Selby Town FC makes U-turn over signing convicted abuser Reece Thompson who is still on licence for beating woman with iron bar

Selby Town FC yesterday defended its decision to take on Reece Thompson, who was sentenced to 40 months in jail only in April 2019 for beating a woman with an iron bar, smashing a mirror over her head and forcing her to lick paint off a floor.

Thompson was released from prison early and is still on licence for the attack which occurred in September 2018.

Following yesterday's statement, estate agents Reeds Rains in Selby confirmed it would be withdrawing its sponsorship of the club.

The Robins announced this morning that they would now no longer be signing Thompson in light of the public's reaction to the news.

A brief statement issued on the North Yorkshire club's Twitter account read: "Further to our previous statement, we have listened to all of the comments and Reece Thompson will not be signing for Selby Town Football Club."

It comes as a York-based domestic abuse charity issued a statement saying it hoped the controversy surrounding the initial decision to take on Thompson could have "emboldened" perpetrators of abuse and contribute to the further isolation of survivors.

Independent Domestic Abuse Survivors (IDAS) told the Yorkshire Post: “The decision of Selby Town to sign Reece Thompson has caused a considerable reaction among the local community, with families understandably concerned about the message this sends.

The charity added: "It takes incredible bravery and courage to leave an abusive relationship and to move on and rebuild your life. The journey to recovery is a difficult one and the lasting trauma caused by the abuse may haunt survivors for many years.

"Domestic abuse is a serious issue with over 100,000 people imminently at risk of serious injury or death in the UK at any one time and over 2 million affected each year. Every week 2 women are murdered by violent partners. Here in Yorkshire, our teams received over 15,000 helpline calls and over 7000 referrals last year. This year, in August alone, we received over 1,700 calls to our helpline, an uplift of 500 on last year.

"With this number of people affected, the headlines and accounts of violence resulting from this story may be having a negative impact on households across the county. We hope that this news doesn’t contribute to the further isolation of victims and survivors or embolden perpetrators. We would urge anyone who is affected by domestic abuse to contact us for support."

"Our thoughts are with the brave survivor and her family at this difficult time.”

Anyone who is affected by the issue of domestic abuse can find support by calling IDAS on 0300 0110 110 or Refuge on 0808 2000 247.

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