In 2020, the Offender Database recorded that then 62-year-old Glen Battensby—a former long-serving Leeds club DJ—was jailed following a targeted police sting operation. The investigation established that Battensby utilised the internet to seek out children for sexual exploitation. The prosecution reported at York Crown Court that the predator was intercepted by an undercover detective posing as a 12-year-old boy. Battensby was caught waiting outside the Morrisons Acomb supermarket with Haribo sweets and chocolates, believing he was about to lure a child away for sexual activity.
The investigation established that Battensby’s predatory behaviour was serial and calculated. Upon his arrest at the supermarket meeting point, detectives analyzed his mobile phone and discovered details of a separate meeting he had arranged just days earlier in Harrogate. The prosecution reported that in the previous instance, Battensby believed he was meeting a 15-year-old boy for sexual activity, identifying a persistent and active drive to carry out physical assaults on minors.
GROOMING TACTICS AND JUDICIAL SENTENCING
The court reported that Battensby’s actions involved grooming children by promising sweets and chocolates in exchange for sexual favours. The investigation established that his history as a well-known Leeds DJ provided no excuse for his “perverted urges,” which targeted vulnerable schoolboys. The prosecution reported that Battensby pleaded guilty to two counts each of attempting to meet a child for sexual activity, sexual communication with a child, and attempting to incite a child to perform a sex act, with all offences occurring over a two-week period in early 2020.
Judge-led proceedings at York Crown Court concluded in 2020. For his actions in York and Harrogate, and the nature of the serial child sexual abuse investigation reported, Glen Battensby was sentenced to three and a half years in prison. The investigation established that he was legally mandated to the Sex Offenders Register for life and was made subject to a lifetime Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO), ensuring he is permanently barred from working with children.
STATUS AND STATUTORY REQUIREMENTS
Based on the judicial records as of 2020:
- Legal Status: CONVICTED (Attempting to meet a child x2; Sexual communication with a child x2; Attempting to incite a child to perform a sex act x2).
- Custodial Status: RELEASED ON LICENCE (In 2026, having served the custodial portion of his 3.5-year sentence).
- Sex Offenders Register: Notification requirements are active FOR LIFE.
- SHPO Status: Active FOR LIFE (Strictly prohibiting contact with children and unmonitored digital access).
- DBS Status: Placed on the Barred List (Indefinite and permanent ban from any role involving children or regulated activity).
- Judicial Oversight: Sentenced at York Crown Court; investigated by North Yorkshire Police.
- Criminal Record: Former Leeds DJ; Caught in an undercover sting; Brought sweets to a meeting with a “12-year-old”; Targeted victims in York and Harrogate; Jailed in 2020.
- Origin: Parsons Green, Wetherby, West Yorkshire.
MONITORING AND PUBLIC PROTECTION
Battensby is managed as a high-risk offender under the statutory requirements of the Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) in North Yorkshire. Due to the nature of his behaviour—specifically his serial use of grooming tactics and his willingness to travel across the region to meet victims—he is a priority for behavioural and digital oversight. Authorities reported that the 2020 conviction ensures Battensby is under the highest level of scrutiny, with any future attempt to access social media or interact with minors resulting in immediate arrest and a return to prison.
As a registered sex offender for life, his details are permanently logged on the national police database. Authorities state that Battensby’s behaviour identifies an individual who prioritised his own perverted gratification over the principles of human decency and the safety of children. Any failure by Battensby to adhere to his notification requirements or the strict terms of his lifetime SHPO following his release will result in immediate police intervention to ensure the ongoing protection of the community from a man who has demonstrated a serial commitment to child sexual abuse.
QUESTION – Given that the offender used “Sweets and Chocolates” as a lure to meet a child he intended to assault, do you believe the law should legally mandate that any “Grooming Meeting” involving the provision of gifts should be sentenced the same as a completed physical assault?
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