Harrogate Police have sought to re-assure following the stabbings in Valley Gardens and near to the Hydro Swimming Pool.
Inspector Penny Taylor, of Harrogate Police, said:
There have been two serious assaults in Harrogate over the last few weeks, and I recognise that these have alarmed some people.
The two incidents are unrelated and we’ve made arrests in connection with both offences. I’d ask people not to speculate or raise unnecessary alarm on social media, and allow the investigations to take their course.
It’s important to remember that Harrogate is, and remains, a really safe place to live and work. Incidents like these are, thankfully, very rare in our town.
I can reassure residents that we’re working hard, with our local authority partners, to deal with young people who are at risk of getting involved in crime. Neighbourhood Policing officers have been sending letters and carrying out home visits to speak to some parents face-to-face. In addition, we’ve increased police patrols across the town, and have been using powers such as dispersal orders to deal with any issues before they escalate.
Although the incident on Monday took place near the Hydro, it is not connected to recent anti-social behaviour in the area, which we continue to work hard to tackle.
We’ve also received great support from residents – whether it’s by reporting suspicious activity on 101, or providing information about ongoing investigations, and I’m very grateful for that. Please continue to work with us to keep Harrogate safe, and do contact us if you have any concerns or questions.
I’ve lived in Harrogate for 2 years, in that time there has been, 3 stabbings in a known drug den on Unity Grove, 2 stabbings on Kings road, a stabbing on Roberts cst a woman settings herself on fire on Skipton road, 2 masked muggings at knife point on Skipton road, 2 stabbings in Valley gardens and now the one near the hydro and probably a few others I’ve missed..
For such a small town, this is an awful lot of extremely violent crime so “It’s important to remember that Harrogate is, and remains, a really safe place to live and work. Incidents like these are, thankfully, very rare in our town.” sounds like a load of rubbish to me.
in your two years, how often have you walked round Harrogate and had no issues? It’s a relatively safe place, the media are pouncing on stabbing stories as it’s a national issue. Just because things happen to be reported more doesn’t mean it’s worse than it’s ever been.
Police numbers have been slashed due to budget cuts. Mental health care has been slashed due to budget cuts. No one to blame for this except the government. Want change? Vote change.
I rarely see the police anymore, except for the police camera vans that is. They’re everywhere fighting serious crime thankfully ?
The camera vans are normally staffed by civilians, not police officers. Don’t blame police for the cuts, blame the government, who have slashed budgets relentlessly.