Doorstep Crime Awareness Week 14 – 18 October

City of York Council is raising awareness of doorstep crime ahead of Doorstop Crime Awareness Week between 14 and 18 October.

The authority is working in partnership with colleagues from across the Yorkshire and Humber region as well as trading standards to provide advice to residents during the week.

The council is reaching out to provide a range of support and advice during the week to help those who are most targeted. Criminals are known to target the elderly and vulnerable by unsolicited door knocks or putting leaflets through their doors.

The following support will be provided during the week:

Meet us for advice at a city centre bus stop:

Trading standards officers will be based at city centre bus stops throughout the week, including outside the Theatre Royal on St Leonard’s Place (Tuesday and Friday) or Stonebow (Monday, Wed and Friday), to provide face-to-face advice between 9am and 10.30am.

Drop your leaflets into one of our collection boxes:

We know criminals use leaflets to pose as legitimate traders. Some of the bogus claims to lure vulnerable or unsuspecting residents into agreeing to unnecessary discounts are often promoted as ‘OAP discounts, ‘established family businesses and ‘skilled tradesman’.

With the worst offenders repeatedly targeting their victims time and again.

Residents are encouraged to drop off any leaflets they think fall into this category for our trading standards teams to review. Drop off points are provided at the following locations, or email them to trading.standards@york.gov.uk

  • City of York Council’s West Offices
  • Age UK on Bishopthorpe Road, Burton Stone Lane and Fourth Avenue in Tang Hall
  • Bell Farm Social Hall, Roche Avenue
  • Foxwood Community Centre
  • Sainsbury’s, Monks Cross
  • Costcutter, Wheldrake
  • Burnholme Community Hub, Baf Bargain Lane, Heworth
  • The Old Butcher’s Coffee Shop, Dunnington
  • St Hilda’s Parish Church, Tang Hall Lane
  • The Folk Hall, Hawthorne Terrace, New Earswick
  • Fulford Library, Heslington Lane

FACTS: Know your rights:

  • If you agree to have work done (that is over £42), whilst the trader is in your home (whether they are invited or they call around uninvited) the trader is usually required to provide you with certain information regarding the contract such as a description of the work, the price and their contact details.
  • In general you should also be given information regarding a 14 day cooling off period to allow you to decide if you wish to go ahead with the work.
  • If the trader starts the work within this 14 day period, your right to cancel does not disappear however you may be required to pay for any work done up to the date of cancellation.
  • There are a number of exceptions to the above – including certain types of bespoke work. If you would like specific advice please contact the Citizen’s Advice Consumer Helpline on 03454 04 05 06 for more information.
  • Trading Standards would always recommend that residents do not deal on the doorstep and be wary of anyone rushing them to make a decision – genuine traders will not mind if you do not make a decision straightaway.
  • Residents should get three written quotes which include a breakdown of costs. A list of trading standards vetted traders can be found at: www.ageuk.org.uk/york/our-services/home-services-directory/

Cllr Andrew Waller, Executive Member for Economy and Strategic Planning, said: “Trading Standards Officers regularly receive reports of people cold calling residents to sell goods and services. In some cases we know residents have felt pressurised into parting with vast sums of money for unnecessary and poor quality products.

“We know that crimes of this nature are under-reported, and so we urge anyone with concerns or information to get in touch by contacting the Citizens Advice Consumer helpline on 03454 040506.”

Local dog owner to pay £3,200 for not complying with dog control notices

A dog owner who failed to microchip, control and prevent dogs from straying, was given a total of £3k to pay by York Magistrates on Tuesday 10 October 2019.

Alaskan Malamute

Lloyd Hunter (aged 37 of Boroughbridge Road, York) was convicted in his absence to offences of failing to correctly microchip two Alaskan Malamutes, transferring a third Alaskan Malamute to another person with an incorrect microchip, and failure to comply with a community protection notice on two occasions.

Between July and October 2018, the dogs were regularly reported to City of York Council after straying onto neighbouring properties, including a children’s nursery. The council also discovered the dogs had incorrectly registered microchips.

Mr Hunter was issued multiple notices in October 2018 that required him to register the animals correctly with a relevant database operator, as well as a warning to keep his dogs under control.

Following further complaints in November 2018, Mr Hunter was issued with a Community Protection Notice requiring him to secure his property and ensure that his dogs were kept under proper control.

On 1 January 2019, a stray Alaskan Malamute that Mr Hunter had reportedly sold to a friend, was found to be still registered to the original owner, who Mr Hunter had purchased the dog from a few years earlier.

Another dog in Mr Hunter’s possession was also found straying by a local resident and returned on 12 June 2019, after the dog escaped and ran across the A1237.

The previous month, on 31 May 2019, Mr Hunter was walking three Alaskan Malamutes in Millennium Gardens, Nether Poppleton, when the dogs ran out of sight and attacked a Cockapoo. The dogs were off the lead and left the Cockapoo with injuries requiring over one week of veterinary treatment.

In interview during the investigation, Mr Hunter said that he was unaware of any injuries to the Cockapoo at the time of the incident, and also bought a stronger lead to prevent further escapes from his property. He also stated that he mistakenly registered his dogs through a discounted database, which is not recognised by local authorities.

Mr Hunter was convicted in his absence having failed to attend court. He was ordered to pay fines of £1,790, costs of £1,334.28 and a victim surcharge of £66.

Cllr Denise Craghill, Executive Member for Housing and Safer Neighbourhoods, said: “Responsible dog owners ensure that their animals are kept under control when out in public and properly secured when at home.”

“Since the law changed in 2015 all dogs must not only have identification tags, but they must also be microchipped with all details recorded on a relevant database operator. A list of these database operators can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/get-your-dog-microchipped.”

Decision session considers ‘uplift’ to foster carers’ fees

City of York Council’s Executive Member for Children, Young People and Education will consider plans to provide an increase to York foster carers’ fees at a decision session next week (15 October).

Cllr Ian Cuthbertson will review recommendations made in an independent report into the council’s foster carers’ fee increase, which was commissioned following a decision to cease the uplift in January 2019.

The foster carers’ uplift had been annually linked to any rise in social workers’ salary, but this was ceased so that the funding could be used to provide an enhanced training and support package for foster carers.

The independent report was commissioned following feedback from York Area Foster Carer Association (YAFCA).

The executive member will be asked to consider a number of recommendations in the report, including implementing the fee uplift for foster carers on level one and two of the grading structure in 2019/20, holding an annual conference for foster carers, and also setting out a clear framework for future consultation and communication on decisions relating to the carers.

The decision session takes place on Tuesday 15 October at West Offices from 4pm and is open to members of the public or is available to watch later online from: www.york.gov.uk/webcasts

To find out more about the report, or to attend, visit:

Cllr Ian Cuthbertson, Executive Member for Children, Young people and Education, City of York Council, said: “Foster carers are an essential part of our support for some of York’s most vulnerable children and young people.

“We recognise the important contribution that foster carers make to our city and we are committed to working in partnership with them.”

National Adoption Week (14-20 October) is the ideal time to find out if you can adopt

There are currently 69 children across North Yorkshire and the Humber who are waiting for permanent, loving homes due to a shortage of people coming forward to adopt.

Unfortunately many potential adopters rule themselves out, due to myths and outdated beliefs about who can adopt and the qualities they need. During this year’s National Adoption Week, which takes place from 14-20 October, One Adoption North and Humber is urging all potential adopters to come to an information event or contact the agency to find out how they can create a forever family.

In addition to a series of information events across the region, One Adoption is hosting a live online question and answer session via social media on 14 October from 8-9pm. The Q&A, which will be hosted on the agency’s Facebook page www.facebook.com/oneadoption, will enable people who are thinking of adopting to get up-to-date and correct information about who can adopt, the adoption process and anything else they are curious about from adoption professionals.

Suzie Grove, head of One Adoption North and Humber (the regional adoption agency) said:

“We would love to hear from anyone interested in learning more about adoption. We need all kinds of different families to meet the varied needs of children across our region and particularly need adoptive parents for sibling groups of all sizes.

“People often assume that you have to be a certain type of person to adopt, but this isn’t the case. We want people who are committed to having a positive impact on a child’s life, and are devoted to providing them with a secure and loving home.”

The regional adoption agency for North Yorkshire and the Humber is also keen to ‘bust’ the myths which often put people off from taking the first step into adoption.

Suzie added:

“Our team has lots of experience helping people create a family and are always on hand to answer your questions. For instance, you don’t have to be married to adopt, we have some excellent single adopters, and we have approved lots of adopters from the LGBTQ+ community. People of any race or religion are welcome to apply as are people who have a disability or are an older parent. The only criteria is that you must be 21 years or older, have space in your home and a willingness to provide a safe and loving home for a child.

“We are so grateful for the wonderful adopters who have chosen to adopt with us but we always need more people to take that first step towards becoming a parent.”

People who are concerned that they may not get the support they need once they adopt can also be reassured. One Adoption parents are supported throughout the whole process by highly experienced, dedicated adoption support teams. There is a comprehensive programme of pre- and post-adoption training and support – from stay and play sessions to more in-depth workshops and a new peer mentoring scheme.

During National Adoption Week One Adoption North and Humber is holding a series of drop-in information events to help more people find out about the adoption process and the needs of children who are waiting to be adopted. These are:

  • Hull – Wednesday 16 October, 17:30 (The Guildhall, HU1 2AA)
  • – Wednesday 16 October, 11:00-13:00 (80 High Street, Starbeck HG2 7LW)
  • – Thursday 17 October, 13:00-15:00 (North Yorkshire House, Scalby Road YO12 6EE)
  • York – Saturday 19 October 09:30-11:00 (West Offices, YO1 6GA)

These are in addition to the regular adoption information events held across the North Yorkshire and Humber region.

People who are interested in finding out more about adoption are advised to call 0345 305 2576 and talk to one of the friendly teams in each area or visit www.oneadoption.co.uk.

Cllr Ian Cuthbertson, Executive Member for Children, Young People and Education, City of York Council, said: “City of York Council is the host authority for One Adoption North and Humber, so I am really proud of the work we are doing together to speed up the adoption process for our children and help find the right adoptive parents for them more quickly. Our regional adoption agency is playing a vital role in improving the outcomes for some of the most vulnerable children in our care.”

Speed limits and accident levels in York

The media are today reporting a move to extend the use of 20 mph speed limits in the City. In reality most residential roads already have such a limit. Some, including the 20 mph limit in The Groves part of the Guildhall ward, were introduced about 20 years ago.  

Most were introduced 5 years ago at a cost of £600,000. Their supporters claimed that this would result in a reduction in accident levels.

In reality the numbers killed or seriously injured on our roads has remained stable at about 60 per year.

Most of the accidents occur outside residential areas with many on roads with 60 or 70m mph limits. A lot of information is shared on the Councils “open data” pages. This includes the background to each accident and details the type of vehicles involved, driver characteristics etc.

Paradoxically, average speeds on some roads actually increased after 20 mph limits were introduced. The road covered by 20 mph limits can be downloaded from the Councils web site click

So should we be worried about accident levels in the City?

One of the disappointments of recent years has been the lack of attention given by Executive Councillors to road safety strategy. Too often reports have been tabled along with other issues which have restricted the time given to analysing trends.

 The York Councils famously limp “scrutiny” process barely touches on the subject of road safety.

Unless local leaders engage more positively in addressing issues then we can expect 60 people to be seriously injured on our roads each year for the foreseeable future.

….and changes to speed limits? Technology change means that it will be possible to automatically govern vehicle speeds shortly.  This would allow speed limits to be varied to meet prevailing road conditions.

If speed is an issue in causing accidents (it isn’t in most cases) then technology might provide a new solution.