Major Harrogate district employer bids to build energy plant

A Boroughbridge company plans to build a heat and power plant to produce “greener” and “cost-effective” energy at its headquarters.

Reed Boardall, which stores and delivers frozen food to UK supermarkets, employs 800 staff at its site off Bar Lane and operates a fleet of 196 vehicles 24 hours a day.

The company has submitted plans for a combined heat and power plant, which would be built on its site and generate electricity.

According to documents lodged with Harrogate Borough Council, the plant would work by “igniting air and natural gas to produce hot, high-pressure gases”.

The gas would then be fed through a turbine to drive an electrical generator and produce electricity.

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The company added that the energy would be used to power its headquarters in Boroughbridge. Any excess energy would be exported back to the local electricity network.

Greener alternative

Andrew Baldwin, managing director of Reed Boardall’s cold storage division, told the Stray Ferret: 

“We’re investing in a new combined heat and power system as a way of protecting the energy needs of our business for the future. 

“It is more cost-effective than buying power from the National Grid and is generally considered to be a greener alternative. We expect it to be fully operational by the end of the year.”

If approved, construction of the plant is expected to take place over three months.

Once up and running, the plant would run for 24 hours a day, seven days a week. However, it would be unmanned and operated remotely.

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

The plan follows a multi-million expansion of Reed Boardall’s Boroughbridge site.

In May, the company announced it had finished a 110,000 square foot expansion to one of its cold storage units at its 55-acre site in Boroughbridge, which will help it meet increased customer demand.

Eight commercial units approved at Dunlopillo site in Pannal

Harrogate Borough Council has approved plans for eight new commercial units at the former Dunlopillo factory site in Pannal.

York-based Echo Green Developments has lodged the application, which will see the units based to the northern part of the site on Thirkill Drive.

It will also include 28 car parking spaces, 10 cycle spaces and two motorcycle spaces.

The developer said in planning documents that the scheme would “deliver much needed economic development” and that the site was earmarked as employment land by the council.

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The former Dunlopillo site has undergone considerable redevelopment already.

Councillors gave permission to change the site into a mixed-use development back in 2015. Much of the site has already been demolished and replaced by housing as well as the Vida Grange care home.

Approval has also been granted to demolish the former Dunlopillo office block and build 48 apartments.

Leeds company handed £270,000 Sun Pavilion refurb contract

Harrogate Borough Council has awarded a £270,846 contract to Claywood Construction Ltd to refurbish Harrogate’s Sun Pavilion.

The pavilion, which has an art deco glass dome and overlooks Valley Gardens, hosts weddings and can accommodate up to 200 guests. But it has been run down for some time.

The Leeds-based company will be tasked with reconstructing the floor, installing underfloor heating. replacing the heating system, refurbishing the toilets and repairing the leaky roof.

In a report, the council said refurbishment and maintenance of the building would protect “the value and prolonging the life of the asset” and ensure “the health and safety of building users”.

Completed in the 1930s, the venue on Cornwall Road was restored to its original state in 1998 and reopened by the queen.

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Harrogate hospital records another covid death but infection rate falls

Harrogate District Hospital has reported another death from a patient who tested positive for coronavirus.

The death toll from covid at the hospital since March last year now stands at 193.

According to NHS England figures, the latest death was recorded on October 22.

Meanwhile, a further 97 covid cases have been reported in the Harrogate district according to latest Public Health England figures.

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The district’s seven-day covid rate has dropped to 612 per 100,000 people and is no longer the highest average in the county.

The North Yorkshire average is 548 and the England rate stands at 484.

A total of 130,232 people have received a first covid vaccine in the Harrogate district and 121,915 have had a second dose.

Today, Knaresborough’s vaccine centre welcomed its first 12 to 15-year-olds for covid vaccine appointments.

Conservatives select Harrogate councillor as police commissioner candidate

Harrogate councillor Zoe Metcalfe has been chosen as the Conservative candidate for next month’s election to replace Philip Allott as North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner.

Mr Allott resigned earlier this month after comments he made on the murder of Sarah Everard led to hundreds of complaints to his office and a vote of no confidence by the county’s police and crime panel.

Mr Allott – who was elected in May – said Ms Everard should not have “submitted” to arrest by the police officer who murdered her and that women needed to be more “streetwise” about powers of arrest.

His resignation means an election to find a replacement will now take place on November 25.

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Conservative candidate Zoe Metcalfe is a councillor on Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire County Council, and also works as project manager for a property company.

She said her campaign “will focus on improving safety for women and girls across North Yorkshire, supporting victims of crime and tackling serious and organised crime”.

Ms Metcalfe said:

“I am delighted to be selected as the Conservative Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner candidate for North Yorkshire.

“I am passionate about making our communities and societies safe, especially for women and girls, on the streets and at home, day and night.

“People living and working across North Yorkshire want to feel safe and have full confidence in their police and fire services.

“I can assure people I will stop at nothing to ensure both services are the best they can possibly be for the benefit of everyone across the county.”

£740,000 awarded as part of Knaresborough incinerator fund

More than £740,000 has been awarded to improve the environment in the Harrogate district as part of a landscape recovery fund.

In 2016, money was set aside to help offset damage to the local area caused by the Allerton Waste Recovery Park near Knaresborough, which converts up to 320,000 tonnes of waste into energy.

North Yorkshire County Council started a contract with waste treatment company Amey to run the plant in 2014.

A section 106 agreement, which obliges developers to pay a sum to mitigate the impact of development, led to the creation of the Allerton Park Landscape and Cultural Heritage Fund to support community projects that improve landscapes and biodiversity.

The council said today this has now funded 92 projects with a total value of £742,126.

The schemes include tree planting in Arkendale and Coneythorpe and the restoration or creation of 14 ponds.

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Boroughbridge High School received funding to help clear a pond area to attract more wildlife and create a space for outdoor learning.

The school has also installed a wildlife camera to capture images to enable the children to see what is happening when they are not there.

Funding has also gone towards refurbishing telephone boxes and a war memorial, information boards and church projects, as well as the creation or repair of 2.2km of pathways.

Cllr Derek Bastiman, executive county councillor for waste management, said:

“The projects supported by the Allerton Park Landscape and Cultural Heritage fund provide a lasting benefit to this area. They encourage wildlife and increase biodiversity, restore and enhance features of local cultural heritage to be handed to the next generation and allow the young to learn about the world around them.

“Many volunteers have been involved and I thank the local communities for undertaking all these projects. I also thank members of the community that supported the decision making process, attending panel meetings to provide local insight and enabling grant awards to maximise the benefit of this fund to provide a lasting legacy.”

Call to remove damaged Valley Garden statues

The chair of Harrogate International Partnerships has called for damaged statues in the town’s Valley Gardens to be removed.

Vandals ripped out chunks of wood from the Kiwi bird and the carved Maori bench in the New Zealand garden section of Valley Gardens last year.

Dennis Richards, chair of the HIP, a charity that supports twinning groups, told the Stray Ferret the sculptures needed to be removed in order for the charity to come up with proposals to replace them.

The section of Valley Gardens commemorates Harrogate’s twinning with Wellington and the country’s airmen being stationed in the town during World War Two.

However, Mr Richards said the council needed to remove the statues. It follows concern about the condition of them ahead of a visit to Wellington by the HIP.

He said:

“All we are asking for is the wooden statues to be removed forthwith. That is what is causing this disconnect.”

Mr Richard added that once the structures are removed, the HIP will put forward proposals with what could replace them.

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Last week, Kate Spencer, the HIP’s representative who has travelled to New Zealand as part of the twinning arrangement, raised concern that the conditions “dishonoured” the airmen commemorated in the gardens.

Valley Gardens development plan

Harrogate Borough Council said in a statement previously that the sculptures had “already started to rot independent of any vandalism that has taken place”.

It added:

“We would welcome any support or fundraising ideas from Harrogate International Partnership for the replacement of these with something more sustainable and robust for the location.

“Equally if there is anyone who would like to help with maintenance of the space we would be happy to arrange volunteering sessions in conjunctions with our own team or the Friends of Valley Gardens who provide fantastic support in maintaining this space.

“More widely we are in the process of agreeing a Valley Gardens development plan to continue to improve these spaces over the coming years.”

The garden dates back to 1954 and chainsaw sculptor Mick Burns carved the Marlin, Kiwi, and bench in 2010.

Government approves controversial 72 homes in Spofforth

The government has approved controversial plans for 72 homes in Spofforth. The approval will come as a bitter disappointment to many residents who fought the development.

Yorkshire Housing Ltd has challenged Harrogate Borough Council’s decision to refuse its proposal for the site on Massey Fold.

The developer already had outline permission to build on the site, but councillors turned down an application for appearance and landscaping in November 2020.

Siobhan Watson, a government planning inspector, has given the go-ahead for the proposal.

Ms Watson said in her decision report:

“I find some harm to the character and appearance of the countryside, however, I find the internal layout and detailed design of the proposed housing to be acceptable.”

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She also awarded costs against the council after finding that the authority “behaved unreasonably” and that its reasons for refusal were “vague and illogical”.

Ms Watson said:

“Given the site’s planning history, I find the council’s refusal of the application and subsequent defence of the case to be both vague and illogical. I consider that the development should have been clearly permitted and that the council produced vague and generalised assertions about the proposal’s impact which are unsupported by objective analysis. 

“The council has therefore behaved unreasonably, and thereby caused the party applying for the costs to incur unnecessary expense in the appeal process.”

The decision follows concerns from local residents over the design and that the housing would not be in keeping with the village.

More than 300 local people and organisations, including Natural England and Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, raised concerns about the scheme.

Shirley Fawcett, chairman of Spofforth with Stockeld Parish Council, wrote to Prime Minister Boris Johnson appealing for help in challenging the development.

She said in her letter that the village is “a very blue village but which is seeing red thanks to the government’s planning policies”.

Ms Fawcett added that it “will never be the same” if the appeal is allowed and that the “Sword of Damocles” hung over villagers.

The developer said the borough council had “unreasonably delayed development” at the site and that its case “does not contain any objective analysis that justifies the reason for refusal”.

Yorkshire Housing Ltd declined to comment at this stage.

Boulder installed at Skelton Primary School

A boulder has been installed at Skelton Newby Hall Primary School in an effort to help children’s physical development.

The boulder, which was paid for using the school’s PE and sport premium grant, was unveiled this week at an opening ceremony.

Cllr Stuart Martin, the Harrogate borough councillor for Ripon Moorside, joined pupils at the school to unveil the project.

The school said the idea behind the project was to give children the chance the climb, run and jump and help their physical development.

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A spokesperson for Skelton Newby Hall Primary School, which has an open day for prospective new pupils on November 13, said:

“After listening to the views of the children and undertaking research into children’s physical development, the boulder was installed.

“Much of the time we use our lower bodies and therefore we wanted something that would allow the children to use their upper bodies.  This also strengthens the muscular structure needed for handwriting.”

Work starts on Great Ouseburn housing development

Work has started on a new housing development in Great Ouseburn.

North Yorkshire County Council’s housing company, Brierley Homes Limited, has started work on the scheme which is on Branton Lane in the village.

It will see nine new homes built on the site.

Called The Paddocks, the first phase will focus on a highways scheme to provide the access to the new development as well as the installation of traffic calming measures.

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It will include a scheme to safeguard an avenue of lime trees and will be overseen by Brooks Ecological, which will work in partnership with the council’s highways company NY Highways.

Construction on the houses will start next year after access work is complete.

Matt O’Neill, director at Brierley Homes, said: 

“We are pleased to be moving forwards with this development, which will provide high-quality new homes in an area with high demand for housing.

“It is good to be working with NY Highways and their work will help the village by providing new traffic calming measures and also protect the environment by ensuring the lime trees are protected from unintended damage.”

Ross Bullerwell, managing director of NY Highways, said: 

“This highways work is a vital first step in the construction process and we are delighted to be completing the task on behalf of Brierley Homes Limited.

“Our construction staff are working carefully and the new traffic calming will be a benefit to all who live in the area.”