Harrogate Hydro reduces opening hours due to staff shortages

Harrogate Hydro is to reduce its opening hours due to staff shortages.

The facility, which is run by Harrogate Borough Council-controlled Brimhams Active, will be closed on either a Saturday or Sunday from this weekend, which coincides with the start of half-term holidays.

It said ongoing staff shortages and effects of the covid pandemic has left it “no choice” but to make the decision.

The Hydro said in a post on its Facebook page:

“As you may be aware, the Hydro is currently operating with a reduced team and reduced programme as we continue to respond to the covid pandemic as well as being affected by the national staff shortages at leisure facilities.

“Despite our best efforts, these shortages leave us with no choice but to reduce the opening hours.

“With immediate effect, the Hydro will either be closed on Saturdays or Sundays until we close for the refurbishment project which we can now confirm will be Friday, April 8.”

The Hydro will be closed on the following days:

Meanwhile, the facility will be closed for a refurbishment project from April 8.

The council has not said how long the Hydro will be closed.

It said the programme for the construction of the scheme was being finalised and will go before the authority’s cabinet for approval “in due course”.

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As part of the refurbishment, the council will demolish the current ‘drum’ entrance and replace it with a larger structure that includes a bigger café and reception area on the ground floor and a new 400-square metre fitness suite on the first floor.

Outside, the car park will be reconfigured with a new area bicycle storage and room for six electric vehicle charging points.

As part of its plans to overhaul leisure services, which were approved in June 2020, the council outlined a £13.5 million project to refurbish The Hydro.

Weather warning of strong winds issued for Harrogate district

The Harrogate district is braced for stormy weather this week after a weather warning has been issued.

The Met Office has put a yellow warning in place for strong winds in the district, as well as the north east of England and Scotland.

It warns that “a period of very strong winds could cause some disruption”.

The warning has been issued from 6pm on Wednesday until the same time the following day.

The Met Office says that the district could see power cuts, fallen trees and some damage to buildings.

The yellow weather warning issued for the Harrogate district from Wednesday.

The yellow weather warning issued for the Harrogate district from Wednesday.

It adds that strong winds could affect public transport.

The weather warning comes just weeks after the district was hit by Storm Malik.

The storm saw strong winds force one business to close and brought down multiple trees in Harrogate causing traffic disruption.

Meanwhile, villagers in Hampsthwaite were left without power. A total of 590 properties in HG1 and HG3 postcodes went without electricity during the storm.

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£72 rise in Harrogate district council tax bills set to be confirmed

Final approval is set to be given for a hike in council tax bills this week as North Yorkshire County Council decides how much it will charge.

Total council tax is based on the amount charged by the county council, Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner. Some villages also charge a small sum too.

The county council will become the last to vote on its budget plans in the days ahead.

County councillors will meet on Wednesday to make a decision on a planned 3.99% hike in the authority’s share of bills, which equates to a £56 increase.

If approved, the move would see total bills for ratepayers in Band D households rise to £2,079 for the year. This would be £72 more than the current £2,007, which represents a 3.58% increase.

Cllr Carl Les, leader of the county council, said previously that the decision to increase council tax was a difficult one.

However, he added that the authority continues to lobby for reform of the council tax system.

He said:

“We continue to feel that residents in North Yorkshire pay too much council tax, particularly in comparison to London, and urge the government to press on with funding reform to create a fairer solution for rural counties.”

Harrogate district council tax hikes 2022/23

Total Band D bill: £2,079.59

Last week, both the borough council and North Yorkshire’s police commissioner signed off on increases in their share of the rate.

For Harrogate, the share of council tax will increase by £5 despite concerns from opposition councillors for the council to use its reserves.

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Cllr Pat Marsh, leader of the opposition Liberal Democrat group on Harrogate Borough Council, said the authority should be using more of its cash reserves to ease the pressure on residents.

However, Cllr Graham Swift, the borough council’s cabinet member for economic development, dismissed the idea of not increasing council tax as “nonsense”. He said the authority faced increasing costs and had to keep services running and staff paid.

Meanwhile, North Yorkshire Police will see a £10 increase and North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue’s rate will rise to £75.61.

Plan to convert former Bishop Thornton school into house

Plans have been lodged to convert the former Bishop Thornton Church of England Primary School into a house.

Leeds Diocesan Board of Finance has lodged the application to Harrogate Borough Council to convert the former school site off Colber Lane.

The school closed in 2019 after it outgrew the site and moved to the former Burnt Yates Church of England Primary School building.

It has since been renamed Admiral Long Church of England Primary School.

According to plans submitted to the council, the Bishop Thornton building would be converted into a three bedroom house with two parking spaces.

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The developer said in its documents that the proposal would represent a “satisfactory replacement” for the former school building.

It said:

“Making use of empty buildings and placing great weight on using suitable sites within existing settlements is supported by national planning policy.”

Harrogate Borough Council will make a decision on the proposal at a later date.

Access to NHS dentists in North Yorkshire has ‘got worse’, says MP

Access to NHS dentists across North Yorkshire has got worse and is “unacceptable”, according to one of the county’s Conservative MPs.

Kevin Hollinrake, who represents Thirsk and Malton, told a debate in Parliament this week that there has been “simply no availability” for dentists during his seven years as a MP.

Mr Hollinrake said one of his first acts as an MP was to raise the issue with the then Minister for Dentistry, Alistair Burt, in 2015.

However, now he says the issue has got worse and that across North Yorkshire there is no availability on waiting lists.

He told a Westminster Hall debate on access to NHS dentistry on Thursday that since 2015 the issue has “actually got a lot worse”. He said:

“This morning I checked across North Yorkshire—which is larger than my constituency—and there is simply no availability on NHS waiting lists.

“It has been like that for most of the seven years I have been in Parliament. The pity is that I have dentists who will accept NHS patients, but they just cannot get the units of dental activity.

“There is a real impasse between the issues and our honesty in saying whether NHS dentistry treatment is available in our constituencies.”

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Mr Hollinrake added that he often receives emails from constituents complaining of toothache and having to pay for private treatment despite the fact that they cannot afford it.

He said:

“This is simply unacceptable”.

Acute problem of NHS dentists

Last year, the Stray Ferret revealed that just two Harrogate district NHS dentists were accepting patients but both had a waiting list of at least two-and-a-half years.

The investigation revealed how acute the problem of dental care is for people on low incomes in the district, with one councillor describing the situation as “shocking”.

Meanwhile, a review of NHS dentistry published in August 2021 found that found there was just one NHS dentist practice per 10,000 people in the district.

Harrogate district covid rate drops below 1,000 for first time since December

The Harrogate district’s covid rate has fallen below 1,000 for the first time in two months.

Currently, the district’s seven-day average stands at 890 per 100,000 people.

It’s the first time the rate has dropped below 1,000 since December 22.

However, the number remains above the county-wide average, which is 684 and the England rate of 709.

Latest figures from Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust show 26 patients are currently being treated at the hospital – down on 30 last week.

UK Health Security Agency data shows the daily number of positive covid cases is 191.

Meanwhile, the number of positive patients with covid who have died at Harrogate District Hospital since March 2020 stands at 221.

The latest death was reported on February 5, according to NHS England figures.

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Knaresborough Civic Society urges councillors to reject leisure centre plans

Knaresborough Civic Society is calling on councillors to reject a £13 million leisure centre in favour of rival proposals for an extension of the town’s swimming pool.

The civic society is supporting plans from the ‘Not on Fysche Field’ campaign group which has produced designs to upgrade the 30-year-old swimming pool as an alternative to its demolition proposed by Harrogate Borough Council.

A recommendation of approval has been made by the council on its own plans at a meeting next Tuesday, and the civic society has cautioned councillors that they must “take full responsibility for the outcome of such a huge decision”.

A civic society spokesperson said: 

“Knaresborough Civic Society urges the planning committee to reject this short-sighted recommendation in favour of an alternative solution which will not result in the loss of mature trees, vital outdoor play facilities and green space.

“We have played an active role in campaigning for a more considered approach to this project and have made our views clear that building on the existing site – as was promised at the public consultation – should be the preferred option.”

The proposed £13 million leisure centre includes a six-lane pool and exercise studios, and has been hailed by the council as a “modern and fit-for-purpose” facility.

However, several concerns have been raised since the plans were first revealed in 2020, particularly over a council-run survey and the environmental impact of demolishing a building to replace it with another.

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The survey on five potential locations for the leisure centre referred to locating it “on the site of the existing pool”, but it was only several months after this that the council revealed it wants to build the facility over a play area behind the existing pool at Fysche Field.

The civic society said demolishing the existing pool would result in “unnecessary damage” to the environment and argued it is at odds with separate council plans to extend The Hydro in Harrogate.

It also raised questions over what the scrapping of Harrogate Borough Council in April 2023 will mean for its proposals and new leisure company Brimhams Active.

A civic society spokesperson said: 

“Sadly many Knaresborough residents who use the play area will only be aware of the loss of valuable community green space when the trees are felled and the diggers move in.

“This would be the wrong decision by a council favouring a company run by councillors that may or may not exist after local government reorganisation in a year’s time.”

If approved, the new leisure centre could be built by the end of 2023.

The other locations previously considered included Knaresborough House, Hay-a-Park, Conyngham Hall and a plot of land at Halfpenny Lane.

Four released on bail after Jennyfields drugs raid

Four people have been released on bail after police seized a “large amount” of suspected class A and class B drugs in Jennyfields.

North Yorkshire Police arrested two men and two women on suspicion of possession with intent to supply drugs and handling stolen goods.

Officers executed a drugs warrant at a property on Newby Crescent in Jennyfields on Wednesday.

In a statement, the force said a “large amount” of suspected class A and class B drugs were seized alongside items officers believed to have been stolen.

A spokesperson for North Yorkshire Police added:

“The officers executing the warrant were from the Expedite team, the operational support unit and the neighbourhood policing team.

“A large amount of suspected class A and class B drugs were located at the property alongside items believed to have been stolen.

“Two men and two women were arrested on suspicion of possession with intent to supply class A and class B drugs and handling stolen goods. They have been released on bail while the investigation continues.”

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Plan approved to convert former Smarties nursery in Ripley into home

Plans have been approved to convert the former Smarties Day Nursery in Ripley into a home.

Smarties opened in 1987 and catered for 52 children. The building, which is called Wood Close, is part of the Ripley estate and is owned by Sir Thomas and Lady Emma Ingilby.

However, it closed last year after its owners decided not to renew its lease.

Now, Harrogate Borough Council has approved plans by Sir Thomas to convert the former nursery into a house.

Sir Thomas lodged the proposal as the Ingelby’s son and family plans to move there from Ripley Castle.

The nursery’s closure last year prompted an emotional response from many parents on the Stray Ferret’s Facebook page, with one saying she was “absolutely gutted” and another calling it “really sad news”.

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‘Golden opportunity’ for local councils to take back public buildings and services

Local councils across the Harrogate district are to be given the chance to take back control of public buildings and services under what has been described as a “golden opportunity” for communities.

When Harrogate Borough Council was created in 1974 it took over ownership of several key assets, including Ripon Town Hall and Knaresborough House.

But almost half a century later the borough council is now coming to an end as it will be scrapped and replaced with a new unitary authority covering the whole of North Yorkshire from April next year.

These major reorganisation plans have stoked widely-raised concerns over the future of many buildings which are key meeting places for communities and also play a crucial role in delivering local services and supporting the visitor economy.

‘Rightful owners’

Ripon Independents Cllr Pauline McHardy last night made calls for the borough council to kick-start the process by offering support to local councils that may want to submit any takeover plans.

She told a full council meeting this would be a “golden opportunity for assets across the district to be transferred back to their rightful owners”.

She said: 

“In 1974, the people of Ripon and its council had no say in their assets being transferred at no cost to Harrogate Borough Council.

“Now we want them given back to parish, city and town councils for the same as Harrogate Borough Council paid – nothing.”

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Cllr McHardy put forward a motion outlining her requests and was supported by the Liberal Democrats, including Knaresborough mayor Cllr Christine Willoughby who said it “can not be right” for local councils to pay for buildings which they once owned.

However, after a stormy debate both parties ended up voting against the motion, which was amended by Conservative council leader Richard Cooper, who said local councils would be able to “procure” the assets.

Photo of Ripon Town Hall decked in poppies

Ripon Town Hall.

This sparked questions over whether local councils would have to pay, but Cllr Cooper said this “does not necessarily mean cash changing hands”.

He also said the motion first put forward “simply isn’t legal” as the borough council itself can not produce takeover plans for its own buildings to be run by local councils.

Cllr Cooper said: 

“Seeking to get better services for residents run from these assets is where we should be focusing.

“If parishes can do it better and put together a delivery plan – great.

“I wish them all well and good luck in managing those services from parish, city and town councils. But what I am seeking to do is make sure they get control of assets and run great services from them legally, quickly and sensibly.

“The original motion I’m afraid just won’t do that.”

What will happen in Harrogate?

The prospect of a new town council for Harrogate is highly likely under the reorganisation plans and something which has been supported by all political parties.

Among the key assets which the town council could take over include the likes of the Stray, the Royal Hall, Royal Baths, the Pump Room Museum, the Sun Pavilion and more.

There are also questions over what will happen to council offices, not least to mention Harrogate Borough Council’s new civic centre headquarters.

At the moment, Harrogate and Scarborough are the only major towns in North Yorkshire not served by a parish or town council.

North Yorkshire County Council has previously said services such as parks and markets could be run by a town council, while areas including planning and highways may be handled by a Harrogate and Knaresborough Area Constituency Committee on the new unitary authority.

It has also said it is supportive of the idea of a Harrogate Town Council, although this would require a community governance review and could lead to a local referendum with a vote from residents.