Stonnall Road Bail Hostel
September 2, 2008I have been made aware by a couple of my constituents of an incident that occured in the Druids Heath estate over the weekend.
The situation with the Bail Hostel is still pretty much as I wrote here: http://mikeflower.wordpress.com/2007/09/03/stonnall-road-bail-hostel-update/
We want to close the bail hostel and do not believe that it should be in a residential area of Aldridge. Myself and Richard Shepherd will be meeting with the new head of the probation service shortly to press him to advance plans to move and close the hostel.
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Okay, just to say something controversial, but this hostel has been open for 10 years and there has been ONE incident. That is pretty damn good odds really.
End of the day the hostel has to be somewhere and I am sure if it wasn’t in a middle class area and was in Caldmore or Birchills then it wouldn’t be getting such good press.
Why are the residents demanding to know who is in the hostel?
If there are Paedophiles inside will they suddenly start to look after their children?
I think people need to wind their neck in and and get off their soap boxes, that old skeletor dude was almost frothing at the mouth, bless him.
A petition on the downing street site doesn’t mean anything either, you will never get as many signatures as the “Jeremy Clarkson for Pm” one anyway.
I just wanted to point out that I have signed a petition before on the downing street site which has meant something as something got changed as a result of it, so it is worth signing if you believe in what you are signing about
I think for this mom she has no choice but to do something, how can you just stand by and do nothing when your child has been sexually assaulted.
She is just wanted to protect her child and to not see it happen again to someone else. Please spare a thought for this family as they come to terms with what has happened
I signed a petition on the downing street website for everyone to get a free monkey on the NHS. hmmm.
Anyway. I do feel terribly sorry for the family who are involved. But I think that it is a bit of a knee jerk reaction to blame the bail hostel as a whole. We have to remember that this is an isolated incident. There has only been one incident in ten years of it being open. Even if they only have ten residents a year that is only a 1% problem and I would bet my bottom dollar that they have oodles more than that.
Maybe we need to look at ourselves and the way that criminals are treated. Maybe there should be more rehabilitation and support?
I don’t profess to have all the answers, but I do know Richard Shepard being on the TV acting hysterically doesn’t do anyone any favours. I voted for him at the last election, and certainly won’t again.
Being a resident of Aldridge for only a short time,i can only say that one incident in 10 year’s is one to many.Being a farther of a young daughter myself i find it outrages to think that people think that one incident is o.k.Wherever it happens it SHOULD NOT happen on a residents door step,so let’s nip it in the bud and get the place (BAIL HOSTEL) closed down and removed to a more remote area.
Firstly, I would like to express my sympathies to the family concerned.
As a family man and a resident of Aldridge, I can honestly say that I am pleasantly surprised to see the publicity created by a few people from the Aldridge area in trying to get the hostel closed.
To have articles in all the local papers, ITV (Central News – lead item) and local radio is great going. Max Clifford could not have done a better job.
Of course the hostel must be shut down; one incident involving a child is one to many in my eyes. Anyone with children will sympathize with this view.
Furthermore it is refreshing to see MP Richard Shepherd getting worked up about the hostel. It is uplifting to see an MP care so much about his constituents. I can now see why he is the MP for Aldridge. If the government seemed to care half as much as this man may be Great Briton would be GREAT again.
In response to the views above, Barry Cat muttering on about Jeremy Clarkson for PM, says it all. Maybe you should contact Sally Morgan (who signed a petition to vote for everyone to get a free monkey on the NHS)
Together you could start a petition to be the new Chuckle Brothers. You have my vote!!
This is just one incident that has been reported.
I wonder how many go un-reported or crimes that are not solved.
I remember a couple of years ago a man from the hostel was hanging around outside the schools. Luckily the schools have a good warning system and rang each other.
Also if you read page 3 on this weeks advertiser a convicted rapist was found hiding under the bed of a woman in Tantarra Street. Thankfully he ran off. It states in the article that he was registered at a bail hostel in Walsall. To my knowledge there is only one bail hostel in Walsall – Stonnall Road!
This is the kind of issue that people need to get on their soap boxes about – not crooked pavements or campaign posters that have been on lamp posts for too long.
One incident is far too many.
As for Richard Shepherd MP he is fantastic. If the country had a few more MP’s like him it wouldn’t be in the sorry state it is now.
A note to you all…I am the mother of that little girl. Thankyou for the kind comments its much appreciated. For those of you who feel this is good odds I find you deeply sad. If this was your child you would do anything to protect them and this is the way I am protecting my only daughter. We are getting media involved as I want all of Aldridge to know about bail hostel and the people who are inside. It is not getting good press because of the area, and I find that idea just so stupid. It is getting in the media as we have made that effort to get it in there so People can know what sort of people are housed in there. This is the only incident that has been REPORTED, but one is too many
The recent event relating to Aldridge bail hostel is not the first and indeed not a new issue. This has been an ongoing issue from at least 1996 when a high court ruling decided it should be closed.
Richard Shepherd MP (Aldridge-Brownhills) has clearly been fighting this issue for at least 12 years at the highest level to protect the local community.
You may be very shocked by the nature of the people who could have been placed in the bail hostel if Richard Shepherd had not taken action over the years despite limitations placed upon him.
Click on “Alan” above to read more on Aldridge website.
She is a little girl, not a teenager or an adult who could have potentially fought back – SHE IS A LITTLE GIRL.
Would you like to try and explain to your child why the nasty man did what he did to her? some how I think you would rather not!
For those of you who are playing the odds game here, if it were your child, YOUR flesh and blood would you play the odds game with them – some how I don’t think so.
As for the bail hostel it needs to go. It is a risk to the community too far. There has got to be a better way of housing these criminals than putting them in the middle of a housing estate.
There is also an old peoples home opening next door, would you want you Mum, Dad, Nan, Grandad etc living there? and if you did would go and visit them with your kids, letting them run round in the garden knowing who is next door?
As Sludge said 1 is too many – it should not have happened in the first place
I cannot beleive how shallow minded some people are!! Barry Cat YOU should be the one to WIND YOUR NECK IN and Sally I can only presume you have no children.I would also vote for the CHUCKLE BROTHERS OF ALDRIDGE.
These two young girls were not out alone, and as the adult involved in this incident I wouldn’t want any one to go through what we are going through. How many of you WOULD LIKE TO KNOW YOU ARE BEING STALKED WITH THE ANTICIPATION OF KNOWING SOMETHING AWFUL COULD (and did) HAPPEN AT ANY MINUTE.
It is also great and comforting to know that there are people in our community that care about each other and support what we are trying to achieve in wanting the bail hostel closed and re-located.
It would be great to see all you supporters outside the Hostel on Saturday, even if it is only 10 minutes of your time.
The protest starts This Saturday September 13th at 12:00 outside Stonnall Road Bail Hostel. We are hoping that we have in excess of 100 people. If we achieve this, Local Television and media will be covering the event. The placards are ready, the music will be blasting and all we need now is YOUR SUPPORT. The 5 councilors for the Aldridge area are turning up to show their support.
On speaking to local residents at the schools, it is obvious that we have been kept in the dark by the Probation service and the Home Office in regards to what type of offender stays at the hostel.
Let me say first of all, it is not a bail Hostel for people awaiting the courts. (The innocent until proven guilty argument does not wash here) The proper name is “Stonnall Road Approved Premises” This mean it houses criminal who are out on license, due to (1) the prisons being to full (2) some chap deciding that they will not repeat offend. This is not the case as there have been a number of incidents reported over the last 12 months.
Stonnall Road Approved Premises are primarily for Sex Offenders. This includes RAPISTS & PAEDOPHILES from Catorgy A Prisons (the highest rank of prison there is).
My aim is to get Stonnall Road Approved Premises closed down. It is also my aim to let the local community know what is happening on there door step. Jack Straw and the probation service will not tell us who is being placed there.
So I and a few others will take up the fight along with Richard Shepherd M.P and the Councilors.
Please tell everyone to turn up on Saturday 13 September @1200 outside the Bail Hostel, Stonnall Road, Aldridge, Walsall, WS9, (off Walsall Wood Road).
I have posted an update on my thoughts here: http://mikeflower.wordpress.com/2008/09/11/further-thoughts-on-the-bail-hostel-approved-premises/
So there was a responsible adult present at the attack?
Don’t feel we are getting the full details , this was never mentioned in the news, just what happened?
The chuckle brothers, thats really clever, well done, your wit has cut me to the core.
Isn’t Sally a female name? Can’t be Brothers then can we?
If your argument falls to childish name calling you really are onto a loser
I wasn’t “muttering” about Jeremy Clarkson for PM if you actually bothered to read, I was trying to highlight the powerlessness and impotency of the downing street petitions
Find me ONE petition that has had effect
“Stop the super mosque”
“Bring back the red arrows” (they still exist by the way)
And other such high brow topics all started by daily mail reading middle classed busy bodies with nothing better to do with their time other than wish life was as good as back in the days of the Empire.
You may as well start a facebook campaign.
I ask again just what would you do if there was a peadophile living in there?
Burn it down?
As much as it must infuriate you all we live in a civilised society with a legal system we all must adhere to.
Where is this magical remote location the bail hostel must be moved to? What happens when the local residents there don’t want it near them?
May I suggest some light reading to you all? A bit of Chomsky would do you all well and maybe keep you out of the bewildered herds.
Barry Cat = complete to$$er
Probably unmarried, no friends and no children.
People like you who seem to have all the answers (?) or don’t you – I can’t tell, you are just of the opinion that local residents should accept this hostel. Rehablitation? Is this a proven method for sex-offenders? I think not. Castration possobly a more reliable method… your comments make me think along the lines that you may have a common interest in rehablitation methods and integrating offenders back into society (?) – there is no place in society for sex offenders, especially child sex offenders – are you stating otherwise?
Cannot really understand your comment about an adult been present?!
Surely if a person had the nerve to attack a child with an adult present in broad daylight I dread to think what could have happened if the child was out alone.
Im sorry but my number one job as a parent is to protect my child. If it means signing a petition that may never get read, if it means standing outside the hostel with a placard, if it means writing to Jack Straw I will do it. I will do anything and everything I can.
Perhaps if you or Sally who show such empathy and understanding with these poor sex offenders you would like them living at the end of your garden. Any plots of land for sale?
Seriously though, sex offenders should not be housed on a housing estate with such close proximity to primary schools and parks.
Just common sense if you ask me.
I have been reading these comments over the past week or so
and I really find it hard to comprehend your responses and attitude to all this Mr Barry Cat, is it just in your nature to wind people up just for the sake of it? Hope to god your no friend of mine!
Jackie, where are you suggesting that they are housed then?
- You don’t want them near schools. So what radius around a school is going to be excluded?
- You don’t want them near parks, so what radius around a park is going to be excluded?
Where else don’t you want them, oooh, on housing estates, okay so lets exclude all of those, then what next. Oh yes right, shopping centres, there are children in there so we don’t want them there.
It isn’t that I show particular empathy with sex offenders, their actions are abhorent, just I don’t understand the mob mentality which appears to be happening.
It disgusts me that in todays society we are all led to a constant state of fear regarding paedo’s and terrorists. When I was young there was nothing like this in the press and I can never remember my parents warning me about people of this nature. Admittedly I was told about stranger danger, but I was never given the fear that seems to sppear in todays society. I am sure these people existed, so why are you all so hypo about it now?
re: my comments to Barry Cat – same goes for you
Todays society is sadly so very different from years ago.
People used to leave their door open, people respected the police – there was always a local bobby on the beat.
Criminals used to get deserving sentences and would serve the full time – not out on good behaviour or because the prison’s are full!
Sadly respect has all but gone in society. But there are a few of us left that want our children to grow up in a safe and nurturing enviroment. That’s why we will group together and let our voice be heard.
This is where I now draw the line underneath this subject.
We must agree to disagree on this issue. You have your views which I respect, even though I do not agree.
Where have we shown empathy to sexual criminals?
We are asking intelligent questions that none of you are answering nor even trying to answer.
And no there aren’t any plots for sale near me, I know my neighbours either side (by name) but bar that the street is nearly full of strangers .. who knows what heinous crimes any of them (including the neighbours) could have committed, But what right do I have to pry into their lives? (its none by the way)
As I have said before knowing who is in the hostel would count for nothing.
If it was near me I would carry on as normal, after all its the people you don’t know about who are the dangerous ones and no law will ever change this.
There is a Benjamin Franklin quote about losing liberty to gain security that is very apt to all this and its people like you that is pushing this country that way.
You are all nimbys of the worst kind as long as its not near you, you care little about what happens elsewhere
You only care about what affects you and then bleat about the community.
100 people at the demonstration compared to how many thousand people living in Aldridge?
Probably works out at the same probability of the amount of people who have lived in the hostel and committed crime.
If I was a friend of yours would it be over now because I dare to ask questions?
If so I am glad I am no friend of yours.
My job as a parent is also to look after my children, and I can tell you this as long as there was breathe in my lungs nobody would attack mine.
How is society so different? as far as I’m aware this isn’t a new crime, nor is gun, knife, robbery or anything else we are forced to live in a constant state of fear by being constantly told that peados are out there or teenagers will stab us.
Having a bobby on the beat isn’t going to change this, crime will still happen the media will still blow it out of proportion and the circle will continue.
And where are the government meant to build these prisons?
Not anywhere near you thats for sure.
As you say you have your views and I have mine and while we still live in a free country it shall remain so. All I ask is to just once think of a bigger picture.
Removing your problem only creates more elsewhere
Marian Wright Edelman quotation.
When I fight about what is going on in the neighborhood, or when I fight about what is happening to other people’s children, I’m doing that because I want to leave a community and a world that is better than the one I found.
What makes you so special and different that your children are safe from harm.While any parent ’still has breathe in their lungs’ nobody wants harm caused to their child. Like i pointed out this attack happened whilst i was with them and we were walking the dog.
Aturn out of OVER 100 people was very good today considering it was only arranged in a week.
The magistartes court is empty and up for sale, they could be housed there where the police have direct access to it.
By the way there has been many incidents involving these offenders from the hostel, but so far have been brushed under the carpet.
What makes you so special and different that your children are safe from harm.While any parent ’still has breathe in their lungs’ nobody wants harm caused to their child. Like it has been pointed out this attack happened whilst an parent was with them walking the dog.
A turn out of OVER 100 people was very good today considering it was only arranged in a week.
The magistartes court is empty and up for sale, they could be housed there where the police have direct access to it.
By the way, there has been many incidents involving these offenders from the hostel, but so far have been brushed under the carpet.
barry cat i too would like to know why your children are so different from everybody else’s and why wont yours be attacked? Are you saying my daughter put herself out there to be attacked? Are your children immune from the sick people of the world? Are you a superhero? I think not…so what makes you so bloody different from all people…children, teenagers, old people, male, female, just why are you so different.
Like it has been stated a HIGH COURT JUDGE ruled that it was not a safe place to have an approved site, not me, not the bloke next door, not the chuckle brothers, but a high court judge, someone with standing, someone of importance (obviously a bit like yourself or so you think anyway)This is what we want upholding.
Sally morgan…the problem that you cant seem to see is that these people are still serving time…you know like in prison, but the difference being they can wander free between 7 and 11 pm, when you are about, when your children are about, when the elderly man down the road is out, they do not care who or where you are. My point being they are still on prison time and that is where they should still be. My mom in law lives near a prison and that serves no threat to her or my children. It does not worry me when they are there as they are LOCKED up so I say bring it on, build a prison, they cannot get out then and sexually assult my daughter then, they wont put her through what she is going through now, the tears, the knightmare, the id parade, the crown court, for gods sake she is 8 years old and does not deserve any of this.