area where they congregate.
"The litter situation has improved recently but there is still a lot to be done."
Traders also want the city's obsolete CCTV cameras replacing as a priority to bring back public safety and confidence.
The call follows an outcry after daily paper columnist Lynda Lee-Potter described Bradford as a "vile" litter-strewn place.
The businesses say it is also essential that the proposed pioneering Asian shopping complex - expected to draw shoppers from the entire North of England - should be sited in the city centre.
The call for wide-ranging measures to revitalise the city centre comes in the response from Bradford Retail Action to the district's Community Plan.
Bradford Council was one of the first authorities in Britain to bring in a plan after consulting thousands of people more than two years ago.
The shopkeepers are also calling for Council funding to improve roads around developments such as the planned new Rawson Market and proposed major shopping mall in Broadway. And they stress more parking places should be provided to enable them to compete with out-of-town and other shopping centres in the region.
Mr Frankel said they hoped all the schemes, including Vicar Lane, Broadway and Odsal Stadium, would come to fruition.
"We understand the local authority are doing all they can, but we are always dependent on other people," he added.
Chairman of the Council's regeneration committee Councillor Dave Green said they had already taken on board many of the points made by BRAG and were looking at similar priorities.
He said the CCTV system was improved, whenever possible. "We are also looking to ensure there is investment coming into the centre, rather than out of town."
He said public transport was being examined and a pilot scheme was being adopted to improve routes into the city.
Chairman of the Council's community safety sub-committee, Councillor John Ruding, said astudy of city-centre CCTV had shown a 20-camera system was needed. A £150 million Home Office pot was likely to be announced at the end of this month to fund security systems.
T&A Opinion, 18/5/99
A few weeks ago civic leaders sprang to Bradford's defence after national newspaper columnist Lynda Lee-Potter visited the city and complained bitterly about the amount of litter on the streets. They were right to challenge her savaging of Bradford as a "vile and nasty" place. We do not need that sort of publicity on the national stage.
However, citizens of Bradford are well enough aware of the truth, which is that while our city has much to commend it, it does have its unpleasant side - notably that the centre and, to a greater degree, some of the major routes into it often look filthy and litter-strewn.
The Council has made efforts to improve the situation, and the "Bin It" campaign backed by the T&A last year is an example of what can be achieved. But there needs to be a far greater effort on a larger scale if Bradford is to rid itself of the unsightly mess which depresses residents every day as well as affronting visitors.
So it is right that Bradford Retail Action Group (BRAG), in its response to the district's Community Plan, has highlighted litter as one of the key issues to be tackled. It also identifies many other areas for improvement, including discouraging beggars and replacing the outdated CCTV system.
But there is no doubt that tidying up the rubbish which sprawls beneath our feet, while at the same time trying, yet again, to persuade the people of Bradford not to drop it, would be an excellent way to start to make a visit to the city centre a more pleasant experience.
T&A 29/6/99
Plans are being drawn up for a state-of-the-art closed circuit television system covering potential city centre hot spots.
Members of a crime fighting partnership are putting together proposals for the hi-tech network after being invited to bid for Home Office funding. The Government is making £170m available .
A successful bid would pay for the installation of up to 22 camera points focusing on the city centre, and a central control room in Bradford monitoring surveillance points across the district.
There are already CCTV schemes in Shipley, Bingley and Keighley town centres - monitored from two control rooms in Keighley and Bradford.
The existing CCTV network in Bradford is mainly focused on Council car parks, subways and Centenary Square, but Coun John Ruding, chairman of the community safety sub-committee said the system is in urgent need of modernisation.
"We have been aware for some time that the CCTV system in Bradford needs upgrading. The latest technology is miles ahead of anything we have," he said.
"There has been a huge investment in city centre nightlife. We need to make sure it is a safer place in which to work and play."
A survey carried out by Vodafone last year pinpointed areas of the city centre which would benefit from cameras. Possible sites for the new cameras include Rawson and John Street markets, Jacobs Well, St George's Hall and Manor Row. Since then another two possible camera locations by the Alhambra Theatre have been added to the map to take account of five new pub developments in the area.
Members of the district's Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership (CDRP) will meet tomorrow to discuss an outline bid for the scheme. Sharmila Ghandi, fear of crime action officer for the CDRP, said: "We know from the recent Crime and Disorder Audit that members of the public regarded CCTV as one measure which could be taken to tackle crime and address the fear of crime.
"We are hopeful of putting together a successful bid. Such a scheme would be fantastic for everyone who lives, works in and visits the city centre."
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