Otley Run: Report pub crawl offences, councillors say

The stretch of Otley Road is famous for its pub crawl (stock image)

People living in a suburb of Leeds home to a popular pub crawl are being urged to report bad behaviour to police.

The Otley Run includes about 15 pubs along Otley Road from Headingley to the city centre, and is seen as a rite of passage for students in fancy dress.

Labour councillors representing the area claim it has become more raucous, with increasing reports of sexual harassment and public urination.

They have asked residents to report issues so action can be taken.

The councillors, as well as Leeds North West MP Alex Sobel, have written a joint letter to residents outlining how they are trying to address the issue.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS), the letter said: "We funded additional policing over the freshers period to help manage the Otley Run.

The Otley Run stretches from Far Headingley to the city centre

"We're now working on a text service so it's easier to report concerns, rather than having to phone up.

"We've also discovered an old bye-law that can summon people to court for urinating in public. It's not as good as on-the-spot fines, but a start.

"Please do report things to the police too, official records of incidents helps get more resource into the area."

'We need evidence'

Mr Sobel and the councillors, who collectively cover Weetwood, Headingley and Hyde Park, said they had also held talks with pub bosses.

They said landlords had "already taken action to encourage their patrons to act more responsibly."

But they added: "We might need to push for the [council's] licensing team to add conditions to their licences to curb some of these obvious social problems.

"To make these changes we need evidence that connects anti-social behaviour or crimes to specific premises.

"If you have any evidence like this please contact any of your local representatives."

Labour councillor Neil Walshaw has previously said the pub crawl makes "Headingley look like Magaluf" on busy weekends - adding it was binge drinkers in their 20s and 30s who were more to blame than students for anti-social behaviour.