Conservatives win Bilton and Nidd Gorge by-election

The Conservatives have gained the Bilton and Nidd Gorge seat on North Yorkshire County Council from the Liberal Democrats.

Matt Scott, candidate for the Tories, won the seat with 1,991 votes.

The by-election was held following the death of former Liberal Democrat councillor, Geoff Webber.

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The full results were:

More to follow.

New footbridge planned for RHS Harlow Carr

RHS Harlow Carr has lodged plans for a new footbridge in its gardens.

The application submitted to Harrogate Borough Council would see the wooden bridge cross over Queen Mother’s Lake.

It forms part of proposals to improve the visitor experience at the attraction.

Liz Thwaite, head of site, said:

“The new bridge is part of our overall masterplan for the RHS Harlow Carr site, and will improve the flow of people and the overall visitor experience. 

“It has been made possible through a generous donation, which we will release more information about in due course.”

The gently curved bridge would be built at the south of the gardens, near to Otley Road.

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According to planning documents, the bridge would be three metres wide so that there is space for people to pass on foot, in wheelchairs or with prams and scooters.

The path at the south of the gardens would also be realigned towards the bridge as part of the wider masterplan.

A decision on the planning application will be made at a later date.

Harrogate district first covid vaccine doses near 100,000

The number of people who have received a first dose of a covid vaccine in the Harrogate district has reached nearly 100,000.

According to NHS England statistics, 98,903 people have had a first jab so far.

The figure is an increase of 3,403 on last week.

It’s an improvement on April’s figures, when the number of those receiving a first vaccine dropped to a weekly low of 363.

Meanwhile, 43,429 second doses have been given in the district so far.

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It comes as those aged over 40 have started to be invited to come forward for the vaccine.

Another two covid cases have been confirmed in the Harrogate district, according to latest Public Health England figures.

It takes the total number of infections since last March to 7,693.

The district’s seven day covid rate has also fallen to 16 per 100,000 people.

The North Yorkshire average stands at 20 and the national rate is also 20.

No further deaths from patients who tested positive for covid have been reported at Harrogate District Hospital.

According to NHS England figures, the last death recorded was on April 11.

The death toll at the hospital since the start of the pandemic remains at 179.

£200,000 bid to make busy Harrogate junctions safer

Two of Harrogate’s busiest junctions could undergo improvement work worth £200,000 to make them safer for pedestrians and cyclists.

North Yorkshire County Council agreed today to bid for funding to improve the traffic lights at the junction of Wetherby Road and Railway Road, next to Sainsbury’s, and at the junction of Leeds Road, Pannal Bank and Follifoot Road.

Cllr Don Mackenzie, executive member for access, approved the bid at a meeting this morning.

He said there were no designs for the junctions at this stage but the idea was to make them safer for pedestrians and cyclists.

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The authority will bid to the Department for Transport, which has made £15 million funding available to councils for the maintenance of traffic lights.

Cllr Mackenzie said the bid was not a reflection of a lack of highways funding in the council’s budget.

He said:

“We get opportunities to bid for certain types of funding.

“We make a bid and we hope to receive that funding and that is the nature of some highways funding these days.”

A report before Cllr Mackenzie this morning said that the two junctions were key to the town and could “be improved significantly”.

It said the lights were running on “aged equipment” and needed to be modernised.

The report said:

“Both junctions are operating with aged equipment and technology that requires full refurbishment and upgrade improvements. As key junctions, the current performance is of some constraint to network performance and efficiency.

“Each site can be improved significantly not only in terms of traffic flow but also for pedestrian and cyclist facilities, particularly Railway Road that is one of the largest signalised junctions and does not have pedestrian crossing facilities.”

The county council expects to learn about the outcome of the bid at a later date.

It comes as the county council is pressing ahead with plans to improve cycling and walking in the town.

The authority has unveiled four proposals as part of its active travel scheme, including cycle lanes on Victoria Avenue and a 20 mile per hour zone on Oatlands Drive.

Other measures include the £7.9 million Station Gateway project, which could see James Street pedestrianised and one-lane traffic on Station Parade.

The joint plan by North Yorkshire County Council, Harrogate Borough Council and West Yorkshire Combined Authority seeks to encourage sustainable transport in the town centre.

Ripon councillor elected as county council chairman

A Ripon councillor has been elected as the new chairman of North Yorkshire County Council.

Cllr Stuart Martin, a retired firefighter who has represented Ripon south on the authority since 2017, was voted in at a meeting yesterday. He will chair the county council for the next 12 months.

Although Cllr Martin is a Conservative, the role of chairman is apolitical. He will be responsible for promoting the council at civic and ceremonial events as well as chair full county council meetings.

Cllr Martin was until last month mayor of Harrogate borough. He also represents Ripon Moorside ward on both Harrogate Borough Council and Ripon City Council.

Cllr Margaret Atkinson, who represents the Conservatives in Masham and Fountains division, has been elected as deputy chair of the county council.

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Cllr Martin said he wanted to commemorate Victory in Europe Day and Victory over Japan Day more appropriately during his time in the position.

He said:

“I am looking forward to supporting organisations and charities as much as possible as we open up and I am looking at setting up a chairman’s fund, because so many charities have taken such a hit over the last 18 months.

“It is essential that the civic side of things carries on and whoever is in this role continues to support businesses and the community. I know from previously being mayor of Ripon and of Harrogate district how appreciative businesses and organisations are of that support.

“It is vital we open slowly and don’t try to rush things, but as things open up I am keen to help. I think it is important that we all try to do our bit to help.”

 

Another three covid cases in Harrogate district

Another three covid cases have been confirmed in the Harrogate district.

According to today’s Public Health England figures, it takes the total number of infections since the start of the pandemic to 7,691.

No further covid deaths have been reported at Harrogate District Hospital.

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NHS England figures show that the last death from a patient who tested positive for covid was on April 11.

Meanwhile, the district’s seven-day covid rate has fallen to 17 per 100,000 people.

The North Yorkshire average is 23 and the England rate stands at 21.

Have your say on the future of Bewerley Park

People have been invited to have their say on the future of Bewerley Park in Nidderdale as part of a county council review.

Three months ago, North Yorkshire County Council said it would review the site and East Barnby, near Whitby, amid the financial impact of the covid pandemic.

The authority had initially proposed mothballing the centre near Pateley Bridge, which caused 16,000 people to sign a petition to save the site.

Senior county councillors then decided to amend the plan and set up a review of the service instead.

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Now, officials will seek views from schools and local organisations through focus groups and questionnaires.

Cllr Patrick Mulligan, executive member for education and skills, said: 

“At the moment Bewerley Park and East Barnby are used largely by primary schools offering week-long residential trips involving outdoor activities such as canoeing, gorge-walking and caving.

“The review will look at what kind of activities we provide in the future, how we use the estate, the facilities we provide and how we make it a sustainable service. We’re looking at this from every angle – including whether we need to work collaboratively with partners in the future, or if we are able to continue with the service as it is.”

The council said the pandemic has cost its outdoor learning service, which includes Bewerley Park, £1 million in the last financial year.

The huts which make up the Bewerley Park estate were built as temporary structures in 1939, with an expected life span of ten to twenty years.

Officials said the huts have become expensive to maintain and investment is needed at both sites.

The authority said the review will look at ways to bring the service back after the pandemic, but in a way “that places it on a sustainable footing”.

To take part in the engagement and give you views, e-mail outdoorlearningreview@northyorks.gov.uk.

Just three covid cases recorded in Harrogate district

Just three covid cases have been reported in the Harrogate district, according to today’s Public Health England figures.

It takes the total number of infections since last March to 7,688.

No further deaths from patients who tested positive for covid have been recorded at Harrogate District Hospital.

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According to NHS England data, the hospital has now gone more than three weeks without a death.

The last reported at the hospital was on April 11. It means the death toll remains at 179.

Meanwhile, the district’s seven-day covid rate stands at 19 infections per 100,000 people.

The North Yorkshire average is 26 and the England rate is 22.

200 homes in Pannal Ash set to be approved

A controversial 200-home development at the former police training centre in Pannal Ash looks set to be approved.

Harrogate Borough Council previously approved plans to build 161 homes on the Yew Tree Lane site in 2018.

But a new proposal, submitted in November, aims to increase the number of homes to 200 despite concerns about “unjustifiable planning creep”.

Homes England, a non-departmental public body that funds new affordable housing, submitted the latest plans.

The council’s planning committee will next week decide whether to accept the latest plans.

Housing plan is “planning creep”

The application has proved controversial because of the increase in the number of homes from 161 to 200 and the loss of playing fields.

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Harlow and Pannal Ash Residents Association has described the plan as “yet another example of unjustifiable planning creep”.

The site boundary of the development on Yew Tree Lane.

The site boundary of the development on Yew Tree Lane.

A letter to the council from the Harrogate Civic Society said:

“The principle of development of this brownfield site for housing is acceptable. However, there are reasons why this application is not acceptable, either at 180 dwellings or even more so at 200 dwellings.

“There is no current need for a huge increase above housing provision figures in the Local Plan as allocations and commitments plus other housing proposals coming forward are more than sufficient.”

A report due before councillors next week recommends approving the development.

The report says the council recognises concern over the 24% uplift in houses proposed. However, it said this does not mean suitable housing “should be resisted” on brownfield sites.

It says:

“The council can currently demonstrate more than five years housing land supply, but this does not mean that additional housing can, or should be resisted on suitable non-green belt sites.”

Concerns have also been raised about the loss of three football pitches and a cricket pitch as part of the latest plan to build more homes.

However, Homes England has offered the council £595,000 in mitigation for the loss of the pitches in Pannal after discussions with Sport England.

The sum will be paid as a section 106 agreement, which developers pay to councils to mitigate the impact of their developments on the local community and infrastructure.

According to planning documents, Sport England and the Football Foundation said they consider it “unlikely” that the pitch would be actively used. Instead they advised Homes England to consider using the pitch for more housing.

Harrogate care home to be demolished for new 90-bed facility

A care home on Harrogate’s Wetherby Road will be demolished and replaced with a larger facility.

Harrogate Borough Council has approved plans for Tate House to be flattened and a 90-bed care home built in its place.

Plans for the new facility were submitted to the council last November.

The three-storey building will include resident’s lounges, dining rooms and activity spaces, as well as a car park with 27 spaces.

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Sight-loss charity the Royal National Institute of Blind People sold the existing building for £1,650,000 in June last year.

It is now run as a joint venture by private care home providers Angela Swift Developments, which is based in Harrogate, and Burlington Care, which operates 31 care comes in Lincolnshire and northern England.

The current Tate House care home on Wetherby Road.

The current Tate House care home on Wetherby Road.

Tate House, opposite Harrogate Town’s football stadium, was built in 1930 and has had several extensions.

The planning application claims the proposed development will bring up to 70 new jobs to the local community, including nurses, support workers, management and admin staff.