Parish by-election ditched due to youth disorder

Antisocial behaviour outside Brackenhill Centre caused the by-election to be cancelled

A parish council by-election has been cancelled due to reports of antisocial behaviour outside a polling station.

West Yorkshire Police confirmed it was investigating a public order offence outside the Brackenhill Centre in Ackworth on Thursday evening.

Wakefield Council said the "unacceptable behaviour" from a group of youths had put staff and voters in "potential danger".

It said another by-election would be scheduled "at the earliest opportunity".

The Ackworth Parish Council election was held to elect two new parish councillors to the Ackworth West ward, following two resignations.

However the incident, at about 16:00 BST, caused one of two polling stations to shut.

Gillian Marshall, Deputy Returning Officer at Wakefield Council, said abandoning the by-election was a "difficult decision".

The police are now working to identify the youths involved.

The BBC understands that the public order offence is not thought to be politically motivated.

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