SteelShoe

I've generally found him helpful . Always answered emails and came back with findings from raised issues.

Believe his phone was unavailable last night. The land is being pushed for development under the Workington Town Deal and is included in a Council prospectus . Recently Contractor Thomas Armstrong fenced a portion of said land off which is currently being remediated . I didn't understand why they didn't fence up to the boundary shown in the prospectus . If they had the travellers may not have found it so attractive.

yeah about sums it up. Let us see what happens today. I have spoken with the Police as a concerned fan and reminded them of their powers, the distress it is causing, the fact that there is a meeting on today and the disregard travellers often show for local communities to save them a few bob paying to stay on registered traveller sites.

The fixture is on .

I would encourage any Worky fans reading this to pick up the phone or use email or social media to express your dispsleasure at the situation and demand some action. Police Station ; Police Chief and Crime Commissioner David Allen; Mark Fryer Cumberland Council Leader and or senior Council Figures; Josh MacAlister MP to name a few.

If the police fail to respond to blatant criminal damage and unauthorized access, landowners and residents must pivot from relying on immediate police intervention to triggering formal council and civil legal processes. 1. Trigger the Council's Legal Eviction Duty Local authorities have their own distinct statutory powers to remove unauthorized encampments without relying on a police arrest. Section 77 Directions: Under the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994, the council can serve a formal direction ordering the individuals to leave the land immediately. Section 78 Court Orders: If the group ignores the Section 77 notice, the council can apply to the local Magistrates' Court the following day for an eviction order. Once granted, council-appointed bailiffs can physically clear the land, towing away vehicles if necessary. Common Law Powers: Councils can use common law powers (under the principle of tortious eviction) to hire private certificated bailiffs to clear the site within 24–48 hours, bypassing the court system entirely if it is deemed safe to do so. 2. Force Police Accountability If the police are refusing to act on a clear, ongoing crime (like criminal damage or the Section 60C offence of illegal encampment with damage), you can escalate the matter to force their involvement. Report via 999: If the damage is happening right now, it is a crime in progress. Demand a log number. Escalate to the Duty Inspector: If standard officers refuse to attend, call 101 and ask to speak to the local Area Duty Inspector. Inform them that a criminal offense under Section 60C of the CJPOA is actively being committed and public property is being destroyed. Contact the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC): The PCC is an elected official whose job is to hold the local police force accountable. Emailing them with photographic evidence of police inaction usually forces a rapid review by senior management. 3. Record Evidence Safely The primary reason police cite for not arresting individuals for smashing padlocks is a "lack of identifying evidence." Use CCTV and Dashcams: Do not confront the individuals directly, as this can escalate to violence. Instead, gather clear footage of the specific individuals using tools to break locks, alongside vehicle registration plates. Pass Evidence to the Council: This evidence allows the council to secure an expedited emergency injunction from a county court, which can include an expedited power of arrest attached to that specific plot of land. 4. Utilize Existing Injunctions Many councils have proactive, borough-wide "persons unknown" injunctions protecting their most vulnerable green spaces. If such an injunction is already in place for that specific piece of land, the council can bypass the standard 24–48 hour notice period and instruct high court enforcement officers to clear the site immediately. Are you looking to find out which department at your local council handles unauthorized encampments, or do you need a template to lodge a formal complaint with your local Police and Crime Commissioner? AI

In the UK, smashing padlocks on council land is a criminal act of criminal damage. The police have the power to arrest individuals without a warrant under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) if they have reasonable grounds to suspect an offence has been committed and an arrest is necessary. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5] Police Powers and Actions The specific powers to arrest, evict, and seize depend on how the situation unfolds: Arrest for Criminal Damage: Anyone who willfully or recklessly damages property (such as cutting chains or smashing padlocks) can be arrested for criminal damage. [1, 2, 3, 4] Powers of Eviction (CJPOA 1994): Under Sections 61 and 62A of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act, police have discretionary powers to direct trespassers to leave land and remove their vehicles. They can only use these eviction powers if the group has six or more vehicles on site, or if the trespassers have caused damage to the land or used threatening/abusive behaviour. [1, 2, 3] New Criminal Offence: Under amendments made by the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022, residing on land without consent in or with a vehicle is a criminal offence. Police can arrest or direct individuals to leave if they are causing significant damage, disruption, or distress. [1, 2] Vehicle Seizure: If trespassers fail to comply with a police direction to leave, or if they return to the land within 12 months, the police have powers under Sections 62 and 62C of the CJPOA to seize and impound their vehicles. [] The Role of the Council While the police handle criminal offences like property damage, the local council is the lead agency for dealing with unauthorised encampments on its own land. Because trespass itself is generally a civil matter, councils are typically required to carry out welfare assessments and obtain court orders (such as an injunction or County Court possession order) to formally evict the group, unless the situation escalates to the point where police choose to use their powers. The police do have powers to remove , arrest and impound but they consistently allow these people to criminally gain access to land with impunity, this is why they do it, they know the police are soft on them and would rather turn a blind eye. I feel for Andrew who has invested the last decade of his life turning this into something to be proud of .

Never seen that coming in heat 14, well done the Scorps. Tough meeting for Worky tomorrow the Scorps will be full of confidence for sure.

Is his average too high ?

Unfortunately Craig has been missing meetings for his clubs for some years now. I remember it happening when he rode for Laura's Comets in 2017. His talent is undisputed.

Scunny just lost the unfortunate Dan Gilkes to injury. Plenty of strong reserves to choose from. Scunny been weak in that department tonight so it could well strengthen them.

I thought the slightly extended water/ grading break massively helped the track and quality of racing . Shame they never watered again.

Nice of the BSPL to run this on the same weekend Worky are staging FIM 125 youth meetings.

I believe Workington applied to stage both.

Well done you. If you ever need a lift to the train station i'm sure plenty of people would offer. I'm in the priveliged position of being in walking distance and usually do.

in these two very close meetings especially the Workington v Plymouth meeting I think there are grounds for his overall performance to be reviewed re adherence to the rules and judgement.

Absolutely he should have. He made even bigger mares reffing the Worky v Plymouth meeting, All his decisions penalised Worky , the ones against Plymouth without doubt cost the Comets the two points.

Close meeting throughout with never more than 6 points between the teams . Comets managed to take it to a last heat decider. I was hopeful going into heat 15 only 2 behind with Cookie and Jonas coming out that we could get something from the meeting. Unfortunately we missed the gate in the rerun and with Flint and Howarth on the outside line we were never able to challenge. Well done the Tigers. There were some positives notably Cookie showed that he still has great bike control. The pass on Bomber coming off turn 2 in heat 10 was top drawer. Young Max done great in winning the duals with Sam Hagon subsequent to heat 2. Tate gave a strong performance, it was good to see his confidence continue to return and the fact that he wasn't phased going out into the dirt. For the second week running I find myself critical of ref Graeme Hunter. Heat 5 the tapes appeared to rise faster on the infield side, Flint shot away and we were expecting the red lights as we thought it was an unsatisfactory start, they never came.

Most if not all UK sports run a squad system so have replacements of similar ability. UK Speedway does not. Having to use weaker guests because of the paucity of suitable replacements inadvertently penalises a team as a consequence of injury. Having a reserve rider Simon Lambert in this case sitting at home when he more equally matches the injured rider (Vinnie) in terms of ability simply because he has an higher average biased by his home performances doesn't sit right. I'm not advocating making teams stronger through injury just prevention of making them notably weaker over longer periods. Shrewd selection of in form guests and the ability and willingness of clubs to pay said rider demands often allows teams to be stronger because of injury now. Finding suitably able replacements working within the current average limitations at reserve appears to not be easy. Certain clubs have been able to fit riders in based on averages fitting. Grmek at Plymouth comes to mind following the injury to Tobias Thomsen. I think it highly unlikely you will get a non GB Rider to take a guest booking at reserve especially bearing in mind how much that could cost.

Agree the system isn't fit for purpose. When teams are inadvertently penalised simply because a rider is unfortunate enough to get injured really isn't in the best interests of the sport. There is scope to increase the the headroom on averages certainly for reserve replacements especially when the number of suitably competitive replacements is so limited in British Speedway at the moment.

Yeah I was a bit surprised at the gate price increase tonight when we rolled up.

I thought that was Batch's poorest performance of the season to date.

the referee was the same one who made the errors against us against Plymouth. I had a bad feeling as soon as they announced his name and it proved correct, should have been an unsatisfactory start, couldn't believe it when he let it go.

Worky have struggled persistently to get guests at No 6 who have scored what Vinnie Foord probably would have. We had to use Mickie Simpson again tonight against Glasgow for the second meeting running and predictably he failed to score. At the moment Mickie is not Championship level. Simon Lambert's average (4.78) is more representative of Vinnie's (3.89) and the points he may well have scored but because it is higher we couldn't use him. The zero points that we registered from No 6 tonight bearing in mind Vinnie scored 7 in the corresponding fixture last season contributed to us getting narrowly beaten for the second meeting in succession.

Tigers probably got this at reserve, Vinny scored around 7 last season and went well. Haven't managed to adequately replace the points he is capable of especially at home. Another tough competetive meeting for the Comets. Need everyone contributing in the top 5. Track should hold no fears for Max but will his equipment be fast enough, he was certainly underpowered on his home debut. Hopefully we have no mechanical failures this weekend can't afford to gift points to the Tigers if we are to keep it close. UTC ! Like Glasgow Comets only have 7 home fixtures left and season only started ☹️