Novel Crookes: Popular Sheffield café-bookshop shuts 'indefinitely' amid fears for staff
A Sheffield bookshop and café has shut, amid concerns for staff over anti-social behaviour.
Novel had been running on School Road, Crookes, for 18 months, after combining a community cafe and a bookshop in the building, following a crowdfunding campaign to raise enough money to get the shop ready.
It had previously run as a pop-up shop at venues around Sheffield.
But now Kate Nixon, who ran the business with husband Joe, has told how she has shut the business indefinitely because of her concerns over the wellbeing of herself and her staff because of the behaviour of a number of people, who she felt were mentally ill, who had intimidated staff with threatening behaviour.
In an online video explaining the closure, she told how three separate individuals had caused fear among her staff with threatening and disruptive behaviour.
Police were called on several occasions, but she was left feeling that dealing with them had been batted between organisations, leaving it falling through the cracks in the system.
She added: “This whole situation just broke me physically. I have Crohn’s disease and rheumatoid arthritis in my hip, and a massive contributor to any kind of autoimmune disorder is stress.
“And this situation broke me to the point where my body wasn’t working, and I wasn’t getting any sleep. And it was almost like I developed some level of PTSD from dealing with the situation. “
One of the men she reported to police had been given a suspected prison sentence at a court in the past.
She said other businesses were aware of the people who had caused the problems, as well as her.
She is concerned that the issue had been passed from organisation to organisation
“I think the common denominator here is very mentally unwell men who are slipping through cracks left, right, and centre whose services are just wanting to like bat him between them,” she said.
“‘Well, it's Crown Prosecution's problem’. ‘Well, it's the probation team that should be dealing with it’. ‘Oh, actually, police’. ‘No, not it's not ours’....They're like hot potatoes. And I get why all these services don't want to deal with these crazy violent men. But I'm just an open shop and you know, it just it blows my mind.”
South Yorkshire Police said they had been working closely with Ms Nixon and other businesses on crime and anti-social behaviour in the Crookes area.
Inspector Nik Dodsworth, of Sheffield North West neighbourhood policing team, said: "Crime and anti-social behaviour targeting businesses can have a damaging impact on people and the local community, and nobody should have to go into work feeling fearful, unsafe or vulnerable.
"Since becoming aware of concerns in the Crookes area we have been working closely with Ms Nixon and other businesses, offering advice and support including around enhanced security measures and crime prevention tactics.
"We are also enhancing patrols in the local area to provide reassurance and make people feel safer, and exploring the possibility of civil orders against prolific individuals.
"No business owner should find themselves in fear of the people entering their premises, and we will investigate all reports that meet a criminal threshold. If you have experienced this, please report it to us.
"We will do all we can, alongside our partners, to ensure our vibrant local communities, including Crookes, remain safe and enjoyable places to live, work and visit."