An elderly couple from West Yorkshire have been sent to prison for eight weeks after subjecting a healthcare worker to a prolonged and vicious racially aggravated assault in a public park, in a case a magistrate said left her feeling “sickened”.
Fyona Bairstow, 72, and Michael Bairstow, 77, of Moor Grove in Shelf, Halifax, were sentenced at Bradford Magistrates’ Court on 16 April 2026 after previously admitting to the attack on Apple Moorhouse, which was captured on a mobile phone and shared widely online.
Court Condemns “Deeply Rooted” Hostility
Before delivering the sentence, the chairwoman of the bench, Gill Arnold, directly addressed the couple, stating that their “vile and aggressive” behaviour was not spontaneous but “deeply rooted”. The court heard that the incident took place on 28 August 2025 in Manor Heath Park, Halifax, after the Bairstows’ dog began barking at Ms Moorhouse’s children, including her six-year-old daughter, who were present with her parents.
When Ms Moorhouse, a British citizen who moved to the UK from the Philippines over 15 years ago, asked for the dog to be put on a lead, the situation escalated into what the court described as a “prolonged” confrontation. The magistrates viewed footage showing Michael Bairstow telling his dog to “get her, kill” before picking up a dog bowl full of water and throwing it at the healthcare worker.
A Litany of Abuse and Assault
The verbal abuse was relentless and explicitly racist. Michael Bairstow told Ms Moorhouse to “go back to your dinghy” while making swimming gestures, asked if she had “come from a rubber boat”, and repeatedly chanted “Ban the immigrants”.
Fyona Bairstow compounded the attack with references to slavery and by mocking Ms Moorhouse’s father, saying, “You can’t even speak English.” She also called her victim a “stupid bitch” and threatened, “I’ll make you so bloody sick you’ll wonder what the hell is going on.” When Ms Moorhouse, who told the couple she was a healthcare worker entitled to remain in the UK, tried to walk away, Fyona Bairstow pulled her backwards by her ponytail.
The assault extended to a member of the public who tried to intervene. The court heard that when another woman told Michael Bairstow to get away, he punched her to the left side of her face and said, “Sticking up for immigrants, who do you think you are?” He later admitted assault by beating in relation to this second complainant.
Profound Impact on Victim
In a victim personal statement, Ms Moorhouse said she was “scared for my life” during the incident and now carries a panic button. She told the court the attack had fundamentally shaken her sense of safety and her career. “I feel anxious obviously, every time that I think back, I feel upset,” she said. “I’ve been here since 2009 and never had anything like this before.”
The impact was professional as well as personal. A healthcare worker, Ms Moorhouse said caring was her passion but the incident made her too scared to return to her role. “I used to work in healthcare and I wanted to go back but I felt scared … this happened and I just didn’t go back,” she stated.
Her experience underscores broader issues within the NHS, where studies indicate bullying, harassment, and abuse disproportionately affect ethnic minority staff, impacting mental health and contributing to staff leaving the profession. The NHS Race and Health Observatory has highlighted work to tackle “rampant levels” of such behaviour.
Sentencing and Legal Context
In mitigation, the couple’s solicitor, Raza Hussain, said the incident was not pre-meditated and that they “fully accept the racial language they used was wholly inappropriate, which they deeply regret”. He added that the widespread sharing of the footage on social media and national news had brought them “significant embarrassment”.
Rejecting arguments for a non-custodial sentence, Magistrate Gill Arnold said the seriousness of the offence and the fact children were present meant only immediate custody was justified. She jailed each defendant for eight weeks. The court also ordered each to pay £175 compensation to Ms Moorhouse, with Michael Bairstow ordered to pay an additional £100 to the woman he punched.
The couple’s sentence reflects the enhanced penalties for racially aggravated offences under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998. For a crime to be considered racially aggravated, it must be motivated by or demonstrate hostility based on the victim’s race. The maximum sentence for a racially aggravated common assault is significantly higher than for the basic offence.
Speaking after the sentencing, Ms Moorhouse said she hoped it sent a “clear message that racism is a crime”. Displaying a compassion that mirrored her professional calling, she added that she had not expected a jail term and felt sympathy for her attackers. “I can’t say I’m glad about it,” she told reporters, “I feel sorry for them.”
