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Clifton 'dispersal zone' anger

9:40am Friday 13th March 2009 in


POLICE could order people to stay away from a large part of York, under new plans to combat antisocial behaviour.

Officers want to set up a “dispersal zone” in Clifton, which would give them new powers to tackle disorder.

They would be able to disperse groups of people and also ban those from outside the area for 24 hours.

PC Stuart Hodge, of the Clifton policing team, has written to residents calling for support for the plan, but local councillor David Scott today voiced concern and called for the idea to be debated at a public meeting.

He said: “Clifton should not be used as an experiment for over the top and heavy-handed policing methods.”

The proposed dispersal zone would be bounded by the railway and the A19 Clifton-Bootham road, and would include Burton Stone Lane, Kingsway North, Crichton Avenue, Burdyke Avenue and neighbouring streets.

PC Hodge said the area was based on residents’ complaints about antisocial behaviour.

He wrote: “Antisocial behaviour has been an issue for those living and working in parts of Clifton for some time. As part of my work as the neighbourhood police officer for Clifton, I have been striving to deal with this in a number of ways.”

Letters were sent to residents in February, but Coun Scott said he and his colleagues were only informed last week.

He said: “There are significant issues of freedom and liberty and no such application should be made in secret or by consulting just a selected few. North Yorkshire Police has a duty to hold public meetings to explain their intentions.

“I have so far not be given any evidence to support the need for the order, why the area has to be so large and why normal policing has failed. As a minimum, those questions need to be answered.”

He said he had also received complaints about the idea from residents, and said he had written to the commander for York and the Chief Constable of North Yorkshire, asking for an explanation.

A police spokesman said: “Around 1,700 letters will be sent to the households affected in Clifton ward as part of the dispersal order consultation process, which is still in its very early stages. If a public meeting is desired following consultation then one can easily be arranged.”

He said a dispersal zone would only be set up if supported locally, and said such orders had been successfully introduced in York before, including in Clifton.

Comments(27)

GemGemGem says...
9:49am Fri 13 Mar 09

I support the idea of a dispersal zone. Well done PC Hodge for addressing the issues! I dont think police should even NEED residents permission to enforce such an idea!

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York427 says...
9:50am Fri 13 Mar 09

Councillor David Scott whilst the council have its debate/consultation perhaps you would like to live in the area mentioned and suffer/see the reason this is needed. I suspect there will be little opposition to this idea and I guess the opposition will come from those that would be dispersed for causing antisocial behaviour and discomfort to the vast majority of people in the area.

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Guy Fawkes says...
10:23am Fri 13 Mar 09

Officers want to set up a “dispersal zone” in Clifton...


...with a pneumatic drill and a 15" water main?

That's kept me out of Clifton for the last few days!

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warringtonyorkie says...
10:29am Fri 13 Mar 09

Too bloody right, Clifton has been going downhill for years and the sooner they sort out the problematic people and help it get back to something like it was in the late 80's early 90's the better. Too many Scum unemployed people only bothered about their next dole payment for my liking!!

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tonezzzznoddedoff says...
10:31am Fri 13 Mar 09

Great idea, nice to see the police trying to do something constructive in that area, hope it works and dosent just disperse the problem to somewhere else.(apart from the river perhaps- food for thought).

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GemGemGem says...
10:41am Fri 13 Mar 09

Guy Fawkes wrote:
Officers want to set up a “dispersal zone” in Clifton...
...with a pneumatic drill and a 15" water main? That's kept me out of Clifton for the last few days!
LOL - very true. I live in Clifton and you are right in saying that there are quite a few people on the dole, lazy etc; however, there are a few of us who work and have family values and dont need benefits. I feel there are many many people in my area who would support this as they want the area to get better. Just hope we wont all be tarred with the same brush. Believe it or not,the area is actually a great place to live - the only downfall being the youths hanging around on the night times swearing and littering. I really like Clifton but would love the police to come along and say "GET LOST" to the groups!

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goosebumps says...
10:48am Fri 13 Mar 09

Councillor Scott How would you know what the people of Clifton want? you do not live here.We have already experienced the benifits of a dispersal order and the only objections I would think would be from those responsible of causing the antisocial behaviour & to ask the good people of Clifton to stand up in public & be identified & left open to more abuse is stupid

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ThisIsOli says...
10:51am Fri 13 Mar 09

Way to move the problem somewhere else.

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GemGemGem says...
10:53am Fri 13 Mar 09

Well said Goosebumps!!

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warringtonyorkie says...
10:57am Fri 13 Mar 09

GemGemGem wrote:
Guy Fawkes wrote:
Officers want to set up a “dispersal zone” in Clifton...
...with a pneumatic drill and a 15" water main? That's kept me out of Clifton for the last few days!
LOL - very true. I live in Clifton and you are right in saying that there are quite a few people on the dole, lazy etc; however, there are a few of us who work and have family values and dont need benefits. I feel there are many many people in my area who would support this as they want the area to get better. Just hope we wont all be tarred with the same brush. Believe it or not,the area is actually a great place to live - the only downfall being the youths hanging around on the night times swearing and littering. I really like Clifton but would love the police to come along and say "GET LOST" to the groups!
Couldn't agree more with what you are saying, a lot of the people are decent & hard working but the lack of action makes it a million times worse for those people, the anti social behaviour just get's worse and worse and ruins it for those who try to just get on with their lives. Something serious needs to be done to nip this in the budd and quick sharp!

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sun seeker's says...
11:18am Fri 13 Mar 09

There is never going to be a straight forward solution that will suit everybody. If there was, it would have been done by now. I think we can all agree on that?

The groung work for "good" respectful behaviour begins at home. Yes its the old one, PARENTAL RESPONSIBILITY!

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York1900 says...
11:34am Fri 13 Mar 09

Clifton 'dispersal zone' is the best thing the police have come up

When it was used in new earswick it worked well and it cleaned up the problem youth within weeks

The Police should have them all over York were youths gather for doing no good




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GemGemGem says...
12:21pm Fri 13 Mar 09

Yep, fully agree with everyone. I think police should have the right to disperse any groups any where. Dont think they should need everyone to agree to it first. More paperwork for the police!! And yes, where are the parents whilst children running around causing chaos!

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Platform 9 says...
12:37pm Fri 13 Mar 09

I'm living in the proposed zone and think it's a good idea - whilst they're at it they can do something about the food and litter the school kids drop on their way from Crichton Avenue shops back to Canon Lee (maybe they can actually get them in to school as well?). Clifton "Backies" is becoming a playground for smackheads and teens riding stolen motorbikes - every morning there's another one left burnt out on the nature reserve

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MattRSJ says...
4:13pm Fri 13 Mar 09

Waste of time. Police are too warm in their vans to get to the root of the problem.

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madness31 says...
5:26pm Fri 13 Mar 09

MattRSJ, York says...
4:13pm Fri 13 Mar 09
Waste of time. Police are too warm in their vans to get to the root of the problem.
Not all - there is a very frequent service of PCSO's passing my home and they are all on foot.
As for coucillor Scott perhaps if you lived in Clifton you may have been consulted - after all thats who it concerns, not the councillors. I personally am all for the order and had my form in the return post! Just hope it gets passed the narrow minded of this world.

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consumer says...
5:49pm Fri 13 Mar 09

I say hang them, flog them, throw away the key and make them do national service while they're at it.
That'll teach them some respect.

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monkey trousers says...
6:01pm Fri 13 Mar 09

i dont live in the area but do have to go into clifton a lot. I always see groups of youths drinking and acting like idiots outside that so called cafe. They act like animals and i know there are some good people who live in clifton but its the scum around there who drag the place down for everyone else. As soon as anyone tries to talk to these "chavs" they instantly become abusive and aggressive. I welcome PC hodge's idea and im sure that councillor scott will see it is a good idea. I bet they wouldnt go deal with these louts would they

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monkey trousers says...
6:04pm Fri 13 Mar 09

MattRSJ, York says...
4:13pm Fri 13 Mar 09
Waste of time. Police are too warm in their vans to get to the root of the problem.Waste of time. Police are too warm in their vans to get to the root of the problem.



by the way i saw PC HODGE walking around CLIFTON today notin a van keeping warm

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LOYALISTROYALIST says...
8:46pm Fri 13 Mar 09

So long as they dont dispere any m ore of them to Foxwood, i'm all for ti.

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uglyboy says...
9:57pm Fri 13 Mar 09

Years ago the police could move you on, and did so - you had no option.
What happened to this law? lost in transit presumably.
Also parents were much stricter, if you were in trouble at school or anywhere for that matter, by the time you got home your parents already knew.
Punishment followed, it did us no harm and taught us to respect ourselves and others.

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A taxpayer says...
10:20pm Fri 13 Mar 09

Thanks why does the rest of York want the Clifton outcasts? All this does is move the problem to someone else's area. What happens when the whole city is a zone, do the offenders get sent to Hull?

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offa says...
10:32am Sat 14 Mar 09

I totally support the dispersion order. On the whole, the problem won't be shifted. The troublemakers will probably go home or to friends, houses.
I'm all for liberty, David Scott, but I want the liberty to enjoy my environment without hassle.

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GemGemGem says...
11:00am Sat 14 Mar 09

A taxpayer wrote:
Thanks why does the rest of York want the Clifton outcasts? All this does is move the problem to someone else's area. What happens when the whole city is a zone, do the offenders get sent to Hull?
There are quite a few of troublemakers that come from other areas of York and therefore the police will be dispersing them outside of the area for 24 hours. Plenty of them dont come from Clifton and choose to come here as it is a hotspot. I think that is why they want the power to send them home and disperse them to prevent others from coming here. Dont get me wrong, I agree.....a lot of them are local (but not all). I do like the idea of sending them all to Hull though!

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YorkieMD says...
4:59pm Sat 14 Mar 09

I live in the proposed zone, and the estate where i used to live in another town also had one of these dispersal orders in place. It hasn't infringed anyone's liberties, and it won't be illegal to be in a group inside the zone. But if you are causing trouble that's not enough to constitute an arrest or caution (for example, congregating drinking alcohol in a residential street, or making excessive noise, swearing or littering), the police can disperse the group. If they return in 24 hours, it's an arrestable offense.

And it works. This system really did improve the wellbeing of the area, and the fear of crime and antisocial behaviour certainly has decreased, and we felt safe knowing the police were able to act swiftly but without overreacting and arresting people.

It's discretionary as well, obviously a group of teens waiting for a bus at a bus stop wouldn't get dispersed if they were going somewhere.


If Cllr King actually lived in clifton, he would have received a letter from the PC outlining the plan and the zone's boundaries. Those councillors who do live in the area would have been informed with the rest of us.

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YorkieMD says...
5:01pm Sat 14 Mar 09

Sorry, I meant councillor Scott in that previous message!

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jk york says...
9:58pm Mon 16 Mar 09

dispersal zones are a laugh , ive seen the fake cops disperse these groups in another part of town 5 mins later there all abck togethwr again

also why oh why does everyone seem to think clifton is the pits, look at the walmgate area ,tanghall or acomb as a whole, imo these places are worse , and no i dont live in clifton but visit often

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