‘No further complaints’ into trouble-hit youth centre, say Rotherham Council’s safeguarding team

Rotherham Borough Council began working with free-running centre Team Katalyst in February 2017 after then-director Richard Codd was arrested for possessing indecent images of children.

Codd received a 36-month community order in January 2018 after admitting three counts of possessing indecent images of children and one count of extreme pornography.

The Mangham Road performance centre temporarily closed its doors following Codd’s sentencing while it worked with RMBC’s safeguarding team, but reopened two weeks later as NovaCity.

Three months after Codd’s conviction, former youth worker Jason O’Hanlon admitted one 

count of making indecent images of children. 

He was sentenced to a two-year conditional discharge in April 2018 for the offences committed a year earlier.

This week, RMBC confirmed its safeguarding team was no longer providing advice to private company Nova City.

A spokesperson said: “We worked with Nova City from February 2017 to September 2018. 

“The council’s safeguarding team and the Rotherham Safeguarding Children’s Partnership provided advice to Nova City on implementing safer recruitment, safeguarding and health and safety.

“The council has not received any further complaints to the Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO), and we have no current investigation into practices at Nova City.”