Petition calls for rethink of The Shay sale to Huddersfield Giants rugby boss
Plus, minister visit and defeat again for Halifax as they make return to home ground
Hello and welcome to The Calderdale Lead!
Happy bank holiday one and all - I hope you’re having a nice relaxing time and looking forward to that well-earned day off tomorrow!
In today’s edition, we have details of a fan-led petition that is calling on Calderdale Council to rethink its decision to sell The Shay stadium to Ken Davy, the owner of Super League club Huddersfield Giants.
The sale is expected to go through in October but the fans are hoping the petition will attract enough signatures to force another debate at the authority.
Plus, safeguarding minister Jess Phillips was in town at the back end of last week visiting local organisations leading efforts to tackle violence against women and girls. We’ve got full details below.
And it was an unhappy return to The Shay yesterday for Halifax Town as they were beaten 2-1 by Forest Green Rovers to leave them with just one win from their opening four league games. Reaction from boss Adam Lakeland is below.
So, on with the news…
Fans call on Calderdale Council to think again about sale of The Shay
By Andrew Greaves
A petition urging Calderdale Council to review its decision to sell The Shay Stadium in Halifax has been started.
Calderdale Council Cabinet members are expected to take the next step in the disposal of the Shay Stadium, which is home to Halifax’s two professional sports clubs, football’s FC Halifax Town and rugby league’s Halifax Panthers, early in October.
The decision to divest itself of the stadium, where some of its staff use offices, was taken by the council last year, with an initial preference to sell it to the two clubs.
But after months of talks failed to arrive at a mutually acceptable solution, an offer to buy it made by rugby league’s Huddersfield Giants owner Ken Davy became their chosen option when Cabinet members considered it again in the spring.
A final decision has been on hold because the Shay has been designated an asset of community value and opportunity given for alternative bids to be considered.
Another twist in the tale was a not-for-profit organisation throwing its hat into the ring to take over The Shay as part of this process, but the group has since withdrawn their interest.
The new petition raises several issues.
It urges people to support a call for a review of the sale and suggests several courses of action.
The petition requests the council reviews the proposed disposal of the Shay.
It urges the council to explore development options for the wider estate to increase revenue and to review consultation processes which the petitioners argue did not include an option to sell the Shay to a private buyer.
The council should again consider options for a joint management of the Shay between itself and a Stadium Trust that “could better serve the long term needs of Calderdale Council, the two clubs and the public, as well as maintain the Freehold of the Shay in public control,” says the petition.
Calderdale Council has responded by saying any petition will be dealt with in accordance with the authority’s petitions policy, if and when submitted.
In March, senior Calderdale councillors agreed the freehold and surrounding land of the Shay should be sold to Mr Davy – for “a nominal sum” – in order to divest itself of the ground.
Their decision contains provisos, including agreement from the ruling bodies of the sports played by the two professional sides that three teams can play at the stadium.
Senior councillors said they recognised strong feelings over the sale but the council’s wider financial position, including increasing demands on it to meet statutory social care costs had also to be considered, Cabinet member for Resources, Cllr Silvia Dacre told colleagues in March.
The council could no longer afford the annual net cost of maintaining the Shay, councillors were told, although recently investment including from a Football Foundation grant has since seen much-needed pitch and drainage improvements made.
Selling the freehold and surrounding land to Mr Davy in a “nominal sum” deal, with a host of provisos, covenants and promise of millions of pounds of investment, was the best way forward, they felt.
In March Cllr Dacre said a community trust model is clearly attractive, but a sticking point was funding behind such an option – it could not be left to the council to ultimately fund it if that became necessary.
Mr Davy wants to develop the ground and place his rugby league Super League club Huddersfield Giants to play at The Shay while a new ground is built in Kirklees for that side.
To find out more about the petition, click here.
Minister visits to see best of community groups leading work to safeguard women
By Andrew Greaves
A top Government minister paid a visit to Halifax this week to meet with organisations and groups helping to tackle violence against women and girls.
Jess Phillips, the minister for safeguarding and violence against women, was invited to meet groups by Halifax MP Kate Dearden.
Ms Phillips visited local organisations Happy Days and WomenCentre, and attended a roundtable hosted Ms Dearden.
The roundtable consisted of sector professionals, West Yorkshire police, as well as local and national government representatives, providing a thorough and comprehensive discussion about the experiences of front-line organisations.
Participants discussed a range of issues with the Minister, including:
Victims' services including challenges faced by smaller local organisations in accessing funding, the need for long-term sustainable investment, strategies used by local organisations and examples of local best practice in supporting victims.
Prevention and changing attitudes - Causes of and approaches to tackling misogyny. This includes how to tackle misogyny and violence against women and girls being perpetuated online.
Partnerships and System Integration – How to improve partnership working and ensure victims of domestic and sexual abuse do not fall through the gaps of support services.
Justice and Outcomes including what the barriers are to securing convictions and increasing trust in the court system.
During the visits to Happy Days and WomenCentre, the minister was able to see first-hand, how these organisations support domestic abuse and sexual assault survivors.
At Happy Days, an organisation that supports those facing and experiencing homelessness, Kate joined the Minister to tour around their Jubilee House Project as well as discuss their current projects, the difference they have made locally, and the challenges they currently face in meeting high level of need.
At WomenCentre, CEO Angela Everson showed the Minister around their site, and then held a discussion on areas from funding to efforts on tackling misogyny and online abuse. Minister Jess Phillips joined Kate in congratulating WomenCentre on their 40th anniversary too, marking an incredible record of service to women and girls in Halifax.
Ms Phillips said: “It was invaluable to visit the organisations Happy Days and WomenCentre in Halifax and hear from passionate and dedicated frontline staff who deliver vital support to survivors and help them rebuild their lives.
“The government recognises that the scale of violence suffered by women and girls is intolerable, which is why we have made it our mission to halve it over the next decade. We will relentlessly pursue perpetrators, support victims and tackle the root causes of these crimes – and services like the ones I saw today are absolutely key to achieving this.”
Ms Dearden added: "The Minister’s visit shows how seriously this Labour Government is tackling violence against women and girls - by having difficult conversations, recognising the need for change and listening to communities like ours.
“As part of our mission to halve violence against women and girls within a decade, this visit was an important chance for Halifax voices to be heard and for local expertise to shape Government policy.”
Lakeland taking positives despite three defeats in four
By Andrew Greaves
Halifax Town boss Adam Lakeland felt his side were the better team despite falling to a 2-1 defeat to Forest Green Rovers at The Shay.
A goal either side of half-time was enough to hand Robbie Savage’s visitors the win, despite a fine Jay Turner-Cooke free-kick giving the hosts hope just before the break.
The defeat leaves The Shaymen with just one win from their opening four National League games.
But boss Lakeland told The Halifax Courier: “I felt, certainly between their two goals, we were the better team, by a margin as well.
“Some of our play at times was superb, our organisation without the ball was good.
“I'm massively encouraged by that and I'd like to think everybody else associated with Halifax will go home encouraged by that performance, because I thought we played some brilliant football at times.”
Town are back in action tomorrow afternoon at Scunthorpe.
That’s it for this edition. Enjoy the rest of the Bank Holiday weekend and we’ll be back in your inbox on Wednesday!
Andrew
What about buying Southport football club they could do with a new stadium