Farmers on the frontline of rural crime

With a new police taskforce being launched in North Yorkshire to help combat rural crime, Chris Bond spoke to one farmer who has suffered at the hands of thieves.
North Yorkshire farmer John Furness has had sheep stolen from him.North Yorkshire farmer John Furness has had sheep stolen from him.
North Yorkshire farmer John Furness has had sheep stolen from him.

EVEN on an inclement day like this as a flurry of bruised-looking clouds roll malevolently overhead, it’s hard not to be impressed by the majestic views stretching north towards County Durham from John Furness’s farm.

John has been working on his family-run farm, nestled in a quiet corner of the Howardian hills a few miles from Thirsk, for almost 40 years. During that time he’s not only seen the fabric of the local community change, but farming itself, as it’s become increasingly reliant on machine technology instead of manual labour.

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But as farms have become more hi-tech so they have found themselves increasingly popular targets with thieves. According to NFU Mutual, rural crime cost the UK economy £37.8 million in 2014, with the cost in North Yorkshire estimated to be around £1m - putting it in the top 10 worst hit areas in the country.

Livestock rustling is a growing concern in some parts of the country.Livestock rustling is a growing concern in some parts of the country.
Livestock rustling is a growing concern in some parts of the country.

A subsequent study by the National Rural Crime Network (NRCN) claims that the true cost of crime to rural communities in England and Wales is actually far higher at around £800m - equating to £200 for every household in the countryside - with rural crime levels likely to be far greater than previously thought because people lack faith in policing and often don’t report incidents.

The cost of rural crime in North Yorkshire has actually dropped but there remain some significant spikes in certain types of theft.

Criminal gangs crossing the border from West Yorkshire have been blamed for a big recent rise in burglaries in rural areas of North Yorkshire, including a stretch of the county from Harrogate to Craven, along Menwith Hill in recent months. While Craven district alone saw a 17 per cent annual rise in crime during 2015/16.

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John Furness is among the rural crime victims after having 15 sheep stolen in recent months. His farm is mixed use and as well as sheep and cattle he also grows arable crops, including wheat and winter barley.

Livestock rustling is a growing concern in some parts of the country.Livestock rustling is a growing concern in some parts of the country.
Livestock rustling is a growing concern in some parts of the country.

He says the sheep were taken some time in December or January, although he didn’t notice straight away. “We’ve got 650 ewes in different lots and you can’t always tell if any are missing and these were taken from two or three different groups.”

Even though he’s insured he’s still been left out of pocket. “It’s not just the loss of the ewes it’s also the loss of the lambs that we would have had. We’ve lost 27 lambs at a cost of around £70 each and we don’t get that money,” he says. “The police are aware of it and they’re very helpful, but there’s nothing much they can do.”

It isn’t the first time John’s farm has been targeted. “Over the years we’ve had issues with buildings being broken into and quad bikes being stolen and now we’re much more cautious, everything gets locked up,” he says.

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As well as having equipment stolen John says his land has also been used by gangs for what’s known as deer lamping, or night shooting, where they kill the animals and sell the meat on the black market.

“In the past it just used to be a few people pinching pheasants but those days have long gone. Now you get people out in their big 4 x 4s and last spring a gang just rammed through our iron gates and drove around the fields. So you’ve got the cost of repairing the gates and fences where they smashed through as well as the damaged crops.”

His farm manager Ben says it’s become a common issue from Helmsley through to the Vale of York and up to Teesside. “We see this kind of thing at least twice a month, but they could be coming through twice a week,” he admits. Some farmers have even resorted to installing concrete bollards in front of their fields in a bid to ward off would-be intruders.

For John, who lost his entire livestock population during the Foot and Mouth epidemic of 2001, it’s something he could well do without. “It’s not just a financial issue it impacts on you mentally because you have to be constantly vigilant.”

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Even if they do spot something at night and call the police it’s difficult for officers to catch the perpetrators because by the time they get there they’re long gone. But John, nominated to be the next High Sheriff of North Yorkshire, isn’t critical of the police. “I have full admiration for the police force because they do their best with the numbers they have,” he says.

Rural communities have welcomed the recent announcement by North Yorkshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner Julia Mulligan that a new police taskforce is being created to help boost countryside crime-fighting in North Yorkshire.

It’s a battle that rural insurer NFU Mutual says is increasingly important, especially at time when cybercrime is a “growing concern” and criminals are targeting new areas, including solar panels.

Tim Price, NFU Mutual Rural Affairs specialist, also points to an increase of up to 13 per cent in some areas in the number of tractor and quad bike thefts in the first nine months of last year. On top of this there are concerns about levels of livestock rustling and the growing number of Land Rover thefts following the end of its production after 60 years.

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“Years of experience working with farmers and police to tackle rural crime has taught us one important message: thieves don’t go away; if you improve security in one area they will step back, and seek a way to bypass your security measures – or find something else they can steal from farms and sell-on,” says Price.

“This sadly means farmers face a continual battle to stay one step ahead of the thieves, by keeping an ear to the ground to follow local crime trends and continually reviewing and improving security.”

He says the nature of rural crime has changed over recent decades. “Thirty years ago rural crime was small scale and opportunistic, now it’s large scale and much more organised and North Yorkshire is currently one of a number of counties where thieves are targeting rural areas”.

One thing that hasn’t changed is the impact it has on hard-pushed farmers. “Livestocks have been built up for years by some farmers and this can then be ruined overnight,” he says.

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“It’s not just about what’s been stolen it’s also the added costs. If you’ve had a quad bike stolen you can’t get around to check on your sheep, so you have to find another vehicle.”

It has a psychological effect, too. “Unlike urban properties you can’t lock everything up in one place and farmers become worried and stressed if they know thieves are about and might be on their land.”

But there are concerted efforts to tackle these criminals head on and in addition to more targeted police units schemes like the livestock theft prevention initiative, first launched in Lancashire, have made a difference.

Even so, Price concedes there is no easy fix. “Every farm in Yorkshire is different so there’s no one solution, sadly it’s just an ongoing battle.”

Police crackdown on rural crime

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A new rural police taskforce, believed to be the largest of its kind in the country, has been set up to bolster countryside crime-fighting in North Yorkshire.

The unit comprises 17 officers and will be led by an inspector. North Yorkshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner Julia Mulligan is increasing the number of safety camera vehicles used in rural areas of the county to foil criminals travelling in from neighbouring areas.

The extra resources, announced last month, form key parts of a newly published Rural Policing Strategy for the region.

Mulligan said: “To have the largest rural crime task force in the country shows how seriously the issue is being taken.”