A man who raped a woman in Arnold has today been jailed for five years.
Robert Hessey, 23, formally of Berridge Road East, Forest Fields, pleaded guilty to rape at Nottingham Crown Court yesterday (Wednesday, August 2).
On Sunday, January 3, 2016 at around 3am, Hessey approached a 46-year-old woman at a bus stop in Arnold whilst she was waiting for a taxi to take her the rest of her journey home.
Hessey asked to share the taxi with the woman and then invited himself into her house where he raped her.
JAILED: Robert Hessey
The judge sentenced him to five years in prison, as well as imposing a restraining order not to approach his victim. He will remain on the sex offenders register indefinitely.
DC Emma Pollard for Nottinghamshire Police said: “Hessey knew that the woman was afraid of him and he abused this as a way of gaining entry into her house.
“There are no excuses for this type of behaviour. There is still a widely perpetrated myth that implicit consent can be given by someone’s actions, such as allowing them into their house.
“This is absolutely unacceptable and, although no sentence could truly reflect the pain Hessey inflicted on this woman, I am pleased with the result.
“I would to thank her for being so brave throughout this case and I hope this shows how seriously these offences are taken.”
An Arnold hair salon is celebrating after one of its top stylists recently made it through to the “Oscars of the hairdressing world”- the British Hairdressing Awards.
Helen Stilwell, from KH Hair in Arnold, stood out from hundreds of entries to make it through in the Eastern Hairdresser of the Year category.
Now in their fourth decade, the awards, hosted by Hairdressers Journal International, and supported by Schwarzkopf Professional, continue to go from strength-to-strength in their aim to celebrate the most diverse and creative of talents in hairdressing.
KH Hair Group Managing Director, Darren Messias, said: “These awards seek to celebrate the very best of British hairdressers, awarding them for their artistic flair and technical skill. This is the second time in three years we have made it to the final and we are thrilled for Helen who has worked so hard to put together some stunning creations.”
Helen is one of the leading members of KH Hair’s Art Team and is regularly involved in session work, shoots, and major industry shows.
Commenting on her success, she said: “I am extremely proud to have been shortlisted for our region. I class the British Hairdressing Awards as one of the hardest competitions in the industry as we are up against some amazingly talented hairdressers so, to get this far, is a massive achievement.”
The winners of the Eastern Hairdresser of the Year and 15 other categories will be announced at The British Hairdressing Awards which will take place at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London on Monday, November 27.
Gedling Borough Council has been granted powers by the court to take possession of a site currently being occupied by a group of travellers in Colwick.
Officers will now visit the Colwick Rectory Recreation Ground today to serve papers for immediate eviction.
If this is not complied with, the council has also asked the court to take action to ensure eviction happens, which court officials will undertake.
The council now believes this eviction will take place within two days.
Following the eviction, the council have said they will clear any debris left behind and also secure the site.
A group of around thirteen caravans set up camp at Colwick Rectory Recreation Ground on July 24.
It is believed they gained access to the site by removing a post in a pathway off Crosslands Meadow.
Eviction letters have already been served on every caravan which gave them them 24 hours to leave the site. Three notices were also placed on the site at the entrances.
PICTURED: Colwick Rectory Recreation Ground
A spokesman for Gedling Borough Council said earlier today: “We have a court hearing on Wednesday, which was the first available date we could get into court.
“We will ask for powers to evict the people on the site and if granted we will then begin proceedings to remove.
He added: “We have provided bins and toilets and have had regular dialogue with the people on site and do not anticipate a significant clear up once they leave. Until the court hears us then unfortunately, there is not much more we can do other than monitor the situation.”
British Gas yesterday announced they are to increase electricity prices by 12.5% from 15 September 15.
Its owner Centrica said the rise will affect 3.1 million customers.
Gas prices are to remain unchanged, but the average annual dual-fuel bill for a typical household on a standard tariff will rise by £76 to £1,120, up by 7.3%.
Centrica said the rise was “a result of transmission and distribution costs and the costs of government policy”.
But the government said its policy costs “could not explain” the rises.
Centrica said the price increase was its first since November 2013, adding that British Gas was one of the last suppliers to raise prices.
The company said it would protect its most “vulnerable customers” against the rise and that British Gas would credit more than 200,000 people on the government’s Warm Home Discount with £76.
What do you think?…
We asked people from across the borough about their thoughts on the latest rise in energy prices.
Lee Roach, from Calverton, said: “This is a real blow. I was really hoping for a fall in prices after a reasonably-hot summer, not a more rises. What will the government do about this? Probably nothing as usual.”
Tam Banks, from Arnold, said: “Wages aren’t rising but energy prices around us are. It’s becoming a real struggle for me now. I just don’t see why it’s allowed.”
Gary Lawrence, from Carlton, was happy about the price rise.
He said: “I work for a rival, so obviously it’s good for business as people will look at switching to us. No idea if the others plan to do the same, but at the moment the phones are buzzing!”
Terri-Anne Hemsley, from Bestwood, said a state supplier should be set up.
She said: “If the government is so angry about this, why not set up their own supplier and undercut the big boys and start a price war. People would sign up if it was cheaper and the money could go back in the public purse”
What do you think about yesterday’s price rise? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below or on our Facebook page
Police are appealing for information following a burglary at an Sherwood off licence during the early hours of this morning (Tuesday 1).
Officers were called to Kubis off licence on Mansfield Road (at the junction with Melrose Street) just before 4am following a report of a burglary.
Offenders forced entry at the rear of the property and stole a quantity of cash, cigarettes and alcohol.
A spokesman for Nottinghamshire Police said: “If you saw or heard anything in relation to this incident or think you can help, please call 101 and quote incident number 75-01082017. Alternatively, if you wish to remain anonymous you can call Crimestoppers free and in confidence on 0800 555 111.”
Assertiveness is about us being able to stand up for our own rights, or those of other people, in a calm and collected way without being aggressive or passive by just saying “yes” when we really don’t mean it. So, assertiveness means getting our point across without being angry, offensive or upsetting the other person. Assertiveness is always respectful to others and ourselves, it allows us to act in our own best interests, to stand up for ourselves without anxiety and to express our honest feelings or personal rights comfortably without denying the rights of others.
We all react aggressively or passively at times and this mostly comes from a lack of self-confidence.
When we react passively, for example, saying “yes” when we want to say “no”, or taking on just one more piece of work, we have a strong need to be liked by others. We are people pleasers and do not, at that point, believe we are equal to the others. We fail to say what we need and want and allow others to take decisions for us and lead us.
Then if we react aggressively we are not taking into account the wants and needs of others. We will not show praise or appreciation of others and often we put others down. Our aggressive response encourages the other person to respond in a non-assertive way, either aggressively or passively. Aggression is not just anger, but can also be the use of humour inappropriately, rushing someone to make a decision, telling someone what to do or simply cutting them out of the discussion. Plain aggression can be really frightening to the person on the receiving end of it.
SAY NO: here are ways to learn to become more assertive
So why aren’t we assertive?
It’s down to our own individual belief systems and self-esteem. Thoughts like “Being nice means going along with others “or “She’ll leave me if I speak up!” keeps us passive. The fear of conflict or feeling inadequate also keeps us quiet and for some the fight or flight reaction is activated and we get stuck in anxiety based flight from speaking out. We could also have the beliefs that “the only way I get heard is to be intimidating” or “do it my way and I know it’ll work out” that lead to dominance and aggression.
Here are some things that may let us know we aren’t assertive enough –
We have to explain ourselves a lot or we constantly find ourselves repeating what we have said to be heard and we over explain ourselves. On the days we can say “no” we have to explain why, who and how instead of simply refusing or declining something.
We say “yes” a lot. Therefore, we are the one at work they will give the time consuming or new project to, not because we are good at it or the best person for it, but because everyone knows that no matter what, we will not refuse. We will also put in the extra hours or the take longest journey to get the job done. We may also moan and complain about this to a few trusted people or just stew on it ourselves.
When we can’t express our true feelings or opinions because we fear the consequences of disagreeing with others. Our fears are much bigger than they need to be e.g.”if I don’t go shopping with her, she’ll never speak to me again”.
We often hate taking risks or stepping outside of our comfort zone., The fear of getting it wrong or other’s opinions of us make us stay in an often uncomfortable place or in a job that we can do so much better than. But, we know what will happen and we don’t have to raise our heads above the parapet.
We are anxious or even fearful about dealing with people in authority and try our best to never spend time with managers etc.
If we go into somewhere like a meeting or home, braced and ready for a fight, with all our defences up, we are getting ready to be aggressive not assertive
When we have an idea someone is out to get us we start to plot our revenge, or their downfall, and talk about them behind their backs this is us being passive-aggressive not assertive.
We can see assertiveness depending on self-esteem and our belief systems, one of the first things to do is to look at those. Write a list of your beliefs about yourself, others and the world e.g. I am terrible at public speaking, everyone else is very good at it and it’s the only way I’ll get on in life – so I won’t bother! Check out how unreasonable your beliefs are, how global they are and what you can do about them.
Then we can work out the situations where we do not stand up for our self. We will be able to see patterns – the kind of people, places, age, authority, work etc.
Is it harder for us to give compliments or criticism, or are both difficult? What do we fear might happen in these situations if we were assertive and compare this with our beliefs and the patterns we have seen.
Then we can start in a small way, asked to be seated somewhere else in a restaurant and work up to bigger things like relationship issues, carefully noting how it felt to be assertive.
Learn to say “no” and set up some boundaries that we will not cross as this is important. Then say “no”. This is not selfish – it is necessary. We also do not have to explain our refusal unless someone asks us to and even then we can decide not to.
We need to go back to those beliefs again, and look at what we really need and want. We should never assume that others will know what we really need, so we need to find a way to express them in a clear, honest and assertive way. If people don’t hear us say them, we need to be repeat them “can I just take you back to…” often works. We need to remember to use the “I” expression in our communication when we are assertive, “I get very upset when you are late for lunch as I feel like we won’t have the time together we both wanted.”
The process of becoming assertive will take time; after all we have been acting either passively or aggressively for some time, so we have to be gentle and forgiving with ourselves. If we don’t get it right this time we can always try again next time.
However from time to time we are too stuck in our belief systems to make that change alone and we need counselling to deal with our anger or low-self-esteem. The counselling directory has many counsellors listed you can use.
NCT’s fleet of new buses with wifi and USB charging points has arrived
They may be red but they are also ‘green.
The Red 44 service is the latest route to benefit from a new fleet of Bio-gas buses which are being introduced by Nottingham City Transport.
Not only are the buses better for the environment, but passengers using the service – which covers Colwick, Netherfield and Gedling, can charge their phones using USB charge points and enjoy a free wi-fi service.
The buses also boast glass staircases to add more light, new higher-quality comfy seats and also audio announcements giving journey information along the route.
The buses are also environmentally friendly too as they are fuelled by Bio-Gas.
Bio-gas is produced naturally through anaerobic digestion, using food waste, farm waste and sewage. The methane emitted from the digestion process is captured, treated and turned into fuel.
Anaerobic digestion doesn’t just produce bio-gas; it also produces a nutrient rich low carbon fertiliser, which helps farmers reduce agricultural greenhouse gas emissions.
A spokesman for Nottingham City Transport said: “Our brand new bio-gas buses are some of the greenest buses on the road and will make a significant reduction to our carbon footprint and improvement to the air quality in Nottingham.
“Bio-gas is a much cleaner fuel to produce and use and these buses emit hardly any particulates (soot) or hydrocarbons. Using bio-gas buses generates a CO2 saving of 84% as well as tailpipe emissions that are cleaner than an equivalent Euro 6 double deck bus.
By fuelling our buses with bio-gas, we’re helping reduce the amount of food, farm and sewage waste going to landfill or not being reused, which produces high volumes of methane when left to decompose naturally. As methane is one of the most potent greenhouse gases, our bio-gas buses will reduce the amount of greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere.
This revamped pub in the ridiculously pretty village of Blidworth Bottoms not only does food extremely well – it’s a proper boozer, too
A traditional country pub nestled on the outskirts of Gedling borough is promising visitors a warm and hearty welcome.
The Fox and Hounds can be found in the tiny (blink-and-you’ll-miss-it), gorgeous village of Blidworth Bottoms, just ten miles from Mapperley.
Located on Rigg Road, this pub – which dates back to the 19th century – already attracts a devoted following who enjoy the superb selection of traditional cask ales and great British pub-grub on offer.
And now following a recent revamp, the venue is now hoping to welcome in those from further afield with the addition of a new Orangery dining area and extra terrace space – making it a perfect destination to relax over the summer.
The outside terrace area
The Fox and Hounds has an extensive menu with a range of traditional light bites and pub classics on offer. Sunday lunches continue to prove popular and their selection of world tapas being offered during the warmer months also wins rave reviews.
But while the food available is more than enough to impress – it’s the setting that’s likely to keep you coming back for more.
The main bar area at the Fox and Hounds in Blidworth Bottoms
The biggest draw of this rural pub is its stunning outdoor area which provides a perfect place to spend some time on a hot summer’s day.
Many visitors like to enjoy a drink and take in the surrounding scenery by grabbing a table on the recently extended outdoor terrace. The family-friendly pub’s huge beer garden is also a real asset for those with children in tow.
The dining areaThis making you hungry? The pub offers great traditional British grub
The Fox and Hounds is also a perfect destination for weekend walkers with Newstead Abbey, Sherwood Forest, Clumber Park and Rufford Abbey all being on the doorstep.
This is just a great British pub. Excellent food, friendly faces, traditional surroundings, good beers and great laughs – pretty much everything a village hostelry should be.
Three men have been arrested after a police pursuit came to an end in Arnold during the early hours of Thursday morning.
The three men were believed to be wearing balaclavas and armed with weapons.
They were suspected of carrying out an aggravated burglary on a house in Sheffield.
The men had fled the scene in a car thought to be stolen.
Later in the afternoon, the car was spotted by a Nottinghamshire officer on the A614 near Ollerton.
Officers then began to implement tactics to bring the car to a stop quickly and safely; a stinger was deployed and the car came to a stop in Burntstump Hill, Arnold at around 4pm.
The police helicopter and dog unit were called as all three men made off on foot, however they were quickly tracked down by officers before the dogs or helicopter arrived and were arrested at the scene.
A spokesman for Nottinghamshire Police said: “They remain in police custody and have been taken back to South Yorkshire for processing.”
