Barnsley Chronicle
STOPPING THE YOBS IN THEIR TRACKS...
YOBS who persistently use illegal off-road bikes to cause misery in communities will be targeted through a fresh approach by every neighbourhood policing team in Barnsley in a bid to finally stamp out their behaviour, the Chronicle can...
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Hi-tech fight against the fly-tippers
BRAZEN fly-tippers who dump waste at a local wind farm have been warned they will be caught out thanks to the introduction of new robotised security. Late last year, fly-tippers smashed through a gate before unloading their rubbish at EDF’s Park...
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Blind Lee hopes to inspire others with sight loss
A BARNSLEY man who lost his sight overnight after battling sepsis is set to dance independently again for the first time since the life-changing setback – and he’s hoping to inspire others to find ‘light in the darkness’. Five years ago Lee Roberts’...
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Illegal cigs shop forced to shut
A MINI market has been issued with a three-month closure order by the council after a year-long investigation revealed an array of criminal offences including the discovery of more than 200,000 illegal cigarettes. Lidia Mini Market, based on Sheffield...
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Medals gifted to museum
MUSEUM curators were delighted to accept local war medals given to a Barnsley Pal to add to its collection documenting the town’s wartime history. The medals, donated by Couns Joe Hayward and Mayor of Barnsley Dave Leech, were awarded to Private...
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Song will be Joshua’s legacy
A CHARITY single featuring lyrics written by a young Barnsley boy who died in 2018 is to be released to raise vital funds for two local organisations. Joshua Barton, ten, suffered a fatal asthma attack at Hesley Wood Scout Activity Centre when he was...
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The message is clear: NO to fracking here
SWATHES of Barnsley’s countryside identified as being at risk from fracking will be protected for future generations – after council bosses announced a plan to lobby the government for a permanent ban. At a motion that will be discussed at the full...
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Bravery award for have-a-go hero Evan
A HEROIC teenager who sprang into action when a machete-wielding robber stole a pensioner’s handbag has been hailed a hero by South Yorkshire Police bosses who gave the youngster a rarely-given award for his immense act of bravery. Evan Blythe, 15,...
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‘LIFE WILL NEVER BE THE SAME’
A YOUNG Barnsley woman is determined to rebuild her life after being left for dead and suffering a broken neck in a hit-and-run road accident. Katie Cutts, 24, from Cundy Cross, says she had so much to look forward to after opening a beauty salon in...
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£1.7m parking cost for hospital visitors and staff
A DEAR friend of Dickie Bird is embarking on a campaign to secure the late cricket umpire a posthumous knighthood. Following Dickie’s funeral – which took place at St Mary’s Church on Sunday – former councillor and MP Jeff Ennis revealed his intention...
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Police probe drone drops
POLICE have launched an investigation after a drone reportedly began dropping tins of soup from the sky near a stables in Middlecliffe – much to the owner’s frustration. It’s reported that on Sunday morning, a drone was seen in the Middlecliffe area...
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Justice at last for abuse victims
A BRAVE man and a woman who finally reported the callous abuser who subjected them to sexually motivated assaults in their childhood have spoken out after he was sentenced – seven years after their campaign for justice began. Darton man Harry Spacey,...
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Family donate knife arch to school
BOXING champion Callum Simpson has thrown his weight behind a new project to help the town’s homeless people. The Homeless and Inclusion Health Outreach Team is a joint partnership between Barnsley Council, Barnsley Recovery Steps and the South West...
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Two MPs learn about impact BIADS is having in the town
TWO Barnsley MPs recently paid a visit to BIADS to see first-hand the invaluable services that the charity provides. BIADS offers a wide range of support for people living with dementia, as well as their carers, families, and friends. Barnsley North...
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Roses will soon be in full bloom
THREE striking new sculptures which cost more than £2m arrived in Barnsley town centre on Wednesday ahead of their threeweek installation process. Known as the ‘Yorkshire Roses’, the central sculpture stands at 15 metres tall while two smaller...
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Michael is half the man he used to be
AT 30 stones Michael Steer’s ambition of running a marathon was just a pipe dream – but after shedding more than half his body weight in just three years he’s set to turn those dreams into a reality next month. The 40-year-old from Wombwell admits...
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Molly, 10, lands role in Hollywood blockbuster film
YOUNG actress Molly Cartwright has landed herself a starring role in Hollywood’s biggest horror movie franchise – despite not even being old enough to watch the film in cinemas. The ten-year-old Penistone actress plays the part of Shannon Smurl in The...
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Praise for ‘have-a-go’ footballers
A LOCAL football team has been praised by its chairman after players stepped in to save an elderly gentleman who was being attacked by a gang of youths at the weekend. Worsbrough Bridge Football Club travelled to Chorley on Saturday for their game in...
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More homes STILL needed
GOVERNMENT planning bosses’ ‘low confidence’ in Barnsley Council’s projected numbers for new houses being built in the coming years has been laid bare in a new report which confirmed the town is not on track to deliver its target. The Planning...
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‘DON’T LET RAILWAY PLANS HIT BUFFERS’
PLEAS have been made to revive a once-popular heritage railway which attracted visitors from across the globe – after one of its long-standing volunteers urged authorities to act. Harry Stenton began volunteering at Elsecar Heritage Railway in...
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Dad vows he’ll carry on trips to keep son’s memory alive
A GRIEVING dad who lost his young son in a freak road traffic collision is determined to keep his memory alive – and is set to embark on a special trip this weekend to keep their shared passion for football close to his heart. Edward Fallon, known to...
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FAMILY’S SECOND HEARTBREAK
THE partner of a young Barnsley dad who died just weeks after his cousin says the family have been overwhelmed with the support of the community following the two heartbreaking tragedies. Ricky Warden died in his sleep aged 33 on June 8, having showed...
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SCHOOL FAILS THE TEST...
EVERY pupil at one primary school who is due to start secondary school in September failed to meet the ‘expected standard’ for writing in their SATs. A total of 22 year six pupils at St Helen’s Catholic Primary School in Hoyland – part of the Corpus...
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‘I STARTED SAYING MY PRAYERS...’
A BOSNIAN refugee brought to Barnsley more than 30 years ago by a Dodworth couple who risked their own lives to smuggle him out of his war-torn homeland says he has never forgotten the love of Barnsley people. Riad ‘Riki’ Terzic hid in a mattress in...
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Parents to get uniform cash boost
A UNIQUE scheme to give EVERY parent in the town a voucher to help pay for their child’s school uniform will be influential in supporting families during the cost-of-living crisis, bosses behind the scheme say. The project is part of a £2.8m funding...
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Approval will lead to five villages ‘merging into one’
FIVE Barnsley villages will ‘lose their identities’ after the council’s planning board approved plans for work to start on the town’s largest-ever development this week, according to a councillor who voted against the proposals. The MU1 site is the...
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‘Abomination’ set for approval
A BITTER battle over plans to build more than 1,500 homes along the M1 corridor is set to end next week – after Barnsley Council’s planning bosses earmarked what is the town’s largest-ever development for approval. Known as MU1, the 122-hectare site –...
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Success in years-long safety fight
AN almost decade-long campaign which fought to reduce the speed limit on a road where drivers were clocked at more than 70mph past a school has finally ended – after an official order to approve the scheme came into force to protect...
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Film crew takes over town hall as cameras roll
■ BARNSLEY Town Hall has been taken over by a Channel Four crew for the filming of an upcoming television drama. Late author Barbara Taylor Bradford’s 1979 novel, A Woman of Substance, is being turned into an eight-part series starring national...
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Sixth takeaway approved – despite concerns
A SIXTH takeaway on just a 60-yard stretch of one town centre street is set to be created after plans were approved by the council earlier this week – despite its own public health team objecting to the application. There are currently five takeaways...
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Historians bid to trace family of NUM official
A COUNCILLOR has teamed up with a group of historians in the hope of finding the relatives of a renowned Barnsley man. Herbert Smith, a former general secretary of the Mineworkers Federation of GB, died in 1938 at his desk in the NUM offices on...
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Surge in term-time holiday fines for parents
■ A HUGE spike in parents being fined for taking their children out of school for unauthorised term-time holidays has been revealed – and more than 2,000 have fallen foul in less than a year. Since September 2024, Barnsley Council has issued 2,300...
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Family’s grief as ‘fighter’ Alex dies, aged 29
THE family of a young mum who died on Easter Sunday say they were left overwhelmed by the support they received during a minute’s applause in memory of their daughter at a football match last weekend. Former child model Alex Warden, 29, was ‘funny,...
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Wax on, wax off for fundraising father
FATHER Darren Percival is set to get himself into a sticky situation this evening as he waxes his legs for his church’s fundraising appeal. St John the Baptist Church in Cudworth has been facing structural issues that are particularly affecting the...
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‘CONVEYOR BELT OF CARNAGE’
A ‘SUPERGRAN’ from Barnsley who has travelled to war-torn Gaza twice to save people’s lives has been praised by King Charles – but she admits her family wish she’d have taken up knitting instead. Chris Hunter is a theatre nurse who has worked with...
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£2m cost of council’s senior management team
■ BARNSLEY Council’s highest-earning employees collectively cost the town’s taxpayers more than £2m in wages and pensions in a single year, new figures released this week revealed. The Taxpayers’ Alliance’s ‘Town Hall Rich List’ compiled a list of...
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Applause from all sides as councillor outlines ordeal
A BRAVE councillor spoke emotionally about her own experiences of sexual assault yesterday while calling on the council to work more on early intervention to prevent the root causes of violence against women and girls. Coun Leyla Nayeri, of the...
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Casualty targets still being missed
LESS than 60 per cent of patients who arrived at A and E at Barnsley Hospital last month were seen within four hours. The NHS standard is for 95 per cent of patients to be seen within four hours. However, as part of a recovery plan, the health service...
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Borough not hitting new home targets
TARGETS to build new housing across Barnsley have not been hit. A report, which looks into quarters one, two and three of the financial year, recorded ‘red’ ratings which signifies anticipated builds have not been reached. The third quarter’s 164...
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Football pub wins last-minute reprieve
A COMMUNITY is celebrating after a two-centuries-old pub – closely tied with the origins of Barnsley Football Club – was saved from being turned into housing at the last minute following a public outcry. Just last month it was reported that the Dove...
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Yobs crackdown welcomed by MP
SPIRALLING reports of antisocial behaviour due to yobs causing misery in communities across Barnsley is set to be reversed – after the police were handed greater powers to tackle those responsible. Antisocial behaviour – which encompasses everything...
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Third of kids show dental decay signs
A THIRD of five-year-old children in Barnsley have dental decay, new figures suggest. The Office for Health Improvement and Disparities data relates to fiveyear-olds with any enamel and dental decay. It reveals an estimated 33.6 per cent of five year...
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Fury as death crash driver gets early release
THE parents of a 25-yearold motorcyclist who died in Worsbrough in 2023 say they’re ‘devastated’ after his killer’s sentence was significantly reduced last week. Aaron Smith, of Hoyland, died while travelling on his motorcycle on Park Road,...
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Proud grandad John will be cheering on granddaughter
WHILE John Cooper’s granddaughter – 17-year-old biathlon starlet Charlotte Mincher – may have grown up in Canada, he’s maintained an unbreakably strong connection with her and will soon be jetting off to Sweden to watch her represent Great Britain. In...
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Watchdog puts home in special measures
A BARNSLEY care home has been plunged into special measures by the Care Quality Commission after inspectors found a wide range of issues – ranging from residents in dirty clothes to staff not being recruited ‘safely’. Orchard Views on Gawber Road...
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‘Tarn’ to deliver American dream
FASHION retailer ASOS is set to serve its customers in the US from its Barnsley site, it has been revealed. From the second half of the 2025 financial year, US customers will be served from ASOS’s automated UK fulfilment centre near Little...
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Firm fined for failing to protect its workers
■ A BUSINESS which failed to protect its workers from inhaling toxic dust at its manufacturing site has been hit with a five-figure fine after court proceedings were brought following an investigation by the Health and Safety Executive. Warmsworth...
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Another Big Mac?
ANOTHER McDonald’s and a Starbucks branch could soon open on the outskirts of Barnsley. Plans for the development on the A635 at Goldthorpe have been submitted to the council. Access to the development will be provided via the road constructed for...
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Indie gets THE best Christmas present
A YOUNG girl received the best Christmas present she could have asked for this week – after declaring herself cancer-free by ‘ringing the bell’ at Sheffield Children’s Hospital. Indie Violet Senior, ten, from Athersley North, was diagnosed with...
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NINE YEARS FOR ARSONIST
A MAN who attempted to set fire to a hotel housing hundreds of asylum seekers has received the joint-longest sentence of anyone involved with the riots that swept the country this summer. Levi Fishlock built barricades and set fires at the Holiday Inn...
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£264,000 cost of bin lorry collisions
THE cost of accidents involving council bin lorries in the last three years topped more than £260,000, the Chronicle has learned. There have been 72 separate incidents involving bin lorry collisions across the borough – with the total cost being...
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THE VOICE OF Reds fan meets his lifesavers
A REDS fan who spent more than 50 days in hospital after suffering a cardiac arrest as he left a match has finally met the supporters who helped save his life. Michael Tunnicliffe, 72, originally from Wombwell but now living in North Lincolnshire, had...
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Strictly stars hot foot it to town to meet students
Strictly stars JB Gill and Lauren Oakley at Peachy Dance Studios. STRICTLY Come Dancing stars JB Gill and Lauren Oakley made a surprise visit to a local dance studio this week ahead of their big show tomorrow. The fan-favourite pair made a special...
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Lily giving back to life-saving hospital
Lily Atkinson who is determined to help the hospital that saved her life. A BARNSLEY College student who miraculously beat cancer as a baby is determined to give something back to the hospital that helped save her life – and she’s now asking for...
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105,000 PEOPLE BACK CLAIRE
PROUD MOMENT: Claire Throssell and her supporters with her petition outside 10 Downing Street. INSPIRATIONAL Claire Throssell MBE hand-delivered a 105,000-strong petition to Downing Street this week urging the government to put an end to avoidable...
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THE VOICE OF Ex-miners finally get justice on pensions
A HISTORIC injustice which has kept thousands of former Barnsley miners from receiving their full pension has finally been remedied – and cabinet minister Ed Miliband headed to Barnsley to celebrate the change with union officials who have been...
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£20m cost of bringing hospital up to scratch
POIGNANT tributes were paid to two brothers who died in a house fire on the tenth anniversary of the tragedy. A candlelit vigil was held at Barnsley Town Hall on Tuesday evening to remember Claire Throssell’s sons – 12-year-old Jack and nine-yearold...
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Town is leading way on gang crime
EMERGING threats posed by youngsters in so-called urban street gangs – seen by police as a precursor to more serious drug-peddling crime groups – are being tailed by officers in Barnsley. South Yorkshire Police revealed officers have established a...
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Poignant moment for John’s family as TV show airs...
THE family of a local mining hero gathered around to celebrate his life as an episode of TV show The Repair Shop he recorded prior to his death finally aired on Wednesday. John Beard, alongside close friend and fellow former miner John Greaves – who...
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Red carpet is rolled out for film premiere
Hospice chief executive Martine Tune hands over the reel to Rob Younger. Picture: Charley Atkins. BARNSLEY people are being urged to come out and show their support for the hospice by attending the premiere of a music video featuring staff, patients...
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Rock star treatment at last for Alan, 80
CROONER Alan Lodge has found his smile again despite a terminal cancer diagnosis after his family rallied around him to help release his first music album – at the age of 80. Alan, from Cudworth, started singing aged just three and shot to stardom in...
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Friends raise money for holiday dad never got to take
FURIOUS pensioners who live in a housing complex reserved for disabled military veterans fear their homes are being taken away despite a protective covenant being in place – after the armed forces charity responsible for them announced their imminent...
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