INTRUDERS have repeatedly entered the grounds of a secondary school to “gain access to” and take photos of students, a disturbing report has revealed.
Guiseley School said there’d been several incidents involving trespassers over the last three years, including one which saw two men try to get to pupils on a sports day.
On that occasion, they were foiled by an on-site police officer who escorted them away from the grounds.
The incidents were revealed in a council planning report, as the school has asked for planning permission to build a 2.4m perimeter fence around its playing fields.
Bosses at the secondary say it’s a necessary measure to protect its pupils, as syringes and broken glass have also been left behind on the grass.
The report, which will go before Leeds councillors next week, included a statement from the school justifying why the fence is necessary.
It said: “Having no fencing around the school playing fields means the potential for intruders to access (the) site is a real risk the school has to mitigate against on a daily basis.
“This is not an unrealised concern. A number of intruder issues have taken place over the last three years.”
Listing the incidents in more detail, the statement added:
• “July 2020 – Two male adult intruders attempted to infiltrate the school sports day attempting to gain access to students. Fortunately, the school’s ‘Safer Schools police officer’ was on site at the time and able to escort them off-site.
• August 2021 – Male adult intruders entered the field to take pictures of students
• July 2022 – Male adult taking pictures of students attending Healthy Holidays Club and sharing them on social media.”
The school also said that pupils had been injured during PE lessons by shattered glass and drinks cans left behind on the fields.
Dog mess is also an “increasing” problem, while quadbikes regularly churn up the school football pitches, leaving them unusable for several days.
The school’s statement added: “Dogs are also regularly let loose on the fields during lessons/extracurricular and the danger that poses students in terms of possible attacks/bites is obvious.
“Owners fail to see the issue when we ask them to both put their dog on a lead and remove them from the playing fields.
“These people can sometimes be aggressive with staff.”
The school is located on Fieldhead Road in Guiseley, but its playing fields are situated off Bradford Road, where only a dry stone wall and a small gate separate them from the public highway.
A total of 26 people have objected to the plans for the fence, with some arguing the land has been “used by the community for decades,” according to the report.
A sign on the fields bans dog walkers, but asks other members of the public to “respect the area” and take litter away with them.
Others have argued the fencing would be “unsightly”, “oppressive” and “overbearing”.
However, council officers have recommended that planning permission is granted for the scheme when councillors meet to discuss it on October 27.
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