The Ec c l e s a l l Pos tWednesday 9th January, 2011 30p

www.theecclesallpost.co.uk

PEAK CONDITION. Former SheffieldUniversity professor climbs Himalayas

to celebrate his 75th Birthday Page 5

Nathan Bagley’s killerjailed for 4 years

Page 4

More than 80 members of staff have been warned they could be out of a job come next year if an investor for Losehill Hall environmental learning and conference centre does not come forward.

The grade two listed building near Castleton pro-vides training for 20,000 professionals, children and adults of all ages and teaches environmental aware-ness. It is also used as a conference centre for busi-nesses and has hosted weddings and parties in the past.

But, with the Government cutting the Peak District national park authority’s annual budget, directors and executives are planning for the worst, fearing a 30% reduction. At a cost of £300,000 a year, this means the 41-bedroom mansion will have to reduce its spending by £1.9m to stay open.

“We’ve got a completely open mind at the minute but at the end of the day we’ve got to make public re-ductions,’ Ruth Marchington, a hall director, said.

After a six week consultation period, potential buy-ers have come forward and shown interest in taking over the facility, set in 27-acres of parkland. “So far we’ve had a number of expressions of interest,” Jim Dixon, the park chief executive, said. “We’ve already

had some very serious figures with serious backing be-hind them but we will look at those very carefully.” Although there were impressive offers, a decision on the future of Losehill Hall could still take some time.

“We will have to look at the business plan and the ethos of the organisation we’re working with. Do they share the ethos of the building and history of Losehill Hall? So we will have to look at that closely.”

The consultation period was ordered after objec-tions from local residents and members of the public, including George Wolfe, chairman of Friends of the Peak District.

“Losehill is a historical landmark in the Peak Dis-trict. From it’s opening in the 1970s it’s been used as an education facility for many generations,” Mr Wolfe said. “Closing it down would be a travesty.”

Three main options are being considered for the fu-ture of the hall – a partner is found and the hall stays as one of the UK’s leading training providers for the coun-tryside. The Environmental learning goes to the head-quarters at Aldern House in Bakewell and the partner uses the Hall as something else. Or no partner is found and the hall is closed.

The budget of the education centre has been moni-tored for the past two years in an attempt to start

cutting costs. Officials at first planned for a budget in-crease of 2.8%.

But the Government Spending Review has instead reduced the park’s spending power by 5%, leaving di-rectors urgently seeking savings.

“If we weren’t facing four years of Government cuts then we would be saying that Losehill Hall was doing well,” said John Lomas, planning director. “There is a lot of emotion attached to Losehill Hall, it’s like go-ing to your old school. The place and services could be separate but people remember the history of it.”

The fate of the hall will be settled early next year. Employees at the centre have meanwhile been praised for their commitment to provide a high quality service to customers.

“We’ve all been given redundancy notice, but we won’t find out until January. There are 85 staff at the moment, not many of which will have a job by the end of it,” Nikki Wright, one of the hall’s education staff, said.

“It all comes down to the money, some (investors) will want to keep on the staff, some won’t. We do so many different things here.”

Could Losehill Hall close?Revealed: how centre risks being axed unless new investors are found urgently

UNDER THREAT

TV - PAGE SIX DEAR JULIE - PAGE 12 PUZZLES - PAGE 18 SPORT - PAGES 24 & 25

EXCLUSIVE REPORT BY CHRISTOPHER McKAY. PICTURE: LAUREN BELL

How do you create a world renowned beer?

Page 6

19-year-old Matt named new catering

manager at casinoPage 2

More care homes face closure

Page 3

BRAVEHEART. Officer awarded George Medal for defusing a record number of bombsPage 2

Inside today

What does the hall mean to you? Have your say on the opinion pages of www.theecclesallpost.co.uk

2 The Ecclesall Post www.theecclesallpost.co.ukWednesday 9th January, 2011

Officer receives George Medalfor ‘unwavering dedication’

A bomb disposal expert from Sheffield has received the highest bravery award after defusing more bombs than anyone in his-tory.

Warrant Officer Karl Ley, of 11 Ordnance Disposal Regiment, has defused 139 bombs, many of which have been without the use of a protective suit or robot, but just what he could carry.

The 29 year old, who hails from Sheffield, has tackled as many as 14 bombs in a nine hour period, and was awarded the George Medal for conspicuous gallantry this week.

Talking about the dangers, the bomb dis-posal expert said that he has been targeted by rocket propelled grenades on numerous occa-sions while defusing bombs.

“No two bombs are the same,” WO Ley said. “Every day we go out and get rid of de-vices, whether they’re found on a pre-planned operation that’s deliberately looking for IEDs [Improvised Explosive Devices] or on a rou-tine infantry foot patrol where they’ve been discovered by chance.”

In Afghanistan the threat of IEDs are ex-tremely high and they are the most unstable and dangerous threat that WO Ley and his col-leagues have to deal with.

On one 72-hour operation in late 2009 he defused 28 victim-operated IEDs, tackling 14 bombs in a single, gruelling, nine-hour period, during which time he was shot at by the en-emy.

Bomb disposal expert defused a record number of explosivesThomas Leese tleese@theecclesallpost.co.uk

WO Ley said: “We’ve received a lot of training, and I’ve been involved with explo-sives and ammunition for ten years. By the stage I got to dealing with IEDs in Afghani-stan, it was nothing new. So the IEDs don’t really faze me.”

The shooting at, really, I was not happy with. It’s a comfort zone thing – I’m okay with IEDs but when I’m shot at it’s different.

“The shooting at was fairly emotional, but the IEDs - it’s what we do - a part of our eve-ryday job.”

WO Ley defused seven devices by hand so they could be recovered intact and examined, despite being shot at.

“You’ve got to treat these devices with respect because they do kill,” said WO Ley. “We look at each IED in their constituent parts. When I’m dealing with one, all I see is the bits that make it up”

WO Ley’s citation states he has worked in the most hazardous conditions, enduring both mental and physical fatigue. He has lost seven of his colleagues and three close friends but he has continued undaunted.

“For this unwavering dedication, conspicu-ous gallantry and poise in the face of substan-tial danger and of the enemy, over a sustained period, he is unreservedly recommended for high public recognition.”

In reference to the record number of IEDs he’s disarmed WO Ley said: “To say I’ve done more, it’s nice but it’s not particularly important in the great scheme of things.

“I’ve only had two jobs ever; for Kentucky Fried Chicken and Bomb disposal, so unless there’s a market for exploding chickens, I think I’ll stay where I am to be honest.”

Just doing his job: Warrant Officer Ley says it’s just his duty

Nineteen year old Matt Proud has been named as the new cater-ing manager for Napoleons Casino and Restaurant on Ecclesall Road.

Matt, who lives with his family in Dron-field, has had great success in the cater-ing industry after working for Chesterfield FC and multi-award-winning chef Richard Smith at his restaurant, the Inn at Troway.

“I have always been a big fan of Na-poleons from both a personal and profes-sional level so I’m really looking for-ward to taking up this role,” Matt said.

“The restaurant has a strong reputation for great food and a fantastic atmosphere which I am looking to build on even fur-ther. Napoleons as a brand is very proud of its customer service and offering custom-ers the personal touch – and this is one of the areas I am excited about developing.”

Matt will report directly to General Man-ager Ray Smith in his role, but his main responsibility will be to ensure that the restaurant runs smoothly through service.

“Matt is a welcome addition to the team and he has an excellent track record in the catering industry,” Ray Smith said.

“Following the refurbishment six months ago, we are now looking forward to push-ing the restaurant to the next level and we have some exciting things planned.”

The announcement comes after Napole-ons said it would be sponsoring this year’s Retail Services Sheffield Chamber of Com-merce Business Award. “As a business that has played a central role in Sheffield’s

A father of two has broken the Guinness World Record for the most number of tops ever to spin simultaneously.

Steve Faulkner, 37, managed to rotate 22 steel spinning tops, break-ing the previous record of 16 set in Japan last year.

Steve, from Ecclesall, Shef-field, was inspired by the new film Inception where Leonardo DiCap-rio’s character, Cobb, used the same principle to evaluate whether he was dreaming or not.

The Sheffield magician has spent 12 years making the long journey down south to Cov-ent Garden, performing on the streets and practicing his skills.

“I only get work from people seeing me,”

Steve said. “The idea was given to me by the PR company and I agreed to work on it. Then I got quite excited about being a record holder,

which is quite a fun thing”He is now challenging the 63,000 fans

on the Facebook Inception fan page to beat his record. Meanwhile he

hopes to next break the group record of 275 people spinning tops together, recently set in

Romania.Now based with his family in

Sheffield, he works on the after-dinner circuit, at corporate events

and private parties, on cruise ships and as a street entertainer. Last year he was named

National Street Entertainer of the Year.

Tops success - Steve breaks world record

Hard at work: Steve practicing before the world record attempt. Insert: Cobb spinning his totem in the film Inception, that gave Steve the idea.

Rebecca Cowell rcowell@theecclesallpost.co.uk

Young and Proud, Matt joins casino team

leisure scene for generations, it is encourag-ing to see such pioneering flair, spirit and thought leadership within the retail serv-ices sector here in our home city,” a spokes-man for the casino and restaurant said.

“We are delighted to be part of celebrating business excellence in the city, showcasing the skills, range of expertise and reputation that our business community has to offer on a regional, national and international scale.”

Proud: looking forward to tak-ing Napoleons to the next level

Sheffield workers employed by Hewlett Packard have been given a two month lifeline before job cuts will happen.

Union officers negotiated a deal with the computer giant saving nearly 150 jobs at the Hallamshire Business Park, between Ecclesall Road and Napier Street.

The HP Sheffield office has avoided the cuts so far because plenty of work was coming in from a contract with the Government's Department of Work and Pensions. But bosses said last month that 1,300 jobs in the UK are to be axed on top of the 900 jobs the firm announced would be cut in June.

“Department of Work and Pension’s work is particularly badly impacted as a direct result of the governments costs cutting exercises,” Adrian Wood, a Public and Com-mercial Services Union rep said. “PCS union negotiated an agreement that resulted in no job losses within DWP during the 2nd half of this year - but there are planned job losses during 2011.”

Electronic Data Systems, who previously owned the site in Sheffield, were taken over when HP bought the multi-national company for $13.9 billion in May 2008.

Since then HP has dramatically reduced its workforce, slashing 4,000 jobs in the UK in two years

"HP is in consultation with representative bodies within the UK regarding potential workforce changes,” a spokesman for HP said. “This is an initiative to transform HP's enterprise services business to benefit clients through new offerings and improved service delivery."

Over 2000 HP jobs to be axed this year

A zip-wire challenge raised thousands of pounds for Madam Curie Cancer Care yesterday. One hundred fundraisers zipped 260 metres across Endcliffe Park in aid of charity. ‘It was brilliant,’ said Julie Brown, who raised £130 for the cancer charity, ‘I want to do it again.’

A new night bus was launched in the city yesterday and will run every Friday and Saturday, at 1am, 2am and 3am. TM Travel is operating the three routes across the city at a linear fee of £2.50. The buses depart from Leopold Street.

Planning permission was granted this week for Glider Group to build 14 homes, a deli and a restaurant on its old car dealer-ship forecourt, at the junction of Ecclesall Road South and Psalter Lane. The work is scheduled to take place next year.

Ecclesall Road residents have ob-jected to plans by a kebab shop to open its doors up until 1.30am during the week and 2.30am at weekends. Elif, 529 Ecclesall Road, has already been under in-vestigation by Sheffield Council’s licensing officers after repeatedly opening later than its permitted hours.

A record turnout of more than 2,000 made the trip in the snow and ice to Whirlow Hall Farm’s Christmas fayre. So far £10,000, nearly double the target, has been raised by the trust that runs the farm to give children a taste of the countryside.

620 students from the Univer-sity of Sheffield walked 13 miles through the peaks to see fire-works this November 5, all in the name of charity. The annual event will raise an estimated £10,000 for charities all over Sheffield.

News in Brief

Zips Away

Night Bus

More Homes

No Later!

Record Fayre

Charity walk

A goat has been rescued from the Peak District quarry today by the RSPCA. The animal, belonging to Peter Townsend, became trapped after injuring a leg. The rescue team sedated the goat before abseiling down and pulling it to safety.

Saved Goat

Futuristic science author Mal-colm Rose visited Hunter’s Bar Junior School this week with a bionic hand. It’s for a scheme to highlight the importance of tech-nology and features in his new book Jordan Styker. The hand is already being used by injured soldiers and the next step, Touch Bionics, who created the artificial hand, said is to get it controlled by the brain.

Helping Hand

For instant updates follow us on Twitter, @TheEcclesallPost

Cuts: Nearly 150 Employers will go from Hallamshire Business Park

To see a video of Matt performing some of his culinary skills check out our website www.theecclesallpost.co.uk

To see Steve in action log on to our Facebook page, ‘The Ecclesall Post’

Two care homes in South Yorkshire will be closed at the end of 2012 leaving over a hundred residents without the proper care they need.

Families of residents at Woodland View care home on Lightwood Lane, and Birch Avenue care home in Chapeltown are doing everything they can to keep the homes open as NHS Sheffield plans to cut nearly £3m from their budget.

A board meeting approved plans to cut the £2.8m ‘top-up’ it currently gives to the care homes to help with staff and running costs.

NHS Sheffield said the cuts were neces-sary because both care homes cost them twice as much to run as any of the others in the area.

But the families of the 100 residents, who suffer with dementia, are attempting to find ways of stopping the homes from closing and their relatives being forced to move out.

The PCT have agreed to extend a three month consultation period for relatives and staff to four months, before final decisions are made but Mark Batty, who’s mother is at Woodland View says it’s irreplaceable.

“I honestly believe Woodland View has given my Mum many more happy years than she would have had if she had remained in the privately run care home she was in,” he said.

Mr Batty has already written to Nick Clegg with his views, as well as David Blunkett who is involved with the Alzheimer’s Society in Sheffield.

He has also set up a Facebook group called ‘The campaign to save Woodland View and Birch Ave nursing homes’ and has received a lot of support from other family members.

“Families have already tried private run

Two more care homes face closure as ministers cut the NHS budget by £3m

3The Ecclesall Postwww.theecclesallpost.co.uk Wednesday 9th January, 2011

Dementia patents told they must find somewhere else

Chris McKay cmckay@theecclesallpost.co.uk

care homes and some had horrific experiences before they found Woodland View and Birch Avenue,” Mr Batty said. “For some families, Birch Avenue is the tenth care home that they have tried.”

20 relatives and friends attended a public meeting held by NHS Sheffield to show their anger.

The board admitted they had not consulted the Alziemer’s Society regarding the closure and whether it may cause psychological or physical harm to the residents that would be moved.

Simon Kirk, Director of Strategy of the PCT, talked the board through his recommen-dation to stop the £2.8m funding “in princi-ple” after the staff and relatives had a consul-tation period.

“As far as I’m aware they’d had a meeting before the public one,” Mr Batty said.

“We were treated to the opinion of a GP who explained to us that she had presided over the closure of a care home in her area and all had gone well, so we had nothing to worry about.

“However, the residents in question were not suffering from dementia, so the compari-son was somewhat pointless as well as insult-ing. This was not the only occasion that the Board patronised the public attendees.”

Daral Beebe, who’s mother is also in Woodland View, said that apparently a deci-sion had already been made.

“My mother was told last week by a doctor on the panel that he intended to vote to close the home - before the consultation period has even had a chance.”

A meeting will be held next month at Birch Avenue care home for all those campaigning against the closures.

Families of patients at Wood-land View (above) and Birch Avenue (right) have set up Facebook groups and petitions to keep the centres open.

To find out more about the petitions log on to our Facebook page ‘The Ecclesall Post’ and follow the links

Rub a dub dub, one woman in a tub- of raspberry jelly?

Submerged in a bath, covered in red, gooey liquid, Natalie Mason looks like she’s an extra in the film Pyscho.

In fact it’s nothing more terrifying than raspberry jelly as she attempts to raise money for cash-stricken animal sanctuary Thornberry.

Artist and writer Natalie, 40, took part in the sponsored stunt at her home in Priory Road, Nether Edge, Sheffield, to raise money for the animal home in North Anston.

Thornberry is on the brink of closure and has sold various assets in an attempt to stay open a couple more months. “I see how hard the people of Thornberry work and how hard they are trying to keep it open,” Natalie said.

“They have a no kill policy, often taking in animals from other shelters to save them from death row.”

Natalie, although not officially being involved in the charity, feels she has an obligation to help keep Thornberry open after adopting her cats from there.

“Thornberry is very close to my heart,” she said. “I’d like to think I do have a connection of sorts, because I will continue to try to raise money for as long as I can.”

Natalie spent nearly six hours in the jelly and has so far raised £450.00, thanks to radio interviews, newspaper articles and people donating on auction site Ebay.

Although she hasn’t finished with the fundraising it is unlikely Natalie will be rushing to buy any more jelly. “It took one very long, very hot shower to get all of the horrible stuff off me, and I was left feeling rather disorientated and sick for the rest of the day,” she said. “Don’t know if it was all the E numbers in the Jelly, or the very pungent smell but think I would have preferred to climb K2.”Light reading: Natalie wrote to author

Sophie Kinsella asking for donatons

Medals all round for dedicated runners

Fundraisers from around Sheffield competed at Endcliffe Park in a ten kilometre run to raise money for one of only three dedicated cancer hospitals in the country.

More than 850 runners took part in the first Ten-Ten-Ten event on Sunday to help Weston Park Hospital’s cancer charity.

The run, given its name from taking place on the 10 October 2010, is the latest in a series of events hosted by the hospital to reach a £1.2m target and keep providing the internationally-distinguished treatment.

“We are extremely fortunate to have the support of our community who are out there all throughout the year, organising events on our behalf,” Lyndsey Raynor, hospital fundraiser, said. “Without their support we couldn’t do it. We’re a small team and we couldn’t reach our target without them.”

The centre supports the work of the hospital and raises funds to support research in treat-ment and care. The charity completed a £1m appeal for a new chemotherapy suite and unveiled as their new patron former Premier League football referee Uriah Rennie.

“It’s a nice way to give something back and raise money for a good cause,” said Erin Hey-wood, one of the runners. “A very close family member suffers with cancer so I just wanted to raise enough money as I could and donate it to the charity so that people like her can get more help.”

Plans for more fundraisers are already underway, including ‘Coppers for Cancer’ and another ten kilometre run in July 2011.

Flats and offices get the go ahead despite planning officers concerns for the scheme

Plans for a new development of flats and offices in Sheffield city centre have been passed despite officers’ recommendation to refuse the proposal.

SMC Jenkins and Moor want to develop the empty building on St Mary’s Gate rounda-bout into a three storey block of offices and an eight-storey block of flats.

The scheme, which was refused planning permission in March 2008, has been rede-signed and approved by Sheffield Council’s City Centre, South and East Planning Com-mittee. Planners recommended councillors again refuse the scheme, just off Bramall Lane, because the developers had only offered £90,000 for affordable housing. But Jim Lo-mas, SMC Jenkins and Moor, said £90,000 was all they could afford.

Mr Lomas said the old building was “der-elict, defunct and rather visually obnoxious eyesore in the gateway for the city.”

The meeting heard other developers had been interested in the site but discussions had The site (marked red) where the new developments will be built

More than 80 students could make Ec-clesall Road their home as plans have been drawn up for another block of flats to be built in the area.

The building, opposite the new Sheaf Is-land pub in the old Ward’s Brewery, would be five stories but rising to six in one corner. There would also be a shop at ground level.

MAF Construction, a national based family run company, plans to use the ac-commodation for UK and international students for both Sheffield and Hallam University.

“The proposal offers the opportunity to provide a gateway and landmark building to the Ecclesall Road area,” consultants for MAF construction said. “It will also draw foot traffic down to an under-used part of the road and connect it with the city cen-tre.”

Sheffield Council’s City Centre, South and East Planning Committee, will now as-sess the development, despite already being under pressure from some residents of the neighbouring Hanover estate.

“Why do we need any more?”said one objector. “There are enough already.”

Residents object to student houses

To see more pictures and videos of the run, log on to www.ecclesallpost.co.uk To make a donation to Natalie, log onto www.ecclesallpost.co.uk and follow the link.

Ready? Get Set. Go! Fundraisers take part in first Ten-Ten-Ten run

come to a standstill. One letter has been received from an inter-

ested party saying that the site is likely to be of archaeological interest and this should be taken into account.

A report by planners said there was a sig-nificant concern relating to the provision of affordable housing.

“Even though this is a high quality scheme that would create an excellent gateway into the city, the shortfall in the affordable hous-ing contribution is so great that it renders the scheme unacceptable,” the report said.

Despite concerns, Chair of the committee Councillor John Hesketh said that the promi-nent site had been empty for some time now and something needed doing.

“When things are running well, I think there can be a case made for demanding a contribution towards affordable housing, but I think in these more difficult times we have to balance competing factors.”

4 The Ecclesall Post www.theecclesallpost.co.uk

In Court

Wednesday 9th January, 2011

Crossbow Cannibal jailed for his ‘sick’ killings Student shot one victim in the head with a bolt, ate the flesh of another

A PhD student, who called himself the Crossbow Cannibal, has been jailed for life for the ‘wicked and mon-strous’ killings of three prostitutes in Bradford’s red-Light district last year.

Leeds Crown Court heard how Stephen Griffiths, 40, shot one victim in the head with a crossbow bolt and ate the flesh of another.

Griffiths, of Thornton Road, Brad-ford, pleaded guilty to murdering Su-zanne Blamires, 36, Shelley Armitage, 31, and 43-year-old Susan Rushworth, who all worked in the red light district near his home in Bradford, West Yorkshire.

Judge Mr Justice Openshaw said: “The circumstances of these murders are so wicked and monstrous they leave me in no doubt the defendant should be kept in prison for the rest of his life.”

He also said that Griffiths, who was

Thomas Leese tleese@theecclesallpost.co.uk researching murders in Bradford in the

19th Century as part of his thesis, showed no remorse when entering his pleas.

“I am extremely pleased that Griffiths has been convicted of what can only be described as a series of horrifying crimes,” Det Supt Su-khbir Singh, of West Yorkshire Police, said.

“He is a heartless and controlling man, who took advantage of vulnerable women.”

While in prison Griffiths will be quizzed over five other cases that could be linked to the killer. Gemma Simpson, 23, went missing in May 2000 and Dawn Shields, 19, was found strangled in the Peak District after vanishing from Sheffield’s red light district in 1994.

Michaela Hague, 25, was stabbed 19 times after being picked up in the same city on Bonfire Night 2001.

Griffiths: Researched murders in the 19th Century as part of his thesis

Terror TimelineJuly 20, 1988 - Diana Maw, 35, shot with a bolt in Ealing, London.

May 21, 1994 – Dawn Shields found strangled in the Peak Districts

May 2000 -Gemma Simpson disappears

November 2000 - Vicky Glass, 21, found dead on moorland, North Yorkshire

November 5, 2001 - Michaela Hague, 25, found with 19 stab wounds in Sheffield

June 22, 2009 - Mother-of-three Susan Rushworth, 43, vanishes.

April 26, 2010 – Shelley Armitage, 31, last seen later that night in Rebecca Street, Bradford.

April 28 - Shelley’s boyfriend contacts police to report her missing.

May 21 - Suzanne Blamires, 36, disappears.

May 24 – A 40 year old man is arrested over Suzanne’s disap-pearance.

May 28 -Griffiths identifies himself as the “Crossbow Cannibal” at court.

December 21 - He pleads guilty to murder of three prostitutes

A Forgemasters employee assaulted a disabled woman after she was “caught in the crossfire” trying to protect her husband, Sheffield Magistrates Court heard today. Matthew Trigg, 20, held Trisha Ledger in a headlock, loosening three teeth, while her husband hid in another room and called the police.

Trigg turned up at Mrs Ledger’s house on Saturday evening demanding to see her hus-band, Jamie after Trigg claimed he was sexaully assaulted by him when he stayed their for a while.

“Mrs Ledger and her husband were at home watching TV when at around 10pm there was a knock at the door. Mrs Ledger went to answer and recognised Trigg,” Rob Coyne prosecuting said.

He had stayed with the couple for two years and since then accused Jamie of sexual as-sault, with no charge, Mr Coyne said.

In a statement to the court Mrs Ledger, who suffers with spinal problems and needs crutches to walk, said: ‘My mouth is painful at the minute and this ongoing problem with Matthew is having a negative effect on our family. It has unsettled out youngest daughter who is 11.’

Trigg, of Rokeby road, Parson Cross, pleaded guilty to assault.“Matthew wanted to confront Mr Ledger about what happened all those years ago, Miss

Alam, defending said. ‘Unfortunately it was Mrs Ledger who got caught in the crossfire.”“He lived with the Ledger’s for two years and claimed sexual assault against Mr Ledger.

That has affected him. This has prompted him to seek help from his GP and possibly counselling.”

Miss Alam said that Trigg is “very apologetic and deeply regrets his actions towards Mrs Ledger.”

When given the verdict Chair of the bench, Mr Zahur said, “You have been very lucky, if this offense happens again you may not be so lucky.”

Trigg was ordered to pay court costs and compensation of £285 and attend anger man-agement classes.

Disabled women was ‘caught in crossfire’

A 25 year old collapsed and died in a South Yorkshire restaurant dur-ing his works Christmas party. He was not found until the following morning.

Daniel Keeble, from Highfield, Shef-field, was out for a work’s dinner at Le Bistrot Pierre on Ecclesall Road, when he felt ill and went to the toilets.

Unaware their colleague was still at the restaurant, his work friends left and Mr Kee-ble’s body was found in the toilets by res-taurant manager Nick Dunkley the next day.

As a mark of respect the restau-rant was closed for the entire weekend.

One of the owners of the French res-taurant, Robert Beacham, confirmed that someone was taken ill on Friday night and their body was found Saturday.

“His friends had gone home without him and the poor chap was then found in our toilet by the manager, Nick,” Robert said. He was 25 years old, with a wife, and had apparently become ill and taken himself to the toilet.

A South Yorkshire Police spokesman said they attended Le Bistrot Pierre on Sat-urday and said there were no suspicious circumstances regarding the man’s death.

An inquest has been opened and adjourned at Sheffield Coroners’ Court until a later date.

The death came a week after another branch of Le Bistrot Pierre, in Harrogate, was temporarily closed after an explosion.

A father of three, who killed a man in a drunken, motiveless attack was yesterday

jailed for four years.Adam Stott, 27, left Nathan Bagley uncon-

scious on the floor and went to a brothel. He spent the next day buying a car before turn-ing himself in when he saw Mr Bagley, from Brincliffe Edge Road, Sheffield, had died.

Mr Bagley, 31 had successfully applied for a visa for him and his girlfriend to start a new

life in Australia, the week before. He died from a fractured skull after being punched by

Stott, of Agbrigg Road, Wakefield falling backwards and hitting his head on the pave-ment in the early hours of Sunday, October

17.Sheffield Crown Court heard Stott became angry after Mr Bagley allegedly called him

a ‘liar’ outside DQ bar in Fitzwilliam Street, Sheffield and followed him to a taxi. When

Mr Bagley tried to run away, Stott attempted to punch him once and missed, but then

punched him again.“Nathan was an innocent man, like any

other member of the public who visited the DQ bar that night,” Detective Superintendent Colin Fisher, the senior investigating officer

in the case said.

Drunken, motiveless death at DQ clubLeft to die in the gutter while attacker went to a brothel

“He just happened to gain the attention of Adam Stott as people left the nightclub.

“Violence happens outside nightclubs every now and then, however, this was a

sickening attack; made worse as there was simply no motive whatsoever.”

Elizabeth Martin, prosecuting, said that a combination of things, such as Mr Bagley

walking backwards and an incline in the pavement resulted in him falling backwards

and hitting his head heavily on the pavement. Stott ignored the fact that Mr Bagley

needed help at the scene, Mrs Martin said, and went to Caesar’s massage parlour

before getting a taxi home. Mr Bagley never regained consciousness and was pronounced

dead eight hours later.Sentencing, Judge Roger Keen QC said

that Mr Bagley was a decent man who did nothing to provoke the incident. He said that Stott had permanently destroyed a good life

and damaged friends and familyIn a statement after the verdict, Mr

Bagley’s family said that Nathan was a young gregarious man with a dry sense of

humour and big smile. “The Stott family and his friends can gain some comfort from the

fact they can visit him. As a result of Stott’s attack on Nathan, we were denied the op-

portunity of saying our goodbyes. We are the ones with the long sentence.”

Marks of respect: Friends, family members, fellow party goers and the paramedics left flowers and cards outside the establishment.Insert: Nathan Bagley had successfully applied for a visa last week.

Tragic end to work’s do

Police are appealing for witnesses to come forward over an alleged attack, that left a 19-year old man with puncture wounds to his body. The alleged incident took place after midnight on Saturday 1 Janu-ary 2011, outside the back of a pub on Ma-son Lathe Road in Shiregreen. Police have since arrested an 18-year-old man in connec-tion with the incident. He has been released on police bail pending further enquiries.

Detectives in Sheffield are appealing for information following an aggravated bur-glary in the Woodseats area of the city.

The incident took place between 11pm and 11.30pm on Monday 6 December 2010. Three men wearing balaclavas en-tered an address on Tadcaster Crescent. One of the intruders assaulted a 43-year-old man, who sustained a fractured skull and bruising as a result of the incident.

Detectives investigating the incident believe this to be a targeted attack. All three men left the premises with cash.

Appeals for help

Stabbing in Shiregreen

Burglary in Woodseats

Katie Bailey kbailey@theecclesallpost.co.uk

Read the full story of Stephen Griffiths and his desperate attempt at being the next Peter Sutcliffe at www.ecclesallpost.co.uk.

If you have been affected by sexual assault check out www.ecclesallpost.co.uk for advice about who to talk to.

5The Ecclesall Postwww.theecclesallpost.co.uk Wednesday 9th January, 2011

Walking up the unlit driveway nothing struck me as different to any other house in that street.

The untouched snow in the garden looked like a plain white canvas waiting for an artist to create a masterpiece. The icicles hanging from the drainpipe like daggers, as if placed there by the owner as a booby trap for uninvited visitors. I had barely made it half way up when an elderly figure, no taller than five foot nine, greeted me at the door, ushering me in from the cold. “Come on get in, you must be freez-ing,” he said. As I answered, “Certainly am, it’s been a nightmare getting here,” my breath pierced the porch and made its way into the warmth of the house.

His living room wasn’t any different to

what I had expected; clean, tidy, smelt like lemon pledge and covered with photos and ornaments, each with their own little place on shelves. There were pictures of him meeting Prince Charles, a family group photograph of him, his wife Gillian and his two children and picturesque shots from his extensive travels. “Would you like a cup of tea or coffee?” His wife peered round the door, as she stopped cooking that night’s meal of gammon, to make sure we were being looked after. They both moved to Sheffield to start a life together after they got married more than 50 years ago.

“Well, where to begin really,” the elderly man leant back in his armchair, “ I suppose you would like to know first why I did it.” He had on a Sheffield University jumper from

his lecturing days, which he wears around the house when he’s not invigilating exams.

“There were two main reasons,” he contin-ued, “I reached the grand old age of 75 and thought I was in reasonably good health. I was planning on doing it anyway so decided to raise money in the process.” The other reason was to celebrate his 50 years of teaching Den-tal Material science and Dental technology.

“I’ve been interested in walking for some time now and have done a lot of long distance walking. We go on holidays in the Lake Dis-trict, me and my wife. I’ve done the Wain-wright’s coast to coast walk which is 200 miles.’

Graham White isn’t your average pen-sioner. Born in Birmingham and now living in a small semi-detached house in Ecclesall, he was the founder of Medical Aid to Po-land Foundation, which, over the years, has transported over £2m of life saving equip-ment from English hospitals to 57 hospitals in Poland. He was also the Polish Consulate in Sheffield and he set himself a target that most people a third of his age would struggle with, taking him away from roads, healthcare and oxygen.

For the second time in his life he has climbed the Himalayas and reached the dizzy heights of 14,000 feet. But this time it was all in the name of charity.

“Weston Park Hospital is only one of three dedicated cancer charities in the whole of the UK,” Dr White explained. “My wife has had treatment there and friends and acquaintances have also had treatment there and I wanted to give something back. It’s not just the research and the behind the scenes part, all the nurses and the front of house care is brilliant.”

The target was £750 but so far he has raised just over £900 and that figure is still climbing. Even Andrew Lloyd Weber’s organisation-The Really Useful Group-wished Dr White the best of luck and donated £100 on his on-line fundraising page, www.justgiving.com/Graham-White.

He looked up at the clock that watched over the living room, “It’s alright, we’ve got time. I was hoping I could show you some of these.” He left the room for a couple minutes and came back in clutching an Acer laptop and 3 cables. Within a few minutes he had con-nected the laptop to the TV and was loading a PowerPoint presentation of all the pictures he had taken of the trip.

“This was the plane we got from Kathman-du to Lukla,” an image came on the screen of a tiny aircraft that held no more than 12 people, including the pilots. “When you fly in you can go left which takes you to the An-napuran region or right that takes you to the Everest region – we went right.” Dr White stood up and started gesturing with his hands and arms, “you would fly in and out of valleys, with the walls of the valley no more than a few hundred metres away from the wings of the plane.”

The next picture was of a rope bridge cross-ing a gorge “there were no roads, no paths, just rough dangerous terrain and rocks with rope bridges that crossed huge gorges,’ Dr White enthusiastically depicted. “All the paths are dangerous,” he was kneeling now and was making a 90 degree angle with both hands. “If you’re on a path and a yak train starts heading towards you, you move out the way otherwise they will just push you off the cliff.”

“This was our first stay for the night,” clicking on an image of a mountain lodge. “There are three ways you can sleep at night; in a camp set up by the porters who go on ahead and have it ready for when you arrive. In a Tea house that is effectively a B&B or in

He’s climbed Himalayas twice Professor

Founded a charity Promoted oral hygiene

and has JUST TURNED 75

a mountain lodge that has a shower, a fire and a bed. That’s where I stayed.”

The next picture was the group he went with and I couldn’t help but notice the differ-ence in age between Dr White and everyone else. He was by far the oldest of the group of nine, which included two porters and a Nepa-lese guide.

“Age wasn’t really an issue though, the dangers such as altitude sickness doesn’t vary depending on age. We suffered with staggered sleeping but no altitude sickness,” Dr White said. “Our guides were very strict they made us drink water every couple of hours because

that high up and with all the walking you lose so much water. We also had acclimatisation days where we would stay at one level for a couple of days, walking up and then coming back down to the same height to sleep.”

“You’ll notice the two children hold-ing toothbrushes,” moving the slideshow on again. “As well as taking all my food, water, clothing and the essential items I took 100 toothbrushes and gave them to Children along the way.” Dr White said he had seen these two children and asked his guide if he could give them a toothbrush each. The guide shouted to their mum, who was collecting water from a pressured tap that fed water directly from a spring in the mountain. “The toothbrushes, although might not seem very important, are

helpful to these little villages and it’s some-thing I wanted to do as a personal thing. Most places in the Himalayas are three days away from a doctor and five days away from a den-tist.”

Other photos depicted families resting on the side of the road using specially built walls to take the weightt off their back. “These walls,” Dr White explained standing up and pretending he had a backpack on, “meant that whoever was carrying the bags didn’t have to bend down, they could just drop the heavy bags and rest. Men and women alike would sometimes carry cases, using a band around their forehead to secure it.

“It’s a climate where you walk or you just don’t do. I was only there for a week walking, these people are there for their entire life and it’s remarkable when you see the terrain and the paths they have to walk down. You have to really see it to believe it.”

Finishing the slide was a picture of him stood in front of Everest smiling, “This is just to prove I was there really,” his wife inter-rupted and with one more look at the clock he sprung back on his feet. “Unfortunately, my tea is on the table and we’re going to have to end it there.” Showing me to the door it was weird to think that this man had done so much and how much energy he has. Dr White hasn’t finished yet. He is planning another trip to the Himalayas and this time will try and make it to the next level and reach Farak Ri at 15,300 feet.

Feeling on top of the world: Dr White with Everest in the background

Healthy smiles: Two of the children Dr White gave toothbrushes

Himalayas Factfile• Himalayas means ‘abode of snow’• 75% of Nepal is covered by the Himalayas• 31 of the Himalayan peaks exceed 7,600m • Of the 15 highest mountain peaks in the World, nine are within

Nepal Himalayas• Formed approximately 70 million years ago following a colli-

sion between India and Asia via the Indo Australian and Eurasian plates

Ticking The Boxes

When asked to visit an elderly fundraiser, Chris McKay was not expecting this.

Donations to Dr White can be made follow-ing the link on www.theecclesallpost.co.uk

I was planning on doing it anyway so decided to raise money in the process

Three days away from a doctor and five days away from a dentist

6 The Ecclesall Post www.theecclesallpost.co.ukWednesday 9th January, 2011

Tucked away in the picturesque village of Bakewell, on a site used by Sir Richard Arkwright himself, Jim Harrison started a ten-casks-a-week company and in six years has tripled productivity. “There was no grand plan, in fact there has never been a grand plan when it came to Thornbridge,” Jim Harrison has always said. A statement hard to believe looking around the visitors shop.

Organisers full of certificates litter the tables; ‘Beer of the Festival,’ ‘Best bottled beer,’ ‘Overall champion.’ Glass tables dis-playing prized trophies like a Hollywood ac-tor showing off their Oscars. The shop was like a fancy pub, but had all the qualities of a village local. The oak tables and chairs set out for people to wander in and take a sip of Jaipur, their flagship drink, after a hard day’s work. The complimentary literature, ‘1001 beers you should try before you die,’ includ-ing a number of the Thornbridge range, scat-ters the tables.

Meeting at the tender age of 14 at a Na-tional Temperance League summer school isn’t where most ideas for a brewery start. But that’s exactly how Jim Harrison and Alex Buchanan created a money-making business. “We were good friends when we were young and now it’s a privilege to work with someone like Jim,” marketing manager Alex embarks upon the tale of Thornbridge’s beginning. A smile creeps across his face as he remembers how ambitious Jim was and still is. “After moving to Thornbridge Hall in Derbyshire, Jim decided that he wanted to apply his mar-keting skills to the sale of re-branding, high-quality beer bought in from an outside micro-brewery.

“The market for beer is very fragmented and micro-breweries seem poor at marketing,” explains Alex. “Jim looked at this like a real opportunity.”

“So he just decided to set up a brewery to combat the problem?” asking naively, having no clue as to how you would begin setting one up.

“Well the market is fragmented with 31 mi-cro-breweries in Derbyshire alone and some 84 across the East Midlands. But despite the large number of micro-breweries, Jim wasn’t able to find one that could supply the high quality beer he wanted in sufficient volume.”

As success stories go, this one is all the more remarkable given the brewery’s origins.

In 2004 Simon Webster and business part-ner Jim Harrison, new owner of the stately Thornbridge Hall at Ashford-in-the-Water, were looking for a beer to add to a range of Thornbridge branded food and drink products. But they didn’t want to provide it themselves.

“We asked a friend, Dave Wickett of Kel-ham Island Brewery, if he could brew us some beer. He told us we should be able to do it our-selves,” Simon says.

While brewing was once commonplace on many of England’s country estates, there had never been a brewery at Thornbridge. That all changed when second-hand equipment was installed in an old stonemason’s workshop in the grounds and two brewers were recruited - Italian food scientist Stefano Cossi and Scot-tish brewing graduate Martin Dickie.

Reminiscent of children being given little

The perfecT pinTInnovation, Passion and Knowledge

‘There was no grand plan, in fact there has never been a grand plan’

By Rebecca Cowell

chemistry experiment sets, the pair were given a free hand to brew what they wanted. A trial and error system was officially in place but to everyone’s surprise Thornbridge’s Jaipur took top prize at the Sheffield Beer Festival – only two months after it was first brewed.

Taking a swig of the famous Jaipur beer, nostalgia of the first ever pint sets in. Sitting in a living room at a family party, the deco-rations lightening up the room and the wrap-ping paper ripped in the middle of the carpet. The parents hand you a tall glass of Carling and tell you to ‘be sensible.’ It’s disgusting though. If only it was a Jaipur things might have been different. The flavours would have been savoured, thanks to its one of a kind taste at that time.

“Most people didn’t give us much of a chance but now the market has moved on and there are some very good breweries out there producing their equivalents of Jaipur,” Simon says.

After only 12 months at the grade II listed hall, Thronbridge were struggling to cope with the increased demand their newly found reputation was giving them.

‘It was a bit of good fortune, and some

great people and you can never under estimate that,” Alex says, like a school teacher remind-ing pupils that when an opportunity arises be prepared and grab it with both hands.

“We made some great beers, put in a lot of time and effort and raised the profile of the brewery. We’ve already exported to Europe, East Asia and the Far East, and see export as a major part of our next stage.”

Two miles up the road, in a little village, a £2million state-of-the-art automated brewery was created to take on the task of increasing Thornbridge’s productivity.

We made some great beers, put in a lot of time and effort

and raised the profile

“See that truck there?” Alex points to a red Toyota Hilux that’s in the car park. “That was how we use to distribute our beers. We use to but as many casks as we could on the back of that and drive to every pub we could on a tank of petrol to get landlords to try our beer.”

As Alex opens the door the smell of hops and yeast pierces the fresh winter air. It’s intense, but not overpowering. More like one of those Glade spray air fresheners. It’s a surprise but you appreciate it after a while and don’t notice it. To the right is a teenager, no older than 19, washing the casks ready for them to be recycled and sent back out. He stops for a second to change the song on his green Ipod Shuffle and then gets back on with his repetitive job.

Straight ahead are four gleaming stainless steel containers, with a combined capacity of 800 litres. It’s a technophobes worst night-mare with automated water valves, one of only five prototype Hop Backs in the world and a ‘helios’ Lauter Tun mashing system. A maze of pipes, with dials and knobs every few yards, lines the walls, so that the brewers can constantly check the pressure and amount of hot and cold water being added. It looks like a collection of giant kettles.

“Has laziness started to creep in with all this modern technology doing the work for you?” asking one of the brewers as he sits in his office overlooking the process unfolding before him.

He snaps, instinctively defending brewers up and down the country. “No it hasn’t. The mentality is exactly the same here as it was at the Hall. All that has changed is that we’ve got more technology. Brewers are chefs. Put a chef in a state-of-the-art kitchen and he will produce better food. It’s the same with our brewers and our beer.

“You still need to rely on the skills as a

We could see beyond that and in the brewing world that

was quite innovative

Hall today, gone tomorrow: The workshop under construction Protoype production: The innovative ‘Helios’ Lauter tun and

Magicians behind the magic: The Thornbridge team

To find out more about Thornbridge, including their range of award winning beers, a picture gallery of the brewery and information about The Greystones log on to www.theecclesallpost.co.uk

Brewers are chefs. Put a chef in a state-of-the-art kitchen and he will produce better food. It’s the same with our brewers

One freezing December night, walking past factories used in World War II for building DP batteries, it’s time to meet a man who created one of the most

internationally renowned breweries in the country.

brewer. Yes the technology opens and closes valves and helps with the temperature but that’s it really.

“This plant can brew up to 25 times a week, 10 times more than we could at the hall. The technology allows us brewers to do what we do best. We are working on things now that the world of beer has never seen.”

The tour guide leaves as he gets a phone call from a major super market chain about stocking their beer. Looking over you can see UK Brewer of the year Stefano Cossi franti-cally checking levels in his personal lab. He explains how the art of being a good brewer is to never be completely satisfied with how something tastes and to constantly push the boundaries. Stefano still spends time at Thornbridge Hall, where brewing takes place twice a week.

“We use the hall for our tropical ales and our research and development work. I can go there and experiment.” Stefano says with a smile across his face. You can immediately tell he’s a born perfectionist. He heads to one of the main tanks, twists the nozzle about an eighth of an inch, looks back and nods, “that’s

better.” Most striking though is how few people

there are involved in the business. There are only 17 employees working full time but they are estimating to brew two million pints this year. Impressive isn’t a strong enough word.

“Did you want a drink or anything?” Mat-thew Clarke, an experienced brewer, inter-rupts. Before heading off to the kitchen he shouts over the balcony to everyone on the floor. Despite having a broken ankle, Mat-thew limps over to the kitchen and makes the group some much needed refreshments. After all they have been here for almost 12 hours. It’s like a family, Jim, Alex and Simon are the parents. Stefano and the other brewers are the brothers that have gained life experiences and the younger employees, look up to them and are growing parallel to the brewery’s success.

Peering through one door, the famous Maris Otter malt is collecting in a bag. The storage room is deserted, it’s deathly quiet, a paradox to the noise coming from the factory. Entering the room, as if it was storing ancient Egyptian artefacts, some of the famous malt is scattered on the floor. There are both five and 10mm pellets that resemble nothing more exciting than rabbit food. It’s amazing to think that such an array of simple ingredients are used to create the pure tasting beer Jaipur.

Alex returns and it looks like the conver-sation with the supermarket went well as. “So what’s happening with the Greystones Pub? Was that another impulsive decision to combat a problem?” trying to figure out if the brewery relies on these quick moments of ‘madness.’

“In most pubs the brewery is at the whim of the landlord. If they want to take your beer they can but they can decide. So one of the ways you can get round that is own pubs,” Alex shrugs his shoulders, nonchalantly.

“Jim grew up in the area and it was re-nowned as a major venue for folk music, like Billy Connelly. But the public lost interest in it and it became a bit run down.

“We could see beyond that and in the brew-ing world that was quite innovative, opening up our own pub.”

You wouldn’t expect anything else from them.

“We can do everything we can to make the best beer we can and give it to the pub and then it’s ultimately up to the pub whether your beer gets sold. We eliminated that problem.

“In the past we have had people ring up and say where can we get your beers? And I’ve had to say you can’t but now I can say, ‘well you can get it here and here.’ It’s nice not only that they ring up to ask for our beers but that I can tell them where they can get it.”

Leaving the brewery with a complimentary bottle of Thornbridge’s award winning beer and a business handshake, it’s obvious Alex is proud of how the company has snowballed over such a small space of time. He enjoys be-ing a part of it, especially since day one. There is no doubt about it that Thornbridge will con-tinue to grow and that everyone involved in the company, old and new, are aware that this company can change the face of brewing for years to come.