My page
Kafka (and Rilke) contains hardly anything on Kafka's best known work,
'The Trial' (Der Prozess). I concentrate my attention on 'The Castle (Das
Prozess.) It's 'The Trial' which has given rise to all the meanings and
ramifications linked with the word 'Kafkaesque:' the strange, senseless,
bizarre, grotesque, complex, almost surreal, behaviour so often associated
with bureaucracies.
I make it clear that most of the behaviour of Sheffield
Police isn't Kafkaesque at all. Well planned action is more typical of the
force than Kafkaesque behaviour. Like so many other large organizations, the
Sheffield force is a contradictory organization, with great strengths to
accompany the baffling weaknesses. In this page, I comment on some of the
weaknesses. Much more material will need to be added to the page to do even
partial justice to the realities.
'Kafkaesque policing' doesn't capture all the
manifestations of the Sheffield policing I've experienced, and it doesn't
capture the times when I've experienced very impressive policing in
Sheffield. The bad policing but doesn't eclipse the
impressive policing. The bad policing is idiotically bad, and for basic,
common-sense reasons. It has wasted so much police time and so much of my
time. There are so many competing demands on police time and so many demands
on my time. The waste of police time is also waste of other police
resources, including money.
It's bad enough that Sheffield Police have been
profligate in their use and misuse of their own resources but worse still,
they (or a small group of people in the force, or perhaps just one person)
have seen fit to waste the time of other agencies - the medical centre I use
and the Social Agency at Howden House, Sheffield.
I made some enquiries as to what had happened by
contacting Howden House, but I was reluctant to have them spend time on the
matter, so I haven't contacted them further. I haven't contacted the medical
centre at all. I decided that it was the police who should be doing the
explaining - and there was a great deal to explain, I think.
I've made determined attempts to get some information
but got nowhere - more frustrating - and Kafkaesque experiences, like being
trapped in a labyrinth with no obvious way out - at least I came to the
conclusion that there was no obvious way to get the further information I
could reasonably expect - but this is a world which obviously isn't
reasonable.
This is one set of frustrating experiences out of
many, and not one of the issues has been resolved, completely or partially
or in the least.
In every single case, the police have taken decisive
action based on information, on complaints, without ever giving me the
chance to give information. In every case, I had information, evidence which
should have made it completely clear that the complaints were without
foundation and I've been able to obtain more and more evidence - whilst in
the meantime, the complainers have had nothing to show, have never attempted
to offer any evidence which would make the police actions reasonable in the
circumstances.
So, I have documentary proof that emails which it was
claimed I'd sent never reached the complainer at all, I have the documentary
evidence of letters and emails which I did sent - in every case, these were
reasonable and courteous.
What the police have accumulated, it seems likely,
are short summaries of the actions they have carried out, so there is the
record that I received a 'Harassment Warning' at one time and a 'Community
Protection Notice: Written Warning' at another.
My reputation may be very low in their view but in my
experience, there are members of Sheffield Police who could be expected to
be realistic, with ample common sense, are anything but. It seems to me that
these people are naive, very easily fooled, very easily taken in by people
who satisfy their expectations for appearance of a certain kind. In this
kind of policing, all too often, evidence and the expectation of evidence
seem to count for nothing at all.
'Wasting police time' is an offence, if proved, and
sanctions can be applied for wasting police time - but false accusations and
complaints based on no evidence at all are freely accepted as necessarily
truthful. Of course, some of the biggest wasters of police time are some
members of police forces themselves.
The members of Sheffield Police who have authorized
visits to my house for no good reason at all and too many other members of
Sheffield Police may find this difficult to believe - or, more likely, don't
have the least interest in this one way or another - but my reputation is
important to me, just as the failings and failures of mine are important to
me, and are things I don't take any pride in and which I regret.
I've had a variety of jobs. My first real job was as
an unskilled builder's labourer. My second job was as a nursing assistant in
a psychiatric hospital - one of the gloomy asylums which have now
disappeared. My next job was as a night porter working at a four star hotel.
The work where I've really achieved fulfilment is the work which effectively
began when I took early retirement - manual work, learning skills is
woodworking and metalworking, and design and construction work in the many
fields where I've carried out projects. None of this work was paid
work.
Before I took early retirement, I worked for decades
in science education, teaching at different times Physics, Chemistry and
Biology. I can claim that I never had a set of bad exam results - or my
pupils never had bad exam results, the sort which shouldn't be expected for
the classes I taught. Very often, the results have been outstanding.
When I left teaching, I was presented with a
Certificate. This is an extract:
'Your work, over the years, is very much
appreciated and valued by the school ... Through your teaching you have
brought to children a unique insight into the social, ecological and ethical
issues that relate to science ... you inspired them to take a life-long
interest in science.
'Your colleagues will remember and admire you as
a principled person who has been prepared to conduct his private and
professional life by the values that he holds dear.
For its part, the Cabinet and Governing Body of
the School place on record this expression of sincere recognition of your
service.'
The police have sent out a PC to my house (staying
for an hour, with, of course, travelling time to add to that) to present me
with a Police Information Notice (harassment warning) for using the words
'blundering buffoon' in a Voicemail message, which was courteous throughout,
apart from the use of those words. The words never reached the wider public
domain - and I've the evidence that the person I applied the description to
was someone who had something of a reputation for causing trouble - a 'loose
cannon' was the description of someone who knew him well.
Repeatedly, Sheffield Police has taken action for no
good reason whatsoever, for matters which aren't the concern of the police,
for matters where the law allows me to speak or to act freely.
And sometimes they act with such promptness -
promptness which isn't displayed consistently at all in cases involving
shoplifting, shoplifting involving violence, a whole range of damaging acts.
I called at the Headquarters of the Church Army at
the Wilson Carlile Centre to request a meeting with Faye Popham, 'Associate
Director of Organisational Development' and a member of the 'Senior
Leadership Team,' who had sent me a letter I found disturbing. This is an
extract from the letter.
'[I] am aware that you have sent several copies of
this correspondence to several people within Sheffield Diocese and further.
I am aware that the police have been notified of this correspondence being
sent to multiple people.'
The reference is to the fact that I had simply sent a
copy of the letter quoted in full in the first column
of the page.
I was told that Faye Popham was at a meeting. Within
a couple of hours of reaching my house after leaving the Wilson Carlile
Centre, there was the knock at the door, this time with two Police
Constables. On of them was Sarah Forsythe, whose conduct fell far below the
standard I'd expect of a Police Constable. There will need to be much more
material added to the page on Sarah Forsythe
Above and below, views of bookcases in my living
room, with views of other furniture below. There are two bookcases
which can't easily be seen, behind the computer desk.
The two Police Constables who came to my house recently were in this
room and a situation which was already farcical, grotesque - and disturbing
- became even more farcical, grotesque and disturbing - Kafkaesque -
when a report was made to my medical centre and Sheffield Social Services
that there was 'clutter' in my house and that I was allegedly 'a hoarder.'
The only things that there's a lot of in the room are my books. Visitors who
have never seen so many books and wonder why anyone would need so many books
- surely all a person needs is a few? - can be assured that I do need a
great many books, in fields as varied as Physics, Chemistry, Biology,
Mathematics, Engineering, History, Philosophy, languages other than English,
practical subjects such as woodworking and metalworking, gardening and
cookery,
literature, art, architecture, music, design, reference and books on other
subjects. I even have some
books on Christian religion.
I also subscribe or have subscribed to print magazines, including poetry
magazines, and academic journals. I believe strongly in supporting print
publication. Whenever I can, I buy books new, so that the author gets some
financial benefit, even if it doesn't amount to much for a single book. I
also support second hand bookshops, in particular for out of print books. I
avoid benefitting financially authors and publishers I detest or oppose,
such as the output of Christian publishers.
For the first time, I counted the books I own
recently, and counted 915 in this room. The books stored in a bookshelf
outside the room
give total of well over 1,000 for my private library. All these books are stored neatly with hardly
a single book out of place.
The two large computer monitors in the image above conceal most of the
two large bookcases in this corner of the room.
Below, from the Home Page of the site, views of the furniture mentioned,
also in the room, with many uses - printer stand, temporary storage, use for
power splitting of logs and for apple pressing, other work involving garden
produce.
Below, the upper surface of the unit makes a good platform for the
colour printer and mono laser printer, with plenty of space for temporary
storage of paper, completed prints etc.
In this column, the Church Army reports me to South Yorkshire Police for
sending a single copy of a letter to some members of the Church Army and
informs the police. The police take no action for a time but call later. Two
PC's are sent to visit my house. Before that, one PC had been sent to see
me. A member of staff from Sheffield Social Services, Howden House,
comes to my house but I'm out at the time. I find out the reason for the
visit after I get back: South Yorkshire Police have informed the people at
Howden House that there's 'clutter' in my house and that I'm a 'hoarder.'
The day before, I'd been puzzled to receive a phone call from a doctor at
the medical centre I use, which mentioned Howden House. It seems likely that
South Yorkshire Police phoned the surgery with the same information about
'clutter' and 'hoarding.' What they hoped to achieve I've no idea. I didn't
contact Howden House or the surgery for more information. They've already
had some of their time wasted and I didn't want them to waste any more. It's
the police's job to explain these farcical events. It seems very likely that
the claim of 'clutter' and 'hoarding' was made by PC Sarah Forsythe on her
visit to my house recently, or perhaps from both the PC's who came. There
was some clutter in the room at the time of their visit, but that's none of
her business, or their business. Their visit to the house was completely
unexpected.
The room they saw is a living room, a small room with many uses. My
computer equipment is there, including the two very large computer screens I
need for my work, including the work in graphic design, and the two
printers, a large format colour printer and a mono laser printer. I eat
there, using a small table. I sleep there, using a portable chair. I've a
medical condition which makes sleeping in a horizontal position very
uncomfortable, so about a year ago, I gave up using the small bedroom
upstairs and now sleep downstairs.
I coudn't admit these police guests for five minutes because I had to
clear the room, removing the camping mattress and sleeping bag, removing the
plate with food on. Some items were left in the room which might possibly
give an impression of clutter to someone with very radical ideas about
tidyness, including some items stored temporarily in a piece of furniture
which takes up quite a lot of space in the room. It's one I designed and
constructed myself and it's very versatile. My printers are placed on the
upper surface. There's nowhere else in the room where they could be kept,
realistically. I use the surface for storing tools when I'm working on a
design and construction project. The floor area is adequate for the purpose.
I like the look of the furniture and it has great practical advantages. I've
a wood burning stove in this room and the furniture can be converted into a
press for splitting logs, by attaching a complex cutting head. It can be
used for a completely different job, pressing apples. I've an orchard and
the yield of apples is far too large for the small hydraulic press I used a
long time ago.
I'd already made a request to Sergeant Hannah Woods to phone me to
clarify some matters concerning the futile and wasted visit of the single
PC. The Sergeant did phone me. I was upstairs and didn't get to the
phone in time. She said that' she'd phone me at intervals until she found me
in. She did nothing of the kind. For the next three weeks, I contacted the
101 service at intervals, asking her to phone me. Then the
clutter-and-hoarding issue arose and I wanted to find out more about this
bizarre event. Eventually, I was told that she would definitely phone me, on
the next day, in the morning. She failed to do that.
She did phone
later in the day, in the afternoon. I'd already made it clear that I would
need to be out of the house in the afternon. She left a message. She promised to phone early the next
day. This is a transcript of her phone message:
'Hello Mr Hurt. It's Hannah Woods, Police Sergeant at Snig Hill. I am
sorry I've missed you again. Thank you for your patience. We've had an
incredibly busy few days with some really immediate actions ... I will try
again in a bit [she never did try to phone again 'in a bit'] but if not I'll
ring again in the morning. I'll endeavour to ring you much earlier in the
day so we can have a chat.'
I was ready for a phone call from 7.30 that day. I waited for five hours for a call which never came.
I left the house later for a time and I found she hadn't made any phone call
whilst I was out. This is the same kind of behaviour people can experience
with dodgy,failing businesses when faced with a customers who have good
reason for thinking that the standard of service is well below what's
reasonable - yet more abysmal service, a miserable failure to respond,
excuses which may seem plausible to begin with but which are quickly found
to amount to nothing, promises to act which never result in any action, the
person providing the non-existent service obviously hoping that the customer
will give up, weary of making an effort and spending so much time on a
futile activity. I decided that I
was getting nowhere but haven't given up. I decided that a different approach was
needed - and this page is the result.
I think that so many protests are futile. The protesters may well be
ignorant, ideologists who haven't thought things through, lazy people who
haven't bothered to find out nearly enough about the cause they're hoping to
promote. For a time, there's commotion, action, very often coverage in the
media, and they have hopes that their cause - often taking the form of
grotesquely unrealistic demands - will win. Time and again, they find that
this never happens. Disillusioned activists can experience a resurgence in
optimism but they're likely to experience disillusionment again and again.
Protest and activism have their uses, can be genuinely important, can be
very worthwhile, can be particularly important when the reasonable approach
of providing evidence fails, when the opposition's superior power is
obvious. There's a place for placards, for standing outside a building and
giving adverse publicity for an organization which deserves adverse
publicity (but not necessarily for adverse publicity for most of its
activities.)
If need be, I'm ready to do just that in the case of Sheffield police.
I've even designed a complete unit for the purpose, a mobile unit
incorporating cameras for recording the action. I have the full colour large
format printing facilities for producing the images to be used. I've long
experience of activism, for a wide range of causes. I've addressed a
large audience of something like a thousand people at an Amnesty
International General Meeting, giving my view that the campaigning
techniques used by Amnesty are far less useful than they could be. After
twenty years of activism for Amnesty International, I decided to leave.
Since then, the organization has changed a great deal - for the worst. I now
take the view that the organization is harmful in significant ways. My page
Amnesty International
Discredited gives some of the reasons.
In January, I sent a letter. There's a copy of the complete letter in
the column to the left, with a link here to the
document:
Document 1. Letter sent to King concerning the
King's Patronage of the Church Army, copies provided for some people
associated with the Church Army - a one sentence handwritten message at the
top of the first sheet explaining to the recipient why I was sending a copy
of the document. All of them could be expected to find the document
relevant. Many or most of them were Trustees of the Church Army and the
King's Patronage of the Church Army would be an important issue for these
people in particular.
This page is in preparation. It will be revised and extended.
There's a wide-ranging page on the site
which gives the many advantages of living in Sheffield, or some of the many
advantages:
Sheffield Dales.
This page gives the case against, or some of
the case against, disadvantages for me personally. Other pages of the site
supplement the material here.
There are various interpretations of the 'Thin Blue Line
Flag.'
The thin blue line represents police officers of alll ranks.
The space above the blue line represents the law abiding portion of society.
The space below the blue line represents the non-law abiding portion. This
interpretation is schematic and simplistic, to an extent. I think a better
interpretation involves solidarity with the police - but not in support of
all their action - gratitude for their sacrifices and work in general,
recognition that the police defend the community - but not in all
their action, a recognition that policing is, or should be, policing by
consent.
From the page
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/police-covenant
The Police Covenant is a pledge to do more as a
nation to help those who serve this country and specifically to recognise
the bravery, commitment, and sacrifices of those who work or have worked in
policing.
The covenant aims to ensure that members or
former members of the police workforce in England and Wales are not
disadvantaged as a result of working in policing.
From the page
https://www.armedforcescovenant.gov.uk/about-the-covenant/
The Armed Forces Covenant is a promise that together we acknowledge and
understand that those who serve or have served in the Armed Forces, and
their families, including the bereaved, should be treated with fairness and
respect in the communities, economy, and society they serve with their
lives.
Its two principles are that, recognising the unique obligations of, and
sacrifices made by, the Armed Forces:
- Those who
serve in the Armed Forces, whether Regular or Reserve, those who have
served in the past, and their families, should face no disadvantage compared
to other citizens in the provision of public and commercial services.
-
Special consideration is
appropriate in some cases, especially for those who have given most such
as the injured and the bereaved.
Above, Deepcar Police Station, Sheffield
Above, Snig Hill Police Station, Sheffield
Extract from an email I wrote and sent recently,
with a few minor changes:
'I mention one more fact - my attitude
to the city where I live [Sheffield] has changed markedly as a result of
these issues [issues to do with policing in Sheffield] over the past few
years. I have a page on Sheffield which promotes the many advantages of the
city. [Sheffield
Dales]. I won't be adding anything 'negative'
to the page but more and more, I regard Sheffield as having many
disadvantages. I don't generalize. These are simply disadvantages for me
personally.
I regard it as a place where I now find it
next to impossible to work in the way I'd like to work, an adverse
environment for my environmental work and my work on other innovations,
including work on Web technology, but most importantly, I regard
Sheffield as an adverse environment for free expression, necessary for
constructive dialogue and for so many other important activities.
These are very disturbing aspects of Sheffield life, ones I find impossible to
ignore. Of course, the same faults can be found throughout the country, but
I think that Sheffield Police's attempt to police clutter and hoarding - not
actual clutter and hoarding but clutter and hoarding they claim to have
found - is very, very disturbing.
Previously, they have issued me with a Community
Protection Notice: WRITTEN WARNING: 'Your conduct is having a detrimental
effect of a persistent or continuing nature on the quality of life of those
in the locality.' The images showing work I've carried out in the
locality on the Home Page of the site surely show that this claim is
deranged.
Before that, I was issued with a 'Harassment
Warning:' 'This letter is being sent to you in the spirit of crime
prevention and to make you aware that if the kind of behaviour described
were to continue, then you would be liable to arrest and prosecution for
calling someone a 'blundering buffoon' in a Voice Mail massage and stating
'the same insult' in an email message.
More and more, I prefer to be in places which don't
have the same associations for me of control, suppression and repression.
This is the policing of a madhouse, not the
policing which a reputable city deserves. For more information on this
case and other ludicrous / deeply disturbing acts of Sheffield Police,
please see the material in the column to the right. Sheffield Police has
acted recklessly, cooperating with one particular Christian organization
which has its Headquarters in the city, the Church Army. For me, Sheffield
has become an active centre of banning blocking and censorship. I'm
determined to do everything I can to oppose them, whilst recognizing this
fact - for me, it is a fact, and I give the evidence on pages of the site -
that Sheffield police, South Yorkshire Police, the city of Sheffield as a
whole, have immense strengths which outweigh the weaknesses. My view of the
Church Army is very different, with no corresponding strengths to set
besides the faults.
There will be strong criticisms on this page
or other pages of some people who are members of South Yorkshire Police or
associated with South Yorkshire Police, or used to have an association:
Sergeant Simon Kirkham, Sergeant Hannah Woods, PC
Sarah Forsythe and two prominent people, Alan Billings, who used to be the
South Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner, and Oliver Coppard, the
Mayor of South Yorkshire, who took on the responsibilities of the Police and
Crime Commissioner when the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority came
into existence.
I'm saddened to have to include criticism of Hannah
Woods and Sarah Forsythe - but I'm certain that that they completely deserve
to be criticized. I've every reason to think that their strengths outweigh
their failings, or no reason whatsover for thinking otherwise. These are
people not well known to me. I know much more about Sergeant Simon Kirkham
and very much more about Alan Billings, more than enough to know that these
are people I can't possibly respect. In the case of Oliver Coppard, I
withhold judgment for the time being. I don't have any evidence that he's
making a success of his work in promoting policing in South Yorkshire. I
think he's ineffectual and will fail to make an impression. My personal
impression is of someone likeable. Of course, being likeable isn't enough
for a person to justify their role and their pay in a prominent position
such as the one occupied, for the time being, by the Mayor.
Document 1. Letter sent
to King concerning the King's Patronage of the Church Army, copies provided
for some people associated with the Church Army - a one sentence handwritten
message at the top of the first sheet explaining to the recipient why I was
sending a copy of the document. All of them could be expected to find the
document relevant. Many or most of them were Trustees of the Church Army and
the King's Patronage of the Church Army would be an important issue for
these people in particular.
For the attention of The Private Secretary to
His Majesty The King
Sir,
This is emphatically not a request
for the King to intervene in a personal dispute. None of the issues raised
can be regarded as amounting to a ‘personal dispute.’ This letter concerns
the King’s Patronage of the Church Army and matters arising from that role.
I give information about policies and actions of the Church Army which raise
some very significant questions. The issues raised have wider significance,
in particular for the faith and practice of the Church of England. I give
information about environmental innovations I have made, including
innovations in farming for which I have been awarded a United States patent.
These are relevant to the very different issues discussed and examined here.
I am not seeking the King’s help in any way, in this matter of my
environmental work and my work in gardening and farming or any of the other
matters mentioned here. I simply provide background information about some
issues which I have good reason for thinking have relevance to the King and
relevance to Anglicanism and I provide information about my reasons.
I would be grateful if the material provided here could be brought to the
attention of His Majesty or his advisers. The issues I raise are not
particularly complex, in essence, but they do have very wide-ranging
repercussions. My starting point in the preliminary material provided here
is the fact that his Majesty is the Patron of the Church Army and the Patron
of the National Allotment Society.
I am not an Anglican or a
believing Christian in any sense, but I would make the obvious point that
individuals may be loyal subjects of his Majesty without sharing the
Anglican beliefs of the King. I very much share the concern, the passion of
the King for environmental causes, for matters to do with gardening and
farming.
The material here is a small part of the very extensive
material already provided by my Website, www.linkagenet.com However, I never
expect or assume that this Website will be consulted. Whenever I send a
letter or an email about matters addressed in the Website, I provide basic
information in the letter or email.
I would suggest that consulting
the Home Page of the site – in fact, simply scrolling down the long page –
would make it abundantly clear that gardening and farming are central
concerns of mine and that my attitude to Christian faith in general and the
Church of England in particular is a very different one. It would also
indicate that I have an intense appreciation for the armed forces of this
country, for the magnificent contribution of the armed forces of this
country and the civilian population of this country in the face of enormous
threats. The contribution of His Majesty to the maintenance of this proud
tradition is very much appreciated.
Before I provide material in
print, taking the form of argument supported by evidence, I will provide
this very brief information about the Website cited here. I do not assume in
the least that popularity is a determinant of value. I stress the importance
of minority views, including, in some cases, unpopular views. The ‘moral
universe’ has to be based on foundations which are far more secure than any
based on popularity, which may well be only temporary. I give some current
Google rankings for my Website with this important reservation in mind.
Google no longer provides a figure for the total number of results for the
search terms. The ones provided here are from the period, not so long ago,
when the information was available.
The current Google ranking for
the search term ethical depth is 1 / 146,000,000 total results.
The
current Google ranking for the search term farming water collecting
composting is 1/ 28,000,000.
The current Google ranking for the search
term Christianity remembrance redemption is 6 / 12,700,000 [For very many
years, the site occupied 1st place in the rankings, but I reiterate that to
me, overall statistics of this kind are not important. They are mentioned
here only to suggest that the site is one which does have importance.] As I
note on the Home Page, ,The British Library, the national library of the
United Kingdom, has selected all of this site for preservation. It has taken
the decision to preserve the site and to make it available, no matter what
changes there may be in computer technology in the future.
The Home
Page gives ready access to the pages of the site concerned with
environmental matters – including gardening and farming – and matters to do
with Christian faith and practice and the faith and practice of the Church
of England in particular.
After these remarks, I address in concise
form some central events which, unfortunately, may have the potential to
cause difficulties for His Majesty. I suggest some ways of reducing the
difficulties but my view is that actions of the Church Army have already had
a damaging effect, are reason for deep concern, and that it will not be
possible now for the Church Army to undo the damage. All that can be
achieved is limitation of the damage, by taking action of a kind which
should already have been taken.
I give information in far more detail
in a range of pages of my Website, including these:
www.linkagenet.com/themes/church-army.htm (a principal source of
information)
www.linkagenet.com/themes/church-army-mission-centre.htm
www.linkagenet.com/themes/church-donations.htm
www.linkagenet.com/themes/church-integrity.htm
www.linkagenet.com/themes/church-documents.htm
www.linkagenet.com/themes/new-creations.htm
www.linkagenet.com/themes/church-shame.htm [despite the title of the page,
the content is eminently reasonable, offering abundant argument and
evidence.]
www.linkagenet.com/themes/security-safety-safeguarding-survival.htm
www.linkagenet.com/phd/vineyard-orchard-polytunnel-growing.htm
www.linkagenet.com/phd/patent1.pdf
www.linkagenet.com/phd/phdnew.htm [the
principal source of general information concerning innovations in gardening,
construction and other fields, with multiple applications and multiple
environmental benefits.]
These and other pages of the site are
listed, often with comment, on the Home Page of the site, with links to the
pages.
On 15 February 2022, there was a knock at the door. Two
members of South Yorkshire Police called to deliver a WRITTEN WARNING.
(Capital letters as in the document supplied to me.) The document included
this:
Pursuant to Section 43 Part 4 Chapter 1 (Community
Protection Notices) Anti-social Behaviour Crime and Policing Act 2014.
' ... your conduct is having a detrimental effect of a persistent or
continuing nature on the quality of life of those in the locality and the
conduct is unreasonable.'
'If from this time and date, the conduct is
still having a detrimental impact on the quality of life of those in the
locality, you will be served a Community Protection Notice. It is a criminal
offence not to comply with the Notice ... If found guilty you could be fined
up to £2,500.'
The images in a prominent position on the Home Page of my
Website, in particular the larger images, many of which relate to my work in
the land I rent in this neighbourhood, constitute a record of my sustained
work to benefit the neighbourhood: construction of a large pond and other
ponds, for storage of rainwater collected by a variety of water-collecting
surfaces and for the benefit of wildlife – the pond attracts frogs and
dragonflies. The planting and encouragement of a wide range of wildflowers.
Innovations in composting, in growing beds and growing bed boundaries –
wooden partitions supported on stakes to ensure that the wood lasts much
longer. New designs in swift nest boxes, which can be installed without
working at a height but from inside a room, to encourage these threatened,
glorious birds. Growing a wide range of vegetable and fruit crops (and hazel
nut trees), with an abundance of produce involving no ‘food miles’ at all:
the crops are grown less than a mile from my house.
A new greenhouse
design. An article by me, ‘Greenhouse Creation,’ was published on Page 41 in
‘Allotment and Leisure Gardener,’ the magazine of the National Allotment
Society. The same edition included material on the Coronation of King
Charles III. There was insufficient space to do justice to the environmental
advantages of my design. This is the description on the Home Page of my
site, which provides fuller information on the greenhouse and also on a New
Growing System, for use in farming. This innovatory system has been awarded
a United States patent and has very wide-ranging environmental benefits. It
is extraordinary, and extraordinarily unjust, that I should have been
presented with this document, which had been written without any attempt to
contact me to find out what I was able to offer in defence – if the attempt
had been made, I would have been able to offer a complete defence, able to
show that there was absolutely no need to send out two police officers to my
house, to use police time and police resources at a time when a large
proportion of public who seek the help of the police for substantial reasons
are disappointed, the police making no effort or next to no effort to help,
or unable to help due to the constraints they face.
The material on the
Home Page:
The core structure takes the form of a triangular prism (a
shape with great structural strength.) Around the core structure are
extensions, here with curved panels. Three straight panels of the core
structure are visible on this North-facing side. There are 3 panels on the
South-facing side. The system has great versatility. With all the panels in
place, gutters and pipes at the base can divert water collected from the
roof to water storage containers and ponds (dual-function, for water storage
and to benefit wildlife). Panels can be removed and put back very easily.
When most or all of the panels are removed, crops inside the greenhouse
can be watered with natural rainfall. The system has many advantages for
water conservation. It reduces reliance on mains water. It has many other
benefits, e.g. for temperature control. Ventilation is very important, to
reduce or eliminate overheating when external temperatures are high and for
other reasons. One or more panels can be removed and all the panels can be
removed, to give maximum ventilation. Plastic coverings don't enhance the
appearance of a site, for most people. When polycarbonate sheets aren't
needed, none need be visible. One of the panels on the South- facing side
has been removed permanently. A grape vine in the greenhouse grows inside
the greenhouse, at roof level, and outside, higher up, above the roof. The
extensions ... include a 'solar composter,' which speeds up the production
of compost by the greenhouse effect, a wildlife / water storage pond and
other growing areas. There's a much larger wildlife / water storage pond
outside the greenhouse and other water-collecting surfaces and water storage
facilities. An extension on the East side includes a storage area for e.g.
tools and supplies and a working area for e.g. propagation. A straw bale
wall has been a feature of this extension (shown above, also with a straw
bale storage area.)
My New Growing System for farms has the
advantages of the New Greenhouse Design as well as many other features.
From the official U.S. patent documunt: ' ... the present invention is a
trellising system with modifiable components and configurations for growing,
protected cropping, protected working, materials handling, water collecting
and water conservation for use in vineyards and orchards and as a polytunnel
substitute.' The New System has aesthetic advantages. The plastic sheeting
which forms part of the system is needed to secure environmental advantages
but is unnecessary when external temperatures are high and no water can be
collected. Unlike the plastic of polytunnels, the plastic used in this
system can be retracted. The plastic need not be visible when not needed.
The plant growth on the unobtrusive supports will be seen all the more
clearly.
In fact, the complainant, Lu Skerratt-Love, was not from the
neighbourhood and was not complaining about any local matters. Lu Skerratt-Love
was employed by the Research Department of the Church Army at the time and
has now been ordained, in June 2024. At present, she is a curate in the
Liverpool Diocese.
This was the section 'Details of the Conduct'
which accompanied the WRITTEN WARNING. I've detailed evidence to show
conclusively that the section 'Details of the Conduct' is false and grossly
unjust in every respect.
'The police have become aware of
you contacting Lu Skerratt-Love via email and hand delivered letters. You
have also been contacting her work colleagues via email and letter regarding
her. In some of these correspondences you make mention of her personal
faith. When you write these emails and letters it causes great upset to Lu
and her colleagues at work. This is not fair and certainly not right to do
so. It is important that you realise how much you are upsetting /
distressing Lu with this conduct. You would not wish for such conduct for
your loved ones. We are willing to help in anyway [sic].'
In the detailed documentation available on the site, I show that Lu Skerratt-Love
never received any emails from me. A single person at the Church Army, Dr
Tim Ling, received a single email from me. Dr Ling is ‘Director of
Organisational Development at Church Army. He provides strategic oversight
for the work of the Research Unit.’ Lu Skerratt-Love has never received a
single email from me. I give the evidence showing that the very few emails I
sent to Lu Skerratt-Love and to Dr Ling were blocked, except for the single
email sent to Dr Ling. Both Dr Ling and Lu Skerratt-Love received a letter
from me.
I give the content of the email and the letter in more than
one place on the pages of the Website. The content was completely courteous.
I contacted the Church Army to express concern about a proposed Garden
Church, for reasons to do with safety and security at the proposed site. My
work involves not only environmental activities but activities to do with
promoting safety. Lu Skerratt-Love was involved in promoting the Garden
Church, as a Founder Member. It seemed to me that there were clear-cut
hazards which had not been taken into account. I made every effort to have
removed a very large pile of hazardous rubbish which was on the land used
by the Garden Church. These hazards could potentially affect children
brought to Garden Church services and wildlife in the vicinity. Issues to do
with security at the site had seemingly been overlooked. I and others have
had personal experience of the issues. This was a long time before these
events, but there had been a murder at one of the allotments in this area, a
boy being stabbed with a garden fork.
The Garden Church was
abandoned. Nothing whatever had been done to prune the enormously high
hedges around the site, which blocked out so much of the light and which
made any realistic use of the land for constructive growing impossible.
After receiving one email from me, Dr Ling promptly blocked further
emails from me, not only to himself, not only to Lu Skerratt-Love but, it
seems, to all members of the Church Army. Later, I attempted to contact a
Church Army evangelist at the Church Army Darnall and Attercliffe Centre of
Mission to express my concern that the centre had no safeguarding officer,
and found that the email was blocked. Safeguarding issues are a very
significant issue for the Church of England, of course. It’s surely
essential that no unnecessary obstacles should be placed in the way of
individuals who wish to contact the Church Army, not only about matters to
do with abuse, potentially, but a range of other issues.
I would
like to make a formal complaint concerning the actions of Dr Ling and some
other issues concerning members of the Church Army. I found that emails were
still blocked so I found another method of contacting the Church Army and
made a simple request: to be provided with a complaints form or advice as to
an appropriate way of beginning the complaints process. I have received no
reply from the Church Army. Reputable organizations have to make available
the means of making known concerns in this way, when necessary, by formal
complaint. Wherever possible, if the matters concerned are not too serious,
then of course informal representations may well be adequate, involving
discussion – but the act of blocking communications from me for no good
reason and the seriousness of the situation in general made that method
impossible.
I viewed the situation as serious, and still do, very
much so. As it happened, the visit by South Yorkshire Police took place at a
difficult time. My mother had been ill for a long time. At the time of the
police visit, she was 96 years old. The document had an effect, then, so
much so that I decided to visit a city centre police station, not to
complain but to make my feelings known. When I arrived there, I quickly
became distraught and left. From the police station, I went to the hospital
where my mother was now a patient. I found that my mother had died a short
time before. My brother had arrived at the hospital and my sister arrived
soon afterwards.
My organization, or ‘project,’ ‘PHD: Paul Hurt
Design and Construction’ has only one person who carries out all its work –
myself, with many, many other demands on my time. Despite that fact, it is
very well established, with, I would claim, many achievements to its credit,
including the granting of the United States Patent.
Another
‘project,’ South Yorkshire Counter-Evangelism, is also the work of one
person, myself, but is also well established, with a record of sustained
work in furtherance of the objectives of the project.
The section
‘Details of the Conduct’ which accompanies the WRITTEN WARNING’ includes
this, ‘In some of these correspondences you make mention of her personal
faith.’
The Sergeant of South Yorkshire Police who wrote this
section and who authorized the visit by the two members of South Yorkshire
Police to deliver the document was a Conservative Evangelical with
theological views which are very different from those of Lu Skerratt-Love, a
Trans activist, but beliefs which overlap to a significant extent.
Both should be aware – but were obviously unaware, or chose not to take this
into account – that as a matter of strict fact, South Yorkshire Police, as a
public body, is bound by the Human Rights Act of 1998. Article 10 protects
the right to hold opinions and to express them freely without interference.
As a matter of fact, the material concerned with Christian belief in
the email and printed material I made available was very small in extent and
completely courteous. The fact that the document presented to me contained
this attempt at stifling freedom of expression is very disturbing. The
falsifications – I have detailed evidence that they were falsifications –
are also deeply disturbing.
My page www.linkagenet.com/themes/church-army.htm
gives, in the second column of the page, a quotation from an address of King
Charles to faith leaders in September 2022, making clear the importance of
his Anglican faith to him. It also gives the reaction of Peter Rouch, then
Chief Executive Officer of the Church Army. It includes this, ‘ For many
years Church Army UK and Ireland has been honoured by the patronage of the
reigning monarch of the United Kingdom … ‘
I have already spent a
very subsantial amount of time documenting the issues raised by the deeply
mistaken actions of some people employed by the Church Army and taking
action available to me. If it were not for the actions of these people,
there would never have been the need for me to contact His Majesty’s Private
Secretary. I intend to carry on working to draw attention to what I believe
are grossly unjust actions. The media, national and international, may
report these issues soon or eventually or never. I restrict myself to
actions which are in my power to achieve.
I regard the material in
this letter as preliminary material. I realize that a reply is not to be
expected, but I take the view that circumstances may well change, perhaps
markedly so, and that a reply from the advisers to his Majesty may
eventually become a matter of necessity, or simple prudence.
The
issues are already in the public domain, by publication on my Website,
although not in finished form. I intend the process of revision and
extension to continue. I would very much like to minimize any trouble and
inconvenience to His Majesty. I am not a publicity-seeker - the obscure life
suits me and my way of working to a large extent.
As I note in the
page ‘About this site,’ for a very long time, my policy was that all emails
sent to me were treated as private. The contents of emails would not be made
public on my site or in other places, in whole or in part, unless with the
consent of the sender. The policy remains, but with certain exceptions.
Wherever possible, I see the need for confidentiality. Those who contact me
are not subject to the same restrictions, of course. They may use the
information as they wish. Phone calls to me are subject to the same
self-imposed rules. I see the need for privacy and discretion unless these
considerations are clearly outweighed by other considerations.
I
regard the Church Army as a Church organization with serious flaws. The
outline here does not state the extent of the flaws, it cannot do justice to
the issues but it will, I hope, make clear that there is a case to answer. I
provide argument and evidence, far more detailed in Website materials than
here. The Church Army can decide to answer, to defend itself and its
interests, or it may choose to do nothing. I would suggest that there are
possible consequences, perhaps likely consequences, if the Church Army does
nothing.
I live not far from the Church Army headquarters in
Sheffield. I view many, many protests which take place as unhelpful,
sometimes very damaging, doing nothing for the causes concerned. I have
display boards and facilities for producing posters and display materials. I
refer to the events I have undertaken quite often not as ‘protests’ but as
‘displays’ or ‘presentations.’ Whatever name is most suitable, I have the
means and the willingness to further this campaign with determination, in
person, in public. I don’t restrict myself to online campaigning.
Last year, I actively opposed the student encampment at Sheffield University
– I’m not Jewish, but I actively campaign for Israel, Israel’s right to
defend itself against the threats to its existence, and malicious
accusations of genocide, accusations which show complete lack of recognition
of the realities of military action and defence. My Website provides
detailed information about my activities during this campaign. I contacted
the University to draw attention to the extreme fire risk at the encampment.
When, eventually, the encampment was closed down by the University, the fire
risk was one of the reasons given by the University authorities.
I
will make copies of this letter available to Matt Barlow, the present Chief
Executive Officer of the Church Army and to Dr Tim Love. Assuming that I can
be given access to a complaints form or given information about the
complaints procedure of the Church Army – I trust that there is such a thing
– the next stage for me will be to submit a complaint. If not, then further
effort will be needed to fulfil this reasonable request. This is, however,
not the only avenue I am pursuing. The others include a complaint against
South Yorkshire Police, which in response to yet another approach by Lu
Skerratt-Love sent a police constable to my house on 10 December, 2024, with
the intention of persuading me to remove material from my Website. The
attempt was unsuccessful.
The page ‘About this site’ states my policy
regarding removal of material from my Website. It contains the information
that if a person is facing great difficulties, I am willing to remove
material so as not to cause further difficulties for the person. This
information was available on my site well before Lu Skerratt-Love made her
initial complaint and is still there. I do not give way to demands to remove
material and of course, material may need to stay if there is a clear-cut
case of outweighing – the advantages of the material remaining outweighing
other considerations.
If I disagree with a view and I regard
opposition to the view as an important matter, I argue against it by verbal
means. I use images extensively on the site but I regard images as far less
important. They can aid a case in some circumstances but are never a
substitute for responsible use of argument and evidence. I welcome
constructive criticism, am ready to answer responsible criticism and never
resort to suppression. I do not regard words as a substitute for action in
protecting the vital interests of the state – I refer to democratic not
totalitarian states, of course. Deep seated problems are not always solved
by diplomacy or conciliation. There is certainly no prospect of conciliation
in this case.
Yours faithfully,
Paul Hurt
