People living near the car park said they were afraid to go near the park and ride

Councils will crack down on ‘dangerous and disruptive’ driving at a park and ride after complaints from locals. People living near Babraham Road Park and Ride have reported issues including loud music and dangers to pedestrians.

Locals said issues included organised vehicle gatherings, cars and motorbikes speeding, revving engines, racing, stunts, loud music, burnouts, car horns, creating a danger to pedestrians, and noise nuisance to residents.

One person said they were ‘afraid’ to go near the park and ride during car meets, while another said they avoided using the park and ride in the evening “as I’m concerned for my safety”.

Sharon Allen OBE is chief executive of Arthur Rank Hospice, which is next door to the Babraham Road Park and Ride. Ms Allen said: “When the anti-social behaviour happens, which is frequently, it causes disturbance to our patients and their visitors.

“Many of our patients are facing the end of their life, others are staying for pain and symptom control. They need a peaceful environment which is disturbed by this anti-social behaviour causing distress and anxiety for the patients and for their loved ones.

“It also impacts our colleagues not only because of the increased workload responding to distressed and concerned patients and visitors, but also because colleagues are nervous about walking to or through the Park and Ride at the start or end of their shifts.”

A Public Space Protection Order (PSPO) has now been introduced at the park and ride, which South Cambridgeshire District Council said had seen ‘dangerous and disruptive driving’ in recent years. Anyone who breaches the PSPO can be fined.

Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras and CCTV cameras will be used to enforce the new rules, allowing the councils to track vehicles and issue fines without needing staff on site. A similar PSPO was introduced at the Milton Park and Ride last year.

More than 160 people took part in a consultation to gauge interest in a PSPO at Babraham Road, with 88 per cent in favour of tougher measures to tackle driving issues.

Cllr Laurence Damary-Homan, lead cabinet member for environment at South Cambridgeshire District Council, said: “The levels of disruption we’ve seen at Babraham Park and Ride are completely unacceptable, and action is needed. Everyone deserves to feel safe and to enjoy peace and quiet – not to be subjected to reckless driving and intimidation.”

Cambridge City Council’s cabinet member for communities, Cllr Mike Todd-Jones, said: “Residents deserve to feel safe and respected in their own neighbourhoods. Reckless driving and anti-social behaviour put lives at risk and undermine the quality of life for so many.”

If you witness anti-social driving after 5.15pm, you can report it to Cambridge City Council via the out-of-hours phone line on 0300 303 8389, or online.

CEUTA, Spain (AP) — At least 18 migrants died trying to reach the Spanish territory of Ceuta after thousands of people breached the frontier with Morocco and poured into the tiny Spanish territory.

The border crisis boiled over Thursday and overnight. Spain’s state broadcaster RTVE broadcast images of burned cars on the Moroccan side of the border after reported clashes.

Rachid Sbihi, who leads a local workers association representing Civil Guard officers called the situation a “serious humanitarian crisis,” saying thousands of migrants, including unaccompanied children, were left sleeping in parks and sidewalks, while others roamed the streets aimlessly.

“People are still entering. The reinforcements that have arrived are only helping the injured and other humanitarian efforts,” he said. “It’s chaotic.”

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is expected to join Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska in a visit to Ceuta on Friday morning.

Among the 18 who died, many drowned, Sbihi said, but some were also killed in a stampede to cross the breakwater fence at Tarajal beach, an urban beach near a border checkpoint with Morocco.

Video footage on Thursday showed throngs of people, mainly Moroccans, walking around the breakwaters onto local roads. While most appeared to be young men, there were also families with women and small children.

“Viva España!” some shouted to a freelance photographer working for The Associated Press. Late Thursday into Friday, the photographer saw people amassed on the Moroccan side of the border trying to cross into Ceuta but also people walking from Ceuta toward Morocco, trying to return.

Moroccan authorities have not publicly commented on the crossings, and Morocco’s Interior Ministry did not respond to requests for comment.

It was not immediately clear what prompted so many people to cross to Ceuta.

Spain is a main point of arrival into Europe for migrants seeking better economic opportunities or an escape from violence in their home countries.

To reach Ceuta, located on the northern African coast, migrants often swim from the Moroccan town of Fnideq, covering about 3 miles (5 kilometers) to reach Spanish territory. Others attempt the crossing from the nearby town of Belyounech, where the distance is shorter.

Arrivals had been increasing, but reasons are still unclear

The escalation at the frontier between Spain and Morocco comes after a surge in migrants attempting to reach the small exclave, mainly by swimming, on Wednesday.

The chaos had ripple effects in Italy, another key destination for migrants. Premier Giorgia Meloni threatened to suspend Italy’s open-border Schengen agreement with Spain “to defend our borders and ensure the safety of our citizens,” though Italy doesn’t share a border with Spain.

Ceuta, which is perched on a historical isthmus, has been a Spanish possession since 1580. Its mixed population of Christians and Muslims, Spanish and Moroccan residents and day workers, lives in relative harmony behind a border fence that many desperate migrants from across Africa attempt to cross for a better life in Europe.

——

Brito reported from Barcelona, Spain. Naishadham reported from Madrid.

It’s the very modern Gen Z ‘love triangle’ which has gripped millions across social media. For almost a fortnight, Hertfordshire-born influencer Phoebe Prentice has been the talk of the internet after she posted a 15 minute-long video on TikTok, accusing actress Scarlett Thomas of getting too close to her beau, Josh Olliver, a singer in Simon Cowell’s new boyband December 10.

The very public feud, which began 13 days ago following the pop group’s performance at London’s Shepherd’s Bush Empire, has seen Phoebe, 18, lambast the BBC’s Waterloo Road star, Scarlett, for attending the gig and meeting up with Josh afterwards.

Phoebe’s comments have left social media users wondering just what has happened between the trio – more of which later.

But I can reveal that the TikTok star’s videos about her now former flame have left Josh’s friends ‘absolutely furious’ and they have accused Phoebe of using his fame as a pop star and the high profile of Scarlett – the daughter of Coronation Street actors Ryan Thomas and Tina O’Brien – for clicks.

The first video was watched by six million TikTok users, so it was little surprise that eight more have followed. One of those was seen by 1.3million people and another by a further 400,000.

Estimates suggest Phoebe can make around £1,300 from a single TikTok video broadcast to her 1.2 million followers, and that her clips about the scandal could have generated the 18-year-old anywhere between £2,000 and £10,000.

One source close to December 10 told me: ‘We don’t like people spouting and making money out of Josh. There have been some awful things said about Scarlett online, it isn’t very nice. Phoebe is saying things that are just not correct.’

The public saga began to unfold a week ago, when Phoebe posted a video claiming she had been dating someone for several months.

‘We never publicly came out to reveal it but a lot of people were aware and it was obvious,’ she told viewers.

Although she did not name Josh, fans were quick to join the dots. In the video, Phoebe claimed that she and the boy in question had gone to a Harry Styles concert in June, stayed with one another and continued to call and text while he was on tour.

She then alleged that one day he abruptly stopped answering her calls, and she was subsequently sent a video of Scarlett at one of the band’s shows in London.

According to Phoebe, she attended the December 10 show and after-party the next day, where she said he behaved ‘completely normal’.

She also claimed she asked the boy – now known to be 17-year-old singer Josh – about Scarlett, also 17, and was reassured that she was ‘just a friend’ and that he had not invited her.

Despite this reassurance, Phoebe said she still had a ‘gut feeling’ and contacted Scarlett directly, claiming she wanted to discuss her fears about Josh privately.

The influencer, who began creating content when she was at school, said that – after asking Scarlett about the situation – the actress explained Josh had stayed at her house the night after the show and was dropped off and picked up by security.

Phoebe went on to claim that Scarlett suggested Josh had told her they were not close, saying ‘he denied that anything was going on, even though we are literally in a relationship’.

Talking to the camera, she continued: ‘Imagine how humiliated I felt… I was at the manager’s house and everyone knew about her [Scarlett] and that he had stayed with her the night before and I was the only one in the room who didn’t know.’

But I can reveal that several key details circulating online have been disputed by those close to December 10. My sources close to the scandal have reliably informed me that Josh and Phoebe were never in fact in an established ‘relationship’. They also insist that there is ‘absolutely nothing going on between Scarlett and Josh’.

And, despite Phoebe’s claims, I have been told that Scarlett was not in a private box during the band’s show at the Shepherd’s Bush Empire, because the venue does not in fact have private boxes, only balconies.

Scarlett, a 17-year-old actress who stars in the BBC TV series Waterloo Road, was seen watching December 10’s concert at the Shepherd’s Bush Empire in west London

Josh, a singer in Simon Cowell’s new boyband December 10, saw his fellow bandmates rally around him and defend him on social media after Phoebe’s accusations

It has also been confirmed to me that Josh was not dropped off by security at Scarlett’s house and that, while December 10 were on tour in London, the band stayed at a hotel and only travelled between there and the venue.

The timeline is perhaps key to understanding how the saga escalated from a series of social media sightings into one of the internet’s biggest influencer dramas of the summer.

Phoebe first met December 10 at the Netflix premiere for their docuseries in December, and fans began spotting her and Josh together in March and noticing that they were liking each other’s photographs on social media.

By May, Josh was commenting on Phoebe’s TikTok videos, as were other members of the band. The very next month, Phoebe was spotted at the Capital Summertime Ball watching December 10 perform. Phoebe then attended the band’s show in London the night after Scarlett was there.

Five days later, on July 22, Phoebe posted her now-viral video, claiming to be ‘humiliated, heartbroken and completely betrayed’.

In the eight videos that followed, Phoebe used backing songs relating to heartbreak and in one sang along to Bruno Mars’s Grenade, which includes the lyric: ‘I gave you all I had and you tossed it in the trash.’

The saga has undoubtedly generated a huge surge in interest in Phoebe’s social media accounts. And while the scale of her financial gain is a matter of speculation, people are inevitably asking questions about how commercially valuable the drama has become.

Six days ago, Phoebe appeared on fellow influencer Ami Charlize’s podcast, where she claimed she would ‘address everything’ – yet has since failed to address very much at all.

When asked about the backlash from December 10 fans, she said: ‘If I want to keep something private, then I won’t post about it online. No hate to December 10 fans, I love December 10.’ Meanwhile, Phoebe’s close friend, Princess Andre, has also been drawn into the drama. Princess – the daughter of Peter Andre and Katie Price – and Scarlett have since become embroiled in their own online spat, after Princess seemed to accuse someone of being a ‘little miss copycat’.

Ever loyal to one another, December 10 have appeared to hit back at the claims in their own way. Fellow band members Cruz and Danny have posted on Snapchat with a selfie and the words: ‘You can’t cheat on someone you’re not in a relationship with.’

The drama has now become a full-blown internet spectacle, with Phoebe’s huge and fiercely loyal following rallying behind her and launching an onslaught of criticism towards Josh and Scarlett.

Meanwhile, the actress hasn’t posted on social media since the saga began. And the woman at the centre of the furore has gone to ground. Despite these tell-all videos, when I contacted Phoebe to clarify some of her allegations, she failed to respond.

‘Phoebe has detonated a bomb and won’t now explain herself,’ said one source close to the situation. ‘It’s really, really not nice.’

Influencer and comedian Savannah Gracey has revealed how one viral video nearly saved her mum’s beloved Camden shop from closing. She decided to film the clip after realising her mum Janet Dervan’s vintage shop, The Arc, was facing closure after 35 years and wanted to end with a boost. 

Savannah Gracey with her mother, Janet Dervan, outside her vintage clothing shop in Camden 

‘I was sat in there with her and thought, “We’ve got all this stock – where’s it all going to go?”’ she explains to me. ‘I posted a video (on Instagram) and it got 300,000 views, then I put it on TikTok and it reached 400,000. I went back into the shop and suddenly there was this constant stream of people coming in.

‘On the Thursday Mum made £18, but by the Saturday and Sunday she’d had her best weekend in years.’

Savannah has since enlisted fellow influencers to spread the word, helping her family business bow out on a high. 

‘My mum has owned that shop for 35 years and was a market trader before that. My parents met in Camden, got married in Camden, and Mum even breastfed me in the shop when I was six weeks old.’

Janet says soaring rents and rising service charges have forced her decision to close The Arc, with its final trading day on Sunday, August 2.

PR disaster alert! Rapper Krept, one half of hip-hop duo Krept and Konan, left visitors to a pop-up event promoting his children’s skincare brand stunned when a giant mascot dressed as American rapper Latto started twerking on stage in front of children. 

The mascot then walked hand-in-hand through the crowd dressed in skimpy shorts with Krept’s six-year-old daughter, Nala, whom the range is named after.

Krept, one half of hip-hop duo Krept and Konan, apologised after visitors complained about a scantily clad mascot twerking on stage at a pop-up event for his children’s skincare brand

An onlooker at the event said: ‘For a pop-up aimed at mums and children, this is a prime example of a PR disaster. The issue isn’t whether people like Latto. It’s about what’s appropriate for the audience.’ 

The backlash has prompted Krept to publicly apologise, insisting the mascot had been an oversight. He said: ‘Apologies if it came across wrong. Latto’s team reached out and said she’d just had a baby. She’s pregnant on her album cover and it’s called Big Mama. We also wanted to build a relationship ahead of taking the brand to America. They wanted to do a fan meet-and-greet with us. In terms of the mascot, that was a genuine oversight and I hold my hands up.’

UP

Influencer-turned-boxer Jake Paul and promoter Eddie Hearn have put their rivalry aside to team up in a major boost for women’s boxing. Paul’s company Most Valuable Promotions (MVP) and Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing have announced a long-term strategic alliance aimed at growing the women’s game. Between them they represent some of the sport’s biggest names, including Amanda Serrano, Katie Taylor, Chantelle Cameron, Caroline Dubois, Alycia Baumgardner, Mikaela Mayer and Ellie Scotney, making this one of the biggest collaborations women’s boxing has ever seen.

DOWN

Zoe Sugg and Alfie Deyes are down in my estimations this week after taking a lengthy and unexplained break from social media. As two of the UK’s biggest influencers, with millions of followers who have supported their careers, I think fans deserve some kind of update about the radio silence from the pair since January. It not only stops speculation from spiralling, but also acknowledges the audience who helped build their platforms, and ultimately helped them afford their £1.7 million mansion in Brighton.

Drinks brand Poppi brought the Love Island glamour to Battersea this week with a star-studded final watch party at Joia. 

The prebiotic fizzy drink company, which stepped in as this season’s new sponsor and is known for creating eye-catching events, pulled out all the stops for the occasion. 

Drinks brand Poppi hosted a star-studded Love Island final watch party at Joia, Battersea

Sophie Piper, Rochelle Humes’s younger sister, attended the event with boyfriend Josh Ritchie and series 7 winner, Millie Court, looked stunning in pink as she posed for the cameras

Former winner Millie Court joined fellow Islanders Matilda Draper and newlywed Tom Clare, who made an appearance fresh from tying the knot with Molly Smith. Love Island All Stars favourite Sophie Piper also attended with long-term boyfriend Josh Ritchie, while creators including Flossie Clegg enjoyed a villa-inspired night celebrating the biggest event in reality TV.

This week’s fashion must-have is the new adidas Originals x ASOS collection, marking the first time the partnership has expanded into menswear. 

Available exclusively on ASOS from today, the collection blends Adidas’s iconic sportswear heritage with ASOS’s fashion-led styling. Fronted by England footballer Noni Madueke, the campaign celebrates the crossover between sport, style and self-expression. 

The womenswear edit, starring boxer and style icon Ramla Ali, brings a fresh take on sporty dressing with Riviera-inspired details, clean silhouettes and effortless summer-to-seasonal versatility.

Email me – molly.clayton@dailymail.co.uk

Instagram – @mollyroseclayton 

TikTok – @mollclayton

Cardiff City’s pursuit of Jens Hjerto-Dahl remains in play after the Norwegian midfielder admitted he is “excited” by growing transfer interest following what could prove to be his final European appearance for Tromsø.

The 20-year-old started Thursday night’s Europa League second qualifying round second leg against Hradec Králové, but was substituted in the 73rd minute as the Norwegian side slipped to a 3-1 defeat, losing 4-1 on aggregate and dropping into the Conference League qualifiers.

With Cardiff, Hull City and RB Salzburg all circling, many in Norway believe it may have been Hjerto-Dahl’s last European outing for Tromsø. But speaking after the match, the midfielder insisted there are no immediate plans to leave the club.

Asked about increasing speculation linking him with Salzburg and Hull City, Hjerto-Dahl admitted to Nordlys: “It’s exciting.”

When asked whether he would be travelling directly to his next club, he replied: “No, to Ålesund.”

He did, however, say he was “flattered” by Premier League interest in relation to Hull.

Pressed on whether anything was expected to happen immediately, he added: “No, nothing is planned. You never know, though. Things can happen very quickly. But as things stand, my plan is to go to Ålesund.”

Tromsø play Ålesund in the Eliteserien on Sunday.

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HullLive reported that Tigers scouts were keeping a keen eye on Hjerto-Dahl on Thursday night, while Austrian giants RB Salzburg continue to be credited with serious interest in the Norway under-21 international.

Asked whether Austria, with the prospect of Champions League football, or a move to the Premier League sounded more appealing, Hjerto-Dahl smiled but refused to be drawn.

“That’s not something I’m going to comment on,” he said.

Despite enduring a frustrating evening in the Czech Republic, Hjerto-Dahl insisted transfer speculation has not affected his performances.

“It definitely wasn’t my best match,” he admitted.

“It was difficult today. I wasn’t able to produce what I needed to in order to perform at the level I know I can. They made it difficult, and at this level you have to produce that little bit extra if you’re going to progress.”

Asked whether thoughts about his future could be creeping into his mind during matches, he replied: “I try to keep all of that separate, especially when it comes to matches. My focus is on the game. Everything else I try to keep at a distance.”

Team-mate says goodbye

There was, however, one departure confirmed after the final whistle. Join the Cardiff City breaking news and top stories WhatsApp community.

Defender Tobias Guddal did not return on the Tromsø team bus after the defeat, instead leaving the stadium in a red car alongside his agents and representatives of his new club, Sparta Prague.

Both head coach Jørgen Vik and captain Ruben Yttergård Jenssen confirmed Guddal had already said his goodbyes to team-mates in the dressing room before leaving, signalling the end of his spell with the Norwegian club.

Whether Hjerto-Dahl follows him out of the exit door remains to be seen, but his future continues to dominate attention.

It was thought that both Guddal and Hjerto-Dahl would likely play their final games for the club if they were dumped out of Europe on Thursday night and, in Guddal’s case, that is one domino which has fallen for Tromsø.

At least 18 people have drowned while attempting to cross into Ceuta from Morocco as tens of thousands more poured into the Spanish enclave.

Soldiers and police have been deployed to the North African territory after local authorities pleaded for reinforcements from the Spanish government to manage the border crisis that boiled over late last night.

Some 49,000 migrants are estimated to have crossed into the enclave over the past 24 hours, Spain’s Interior ⁠Ministry said this morning.

Local authorities urged the government to declare a national emergency as overwhelmed border guards struggled to deal with the influx.

“It was very tough. The police tried to stop us. But our will and determination allowed us to come here,” Jadid Zacaria, his hair and shirt still wet from the ocean, said in an interview in Ceuta on Thursday afternoon.

Some of the shouted, “Long live Spain” as they entered the territory.

Footage circulating on social media shows hundreds of people desperately climbing the rocky shores of Ceuta as they exited the water.

Along with Melilla, another Spanish autonomous ‌city in northern Morocco, Ceuta represents ​the European Union’s ‌only land border ⁠with Africa. Both cities ⁠periodically experience surges in attempted crossings ‌by people ​seeking to ‌reach Europe.

Where is Ceuta?

Although the border crossing appeared blocked, groups of migrants moved along the coast seeking ⁠routes around the fence and some prepared to swim. “I was late,” said Brahim, 32, who gave ​only one ⁠name. He said he had arrived from ‌Tangier hoping to cross through the gate but found it effectively shut.

Among those hoping to cross into the enclave of 85,000 were women and children as well from Morocco and Sub-Saharan Africa.

Moroccan authorities deployed ‌water cannon trucks and reinforced security at the crossing-gates, repeatedly pushing back ‌migrants attempting to approach.

Nearby stood the charred remains of a bus and seven vehicles, left after clashes that erupted as authorities sought to stop the crowds, according to Reuters witnesses.

Another migrant said he had been caught in a stampede ⁠during an attempted crossing.

“I feared for my life,” said the migrant, who declined to give his name, as he described chaotic scenes of people pushing and stepping on one another along a narrow coastal route.

Traffic clogged roads into Fnideq as would-be migrants, including minors, continued to arrive. Some trudged along the highway into the city late into the night, while others took mountain paths to avoid checkpoints.

Security forces repeatedly turned back people making concerted rushes on the crossing through the night hours, while migrants regrouped on roads, hills and ‌open spaces across the city.

Spain’s Socialist government stands out in Europe for its pro-migrant stance, and ​has recently launched a programme to provide legal status for some 500,000 undocumented migrants, triggering an ‌influx of applications double that number.

Early on ⁠Friday, Fatima Mahli, 23, sat with her two daughters on a patch of grass beside the ⁠road to the crossing.

The resident of Morocco’s northern city of Tetouan said her husband had left before dawn to try to ‌swim to Ceuta.

“I thought I ​could cross by foot through the border. But ‌we are stuck here, unable to go back home,” ​she said.

“I was hoping to cross as a family but my husband woke up early and went first, swimming.”

Work on the long-awaited lifts at Todmorden Rail Station is set to begin in November 2026, with completion targeted for autumn 2027

Work on the long-delayed lifts at Todmorden Rail Station is set to begin in November. If the project stays on schedule, passengers could be using the new lifts as early as autumn 2027.

For many years, disabled passengers have struggled to access the Bradford and Leeds direction platform, which currently can only be reached by steps. While the Manchester platform does not require steps, it remains accessible only via a steep incline.

Funding for the upgrades has been secured for some time with the Department of Transport Access For All funding for the lifts being awarded for both platforms back in 2019. This followed a lengthy campaign, reports Yorkshire Live.

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However, repeated difficulties with contractors have continually pushed the scheme back, until Network Rail recently stepped in to take direct control of the project.

Network Rail has since updated Todmorden town councillors on progress, acknowledging their full understanding of the frustration surrounding the delays, while confirming the project is moving forward with Story Contracting and that funding remains in place.

“At present, work is expected to begin in November 2026,” they said.

Network Rail confirmed that an experienced team has been brought together to oversee the scheme.

“We are working to deliver it as quickly as possible, with the ambition of having it completed and available for passengers in autumn 2027,” they wrote. Calder Valley MP, Labour’s Josh Fenton-Glynn, who has campaigned and pushed for the lifts over a 12-year period, recently held discussions with Network Rail officials to advocate for the scheme once more.

Following the meeting, he stated on social media: “I was reassured to hear Network Rail’s commitment to getting the work going again and delivering the promised improvements as soon as possible.

“I know this is something that the community and councillors over the last few years have campaigned hard for, and it’s an issue I’ve raised with Transport Ministers in Parliament.”

During the spring months, Mr Fenton-Glynn and local activists including councillors gathered at the station to voice their exasperation over the hold-ups.

Local residents Paul Thompson and Meg Kennedy both outlined that while they can travel to Manchester, upon their return they must remain on the train until the subsequent stop beyond Todmorden, Hebden Bridge, which has accessible facilities.

Both explained that this then necessitates a taxi trip back home to Todmorden.

Paul recounted one occasion returning from Manchester, when he was forced to alight at Todmorden, leaving him with no alternative but to descend the platform steps on his backside during a winter’s day.

Annika Sands ‘couldn’t accept that their relationship was over’ and stalked her victim for almost a year

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A woman has landed in court for stalking and harassing a man she met via a dating app.

Annika Sands met Bradley McCreath in September 2021 where the pair had a “short lived” relationship which “lasted a matter of weeks”.

However, Liverpool Crown Court heard Sands “couldn’t accept that their relationship was over” and went on subject him to a campaign of “entrenched and obsessive behaviour” over the course of nearly a year where she stalked and harassed him across the Wirral in her gold BMW.

Sands was reportedly “angered” when the man started a new relationship and went on to harass the couple at Cheshire Oaks. The pair were even forced to flee their homes over fears for their safety, Liverpool Echo reports.

The 41-year-old had previously been handed a “warning” in the form of a court order after being reported to police by three other men who she had short term relationships with.

Arthur Gibson, prosecuting, told the court on Thursday: “While he made it clear that he was not looking for any form of long term relationship, Ms Sands wanted that relationship to develop. As a result, he ended it. She, however, was not prepared to accept that.”

Sands’ behaviour then led to Mr McCreath making an initial report to police in November of that year, although no further action was ultimately taken against her at this stage. But the 41-year-old, of Alfred Road in Birkenhead, was then subjected to a stalking protection order in January 2022 following complaints by three other men who she had short term relationships with.

Mr Gibson told the court: “By the end of January 2022, it must have been abundantly clear to Ms Sands what behaviour constituted stalking and that, when relationships ended, they ended. Mr McCreath did not want anything further to do with her.”

While “matters quietened down” for the next few months, he then bumped into Sands in a Morrisons Daily store near to his home in Upton on May 15, at which stage he “ignored her and ignored a message she sent him that night”. A week later, he was then visiting his parents in Irby and, upon leaving, was sitting in his parked car at around 12.45am when the defendant drove past him in her gold-coloured BMW M4, which bore a “distinctive” personalised number plate.

Having set off in his car, Sands then overtook Mr McCreath on Thingwall Road after “clearly turning around and driving after him”. He was subsequently travelling along Manor Drive when his ex again drove towards and past him while flashing her headlights.

‘Dropping off a friend’

Later the same day, Mr McCreath went shopping at Sainsbury’s in Upton before returning to his car and finding Sands parked next to him. She subsequently claimed that she had also been in the store and, having seen his vehicle while leaving, decided to wait outside for him.

Sands went on to state that she had been “dropping a friend off” the previous evening before repeatedly asking what his plans were. She was then said to have liked his picture on dating app Hinge on June 3 before he later saw her sitting in her car while he once again drove down Manor Drive.

Ten minutes later, Sands arrived at Mr McCreath’s home address holding her dog, at which stage she began “banging on his door and asking him questions about his personal life”. She then refused to leave despite repeated requests from him and his neighbours, whom she “stood smiling at” before eventually walking back to her car after being warned that the police would be called.

Another incident followed when Mr McCreath went for a walk with his personal trainer at Leasowe Beach, where Sands “chose to walk in front of him” before asking “are you going to call your parents again?” As he was later returning to his car, he spotted her driving away before turning around and returning to beside his vehicle, at which stage he “told her to stop harassing him and to f*** off”.

But Mr Gibson detailed how “matters escalated” further in the summer of 2022 when Mr McCreath began a new relationship with Corinne Roberts, adding: “It is clear that the defendant was angered by this. She also turned her attentions to Ms Roberts.”

This was said to have led to an incident at Cheshire Oaks Designer Outlet in Ellesmere Port in October of that year, when the couple were having a coffee at Pret-a-Manger on a table beside the window when Sands walked past. Upon leaving the premises, they “deliberately walked in the opposite direction” to that which his former partner had taken, although she then “walked past them, staring”.

Days later, Sands sent Ms Roberts a friend request on social media and was said to have searched for her former address using computer systems at Scottish Power, where she was then employed. However, she claims to have done so solely for work related purposes.

Sands was also said to have driven past Mr McCreath and Ms Roberts while “smirking” on Manor Drive on another occasion before “matters really worsened” in the New Year, beginning with her placing a call from an unknown number to the latter on January 25, 2023. While she “had no idea how the defendant managed to get her number”, she was then walking her dog near to her home, also in Upton, seven days later when “the defendant drove past her, staring”.

Two nights later, Mr McCreath was staying at Ms Roberts’ house when Sands was again seen driving around nearby streets. She was ultimately arrested on February 7, at which stage her phone was found to contain details of her ex-boyfriend’s phone numbers and social media accounts, as well as those of his family members and friends.

‘There is expressed remorse’

Sands was meanwhile evidenced to have searched for Mr McCreath’s car registration on Cazoo and looked up Ms Roberts’ past and present employers, as well as downloading pictures of her from social media. While there was said to have been a “strong suspicion” that she had placed a tracking device on her former partner’s vehicle, there was ultimately said to be “no actual evidence to support the allegation”.

Mr Gibson added: “As a result of this, both felt compelled to leave their homes. Ms Roberts owned her property and had an emotional attachment to it, because she inherited it from her late father. She has had to move well out of the area. She does not feel safe.”

Of the impact on Mr McCreath, Mr Gibson said: “Effectively, his whole working and social life was affected. He gave up the gym. His relationship with his father deteriorated. She would often appear at places where they were working.

“It was persistent over a long period. There were, we say, elements of planning and elements designed to cause distress. Clearly, very serious distress was caused to both victims. They have both had to make considerable changes to their lifestyles to avoid contact.”

Sands has no previous convictions. Keith Sutton, defending, said that the interactions between her and Mr McCreath and Ms Roberts in public were “chance encounters”, adding: “There is expressed remorse.

“There has now been three-and-a-half years since the last of these incidents. Gladly, for everybody, there has been no reported occurrence for a considerable period of time. This offending is now some considerable time ago. She is in full time employment.

“A suspended sentence here can properly mark these offences. It can provide a deterrent in order to prevent any further lapse. Even if she were to accidentally see Mr McCreath or Ms Roberts, she would know immediately to head in the other direction. By marking it in that way, this would be her first and last appearance in the crown court.”

Sands admitted two counts of stalking causing serious alarm and distress. Appearing in the dock wearing glasses and a black jacket over a blue shirt, she was handed an 18-month imprisonment suspended for two years and restraining orders banning her from contacting Mr McCreath and Ms Roberts for six years.

With Sands said to have a monthly income of £3,000 but expenditure of £2,907 due to debts totalling £16,000, she was told to pay court costs of £700 at a rate of £50 per month. Sentencing, Judge Anil Murray said: “I am told you had warnings in the past about your behaviour, which meant that you should have known better. I make it clear that I treat you as someone of previous good character.

“You could not accept that the relationship was over, and you misbehaved towards him in a significant way. He then formed a new relationship. You clearly felt jealousy towards her. She was in a relationship with the person that you wanted be in a relationship with. She was entirely an innocent party in all of this. Your behaviour towards her was worrying and lasted for about four months.

“It is made clear that some meetings were by chance, but you went on to make use of those meetings by harassing the complainants. Your actions in each case significantly affected your victims.

“Bradley McCreath says that what you did affected his quality of every day life. He was constantly on edge. He stopped going to the gym and became isolated from friends and family. Importantly, both felt it necessary to move house because of your actions. This was persistent over a long period. You intended to cause a lot distress.

“You could have accepted your guilt much earlier. Still, I have made a reduction for the delay. References say that there is a different side of you when not jealous, and you support and are kind to your friends and neighbours and are respectful and friendly. I am told that you express remorse.

“I accept that there is a reasonable prospect of rehabilitation, given you have been out of trouble for some time now. This is a case where I am able, just, to suspend the sentence, but you need to take great care.

“This was entrenched and obsessive behaviour. Restraining orders of significant length are needed to give you an incentive to stay away from the complainants. The principle necessity is to make sure this stops for good and that the complainants feel safe again.

“If you contact them in the next two years, you will be in breach of this order. It is almost certain that you will have this sentence activated. If you contact them in the next six years, you will be breaching the restraining orders, which is highly likely to result in an immediate prison sentence.”

Gifting money to your child or grandchild has become a hot topic. Many regard it as better to bask in the joys of generosity today, rather than hold on to money and risk the imposition of inheritance tax tomorrow.

But it can be emotive and problematic, exposing relationship tensions and issues of trust.

The level of interest in the issue – it is constantly coming up in our conversations with customers – suggests people are increasingly willing to overcome these complications to avoid inheritance tax.

The big driver is a change that kicks in next April, when pensions will become potentially liable for inheritance tax. Greater revenues are being collected on estates – June was a record month – and they are likely to balloon from next year. 

The Office for Budget Responsibility expects an increase of 67 per cent in the tax take between now and 2030, collected from around 65,000 estates – a doubling from the latest tally.

One common way of reducing a future inheritance tax bill is to make gifts at least seven years before your death – a variable that, admittedly, is unknown and uncontrollable. 

After seven years, the money should usually fall outside of your estate. And you can also freely gift £3,000 a year aside from this.

But gifting invites many emotionally tinged decisions and dilemmas. Common considerations include:

1. Will my son or daughter blow the money?

2. Will it undermine their work ethic or worsen their relationship with money?

3. Will your gifted money merely end up in the pocket of a poorly-chosen partner?

However, I believe there’s a way to gift that mitigates these risks, and also happens to be a super-charged tax-efficient route to building wealth: allocating some money into the recipient’s pension.

After all, many parents don’t actually want to make their children richer today. They want to make them more secure tomorrow. This is how it works.

Why pension gifting is safer  

Reason 1: The lock-in

Junior Isas are a common way forward-thinking parents try to give their kids a head-start. These accounts enable parents and grandparents to put away £9,000 per year, per child and that money should be free from UK tax. 

Control of the money swings across to the child at age 16 and at 18 it converts to adult Isa status and can be withdrawn.

Do they tend to blow it? Our data – for the Fidelity Personal Investing platform – is positive in this regard. Of 6,000 customers whose Junior Isa converted into an adult ISA after 2021, only 9 per cent cleared out the account. And 35 per cent have actually added money.

If a first property deposit is a priority, Junior Isas are a great option to get your teenager on the right track. 

Many parents would hope their child would follow this up by saving into adult Isas and also Lifetime Isas, which qualify for a Government top-up, albeit with some restrictions.

However, you may not want to run the risk that your hard-earned money is diverted from this, or other sensible options, once your child gets their hands on the money.

Gifting directly into a pension is effective in mitigating this risk. There is no access to this money for decades: the age of private pension access will rise from 55 to 57 on 6 April 2028 and will likely be higher by the time today’s teenagers and 20-somethings reach retirement.

Reason 2: The soured marriage mitigation

A pension may also provide greater protection if your child goes through a marriage breakdown down and assets are split. 

While pensions can be taken into account in divorce settlements, particularly after long marriages, the fact that they are long-term retirement assets means they can be treated differently from readily accessible savings or investments.

The outcome depends on the circumstances, and there is no guarantee they will be excluded, but there is the potential.

Reason 3: Pension gifting is super-charged

Stock markets, where pensions are invested,  offer great growth potential over the very long term. Longer timeframes increase the chances of better riding out the ups and downs, history suggests. Returns have also been higher than would have been achieved from staying in cash. 

It is a way to supercharge the gifts you make, as the growth compounds, earning returns on your returns year after year.

But you can give it a further super-charged boost through tax breaks – and this is especially powerful for children.

Pension tax relief is one of the biggest financial perks you’ll ever receive. This is explained further in This is Money’s guide to pension tax relief, but for most people, every £80 you put into your pension becomes £100 thanks to reduced tax. Higher-rate taxpayers should be able to claim even more. 

You should check the rules but for a child, it is simple. 

You can open a Junior Self-Invested Personal Pension (Sipp) and harness the boost of tax relief immediately. It is classed as ‘relief,’ yet the benefitting child doesn’t even need to have earnings or income to qualify. It is a gift on your gift.

A Junior Sipp allows you to contribute up to £2,880 a year, and the government automatically adds 20 per cent tax ‘relief’, turning it into £3,600. The money is locked away until the child’s minimum pension age, but that gives decades for investment growth to compound. 

It is one of the few opportunities to secure an instant, Government-backed return before a child has even earned their first pay packet.

We ran the numbers on two theoretical scenarios, comparing money into a Junior ISA and into a Junior SIPP.

How to turn £8,640 into £297,777

Let’s consider what happens if you took the maximum £2,880 Junior Isa allowance and invested it in a Sipp instead, each year for three years – from the time your child was 15 years old to adulthood.

A parent contributing £2,880 a year for three years would invest £8,640 into a Junior Isa. The same cash contribution into a Junior Sipp becomes £10,800 after HMRC tax relief. Assuming 7 per cent annual growth to age 65, that difference alone could add almost £60,000 to the child’s retirement fund.

This is because you’re earning those returns on a larger, HMRC-boosted sum and the difference continues to grow and compound over time. 

By the time your child reaches age 65, your £8,640 invested into a Junior Sipp could have grown into a retirement nest egg worth between £118,000 and almost £300,000, depending on returns.

Investment charges would trim these returns and the growth is not guaranteed, but it illustrates my point on the power of tax relief.

Of course, the inheritance saving on this scenario is small at £3,456 – 40 per cent of the amount gifted. But the gifting could continue through their twenties, with the child or grandchild channeling the money into their Sipp. Generally, you can put £60,000 into a pension each year or 100 per cent of your earnings – whichever is lower. 

There’s a certain elegance to all this. Not only are you avoiding one tax – on inheritance – but you are using tax efficiency to stretch that tax exemption further. It is a rare opportunity in an age when the tax squeeze only seems to tighten.

A word of warning  

Before making any decisions, consider the adapted idiom of not letting the tax tail wag the financial plan dog. Is it really affordable? Can you make the gift and keep your own plans intact?

You should also carefully consider whether you will even face a liability. For married couples who own property, the allowance is up to £1million if they pass on their main home to their children or grandchildren. A rate of 40 per cent is applied beyond that level.

The reality is that a small portion of estates are liable. The most recent statistics were published this week, for 2023/24 – and showed around 30,400 estates had to pay some inheritance tax, a fall of over 1,000 on the previous year. 

Only 4.7 per cent of estates pay any tax. And the numbers also show that, once tax-free allowances were accounted for, the average effective tax rate paid by estates was actually 13 per cent, compared to the headline marginal rate of 40 per cent. 

Of course, the tax net will widen after next April’s change in the rules.

The decision is not an easy one, and the dynamic changes at different life stages. It is certainly worth monitoring your child’s attitude and behaviour as they reach their 20s and 30s. It should sway the preference you state on whether gifts should channel to Sipp or Isa.

As with many difficult choices, perhaps the ‘bit of both’ option is a happy compromise – some to help near-term goals of buying a home, some for long-term financial security, and maybe just some for fun in the here and now. 

Few things are more rewarding than watching your generosity be enjoyed by others – and it perhaps especially important for a doting grandparent.

The pension choice, however, is the ultimate act of delayed gratification and forward thinking. You’re giving them options, dignity and financial independence in later life for which they may thank you. That it is meaningful legacy I would be happy to leave.

As some Hollyoaks viewers suspected, we haven’t seen the true side of newcomer Abigail Matthews – and the sordid nature of the character will send shockwaves through the village, deeply impacting grieving teenager Dee Dee Hutchinson (Chloe Atkinson).

Fans were delighted by the announcement of Coronation Street Sophie Webster icon Brooke Vincent in a new role for the show, and it was inevitable that they wouldn’t leave a big name actress on the sidelines for long at all.

Now Metro can exclusively reveal that Abigail has been brought in for a long-running and topical plotline that will explore the grooming of a child from a place of institutional authority.

Our soap source told me of the plot: ‘Brooke is playing a seriously dark, character – she’s complex, intelligent and manipulative and knows exactly what she is doing by using her power to draw in Dee Dee.

‘It’s poised to be one of the show’s most talked about stories of the year and was planned as a natural follow on from the tragic loss of Diane. Dee Dee in particular will find the struggle of losing her mum impossible to deal with, making her a terrifyingly easy target for the predator.

‘It might be that the dark story divides fans but Hollyoaks is known for not shying away from issues like this, so it will be no different this time.’

They added: ‘It will be fascinating for many who know Brooke solely for playing Sophie – Abigail is such a vastly different character and the material will really show how versatile Brooke can be. The performances are said to be pretty chilling and Chloe is really stepping up the mark as Dee Dee since her debut last year.’

The death of Diane – played marvellously by the much missed Alex Fletcher – has sent heartbreak through those left behind, with Tony (Nick Pickard) struggling to cope while also ensuring the welfare of his kids is okay.

Dee Dee fell through the cracks by getting involved with drugs, and it’s Abigail who is there to help her in a professional capacity as a counsellor.

But that professional facade will soon crack to show a much deeper and worrying reality.

With Abigail now working at the school, the coming months will see her pursue a ‘friendship’ with Dee Dee and will push to strengthen their bond when the school term starts in September. 

Vulnerable after the loss of her mother, Dee Dee, in turn will form an attachment to Abigail.  

Hollyoaks has worked with charities TDI (The Derwent Initiative) as well as the NSPCC to ensure this subject is handled with the utmost care and accuracy.  

TDI aims to prevent sexual offending by raising awareness and consulting with venues that could facilitate it through their Leisurewatch scheme which trains public spaces, like hotels and leisure centres to spot when abuse could be happening within their precincts.

The intention is to raise awareness and questions about safeguarding, grooming, the importance of understanding abuse of power, and encourage transparency with established friends and family members about new friendships. 

TDI says that cases like Dee Dee’s are common but frequently unreported, due to a lack of understanding about abuse of power, criminality and safeguarding. 

A spokesperson for the organisation said: ‘Young people, particularly teenagers, are at a pivotal age where making good choices is hard, while wanting to be independent. 

‘The Hollyoaks storyline will highlight that in order to do that, any ‘secret’ friendship or relationships should be questioned.  

‘Think about why someone would ask you to keep a healthy friendship a secret? Speak to a friend, or family member or anonymous helplines are available.’

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