Calvin Robinson Chief Reporter, Author at The Stray Ferret

Business Breakfast: Harrogate business meeting to focus on cybersecurity

The Stray Ferret Business Club’s next meeting is a breakfast event on Thursday, 27 July at Banyan in Harrogate between 8-10am.

The Business Club provides monthly opportunities to network, make new connections and hear local success stories. Get your tickets by clicking or tapping here.

A Harrogate business meeting is set to focus on cybersecurity.

Harrogate District Chamber of Commerce will host the event on Monday (July 10) from 5:30 pm to 8:00 pm at the Majestic DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel.

PC Daniel Fawkes from the cyber crime division of North Yorkshire Police will be the guest speaker for the evening.

PC Fawkes will speak about business protection, social engineering threats and personal security considerations.

Meanwhile, Andy Morrison of Andisa IT Consultants will give a speech on how to implement security strategies.

Meanwhile, the evening will commence with a presentation from Harrogate Skills 4 Living at 6:15 pm, before the keynote presentation from the guest speaker.

For more information on the meeting and to book a place, visit the Harrogate District Chamber of Commerce website.

Harrogate district plant nursery launches horticultural training scheme

A Harrogate district plant nursery has launched a 12-week horticultural training course.

Johnsons of Whixley has set up the programme in partnership with Askham Bryan College in York.

The course, ‘An Introduction to Horticulture’, will offer employees from Johnsons the chance to broaden their knowledge in various aspects of horticulture, from plant identification to planting locations and the impacts of plant choices, with a mixture of practical and theoretical tests.

Johnsons of Whixley employees with Askham Bryan College tutors.

The weekly sessions will be held from July to September at the college.

Steve Bassford, Askham Bryan curriculum area manager, said:

“The college is looking forward to having the opportunity to deliver the bespoke course and building on already formed relationships.

“Having a positive impact on a local business such as Johnsons of Whixley enables a commercial education partnership which will be mutually beneficial to all.”

Petition launched to reopen Ripon cinema

A petition has been launched calling for Ripon’s only cinema to be reopened.

The Curzon closed on July 1 after the company said the venue had “specific challenges” and was “not suited to the long-term direction we have taken”.

Sterne Properties, which owns the site on North Street, has suggested the venue could be run as a community project with one cinema screen remaining.

However, a petition has been launched calling for the cinema to be reopened.

Adam Cordiner, who launched the campaign called Save Ripon Cinema, said he was “deeply disappointed” by Curzon’s decision to cease operating the venue.

He added he hoped the petition would help to highlight the community’s love for the site and that an operator would step in to reopen it as a cinema.

Mr Cordiner said:

“The Ripon cinema is treasured by its local community.

“Adored not only by film lovers, but by writers and artists who regularly came to open-mic nights at the cinema to share ideas, discuss topical artistic ideas and to encourage the next generation of thinkers and creators in this important and historic area.”

At the time of publication, the petition had attracted 48 signatures.

Mr Cordiner added that although there were proposals from Sterne Properties to turn the venue into a community project, he felt there was “no guarantee of this happening”.

He said:

“We love the cinema and want it to be saved. Perhaps another operator may step in if we get some publicity.”

For more information on the petition, visit the iPetition page here.

Black Sheep Brewery makes redundancies at Masham office

Black Sheep Brewery has announced a “small number” of redundancies at its head offices in Masham.

In a statement, the brewery also said three of its pubs in Leeds and York would close with immediate effect.

A spokesperson for Black Sheep said the redundancies would be made in its retail arm.

Meanwhile, The Tap & Kitchen and Mr. Foleys in Leeds, along with The Last Drop Inn in York, will shut following an “extensive review” of the brewery.

A spokesperson said:

“Having recently conducted an extensive review of our business, we have explored every angle to try to keep these locations trading profitably, but without success.

“Unfortunately, the only avenue left for us was the closure of these premises. It is always the last resort for us to make redundancies, and we are saddened to see such dedicated colleagues leaving us, at this time.”

Breal Capital bought the brewery for £5 million on May 26 as part of a pre-package administration deal.

Teneo Financial Advisory, which was appointed as administrators of Black Sheep, revealed sales fell from a high of £19 million in 2019 to £14 million last year, which resulted in a £1.6 million loss.

It added the company’s performance “suffered during the covid pandemic and trading challenges continued as a result of the current economic environment”.

The move also left creditors, including HMRC and suppliers, owed nearly £3 million.

Following the sale, Charlene Lyons, who was kept on as chief executive of Black Sheep, warned that other breweries faced administration amid the current economic climate.

Business Breakfast: Harrogate property company launches holiday and student lets

The Stray Ferret Business Club’s next meeting is a breakfast event on Thursday, 27 July at Banyan in Harrogate between 8-10am.

The Business Club provides monthly opportunities to network, make new connections and hear local success stories. Get your tickets by clicking or tapping here.

A Harrogate property company has launched two new brands and appointed a property director.

Artium Group, which is based on Cheltenham Crescent, has hired Andrew Maxwell to oversee the launch of its new subsidiaries Allure Holiday Lettings and Alteza Student Accommodation.

Allure will operate as a a holiday lettings specialist with a portfolio of 30 properties within the Harrogate district.

Alteza will be a develop and operate purpose-built student accommodation in cities across the north of England including Durham, Leeds, Newcastle and York.

Mr Maxwell said:

“I am delighted to have joined Artium Group and am excited about this opportunity to help build the property management division alongside a talented and highly skilled team.”

Thomas Shotton, director and co-owner of Artium Group, added:

“We have ambitious growth plans across the business and Andrew’s experience and expertise will be invaluable as we work together to achieve these.”

York and North Yorkshire LEP launches skills programme

York and North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership has launched a new skills programme.

Called Skills Bootcamps, the schemes are designed to help existing businesses develop their own workforces.

The enterprise partnership has pledged to meet 90% of costs for employers enrolling staff on the programmes.

The Skills Bootcamps offer a range of courses in areas such as cyber security, game design, programming, forestry, rail engineering and care.

Courses will be led by organisations such as Learning Curve Group, City of York Council, Calderdale Council, Coders Guild, Corecom Technology Academy and Northern Regeneration CIC.

Peter Emery, chair of York & North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership skills and employability board, said:

“Skills Bootcamps offer a great way for learners to progress their careers and for employers to gain additional expertise.

“This latest menu of courses offers an exciting range of opportunities and can be tailored to a company’s actual needs thus making them a very attractive option to many SMEs and micro-businesses.”

For more information on the courses, visit the Skills Bootcamp website here.

Harrogate survives mass cull of train station ticket offices

Harrogate has been spared in today’s announcement that hundreds of train station ticket offices in England will close.

The Rail Delivery Group, the industry body which represents train companies, proposed the closures of almost 1,000 ticket offices, saying it would move staff to “more face-to-face support for customers”.

Northern plans to shut 131 ticket offices — but Harrogate, plus others including Blackburn, Blackpool, Leeds and Skipton, will remain open on amended hours.

Harrogate ticket office will be open from 6am until 6pm Monday to Saturday, as opposed to its current hours of 6.15am until 7pm, and from 9am until 5pm on Sundays.

Tricia Williams, chief operating officer at Northern, said the “traditional ticket office is no longer required at most staffed Northern stations” as only one on six journeys were paid for through a ticket office.

She added:

“We need to modernise to meet the changing needs of our customers and we are seeking views from the public on these proposals.”

Andrew Jones, the Conservative MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough, said the decision to retain Harrogate ticket office “will be welcome news to passengers who value the ability to buy tickets face-to-face”. He added:

“Rail companies are looking at this as the numbers of people purchasing tickets in person has plummeted with the rise of online booking and user-friendly electronic terminals at stations. All the plans are subject to consultation.”

Consultation on today’s recommendations runs from today until July 28. You can have your say here.

Brian Dunsby, of the Harrogate Line Supporters Group, said:

“The closure of ticket offices is inevitable.

“It’s the way the world is going, but Harrogate has largely been spared.”

Of the stations between York and Leeds on the Harrogate line, Horsforth is earmarked by Northern to have its ticket office closed.

Knaresborough Train Station

Other stations, such as Knaresborough, do not have offices and instead have machines for passengers to buy tickets.

The decision to close ticket offices elsewhere in the country was condemned by trade unions.

Mick Lynch, general secretary at the RMT, described it as “a savage attack on railway workers, their families and the travelling public”, adding:

“Travellers will be forced to rely on apps and remote mobile teams to be available to assist them rather than having trained staff on stations.

“This is catastrophic for elderly, disabled and vulnerable passengers trying to access the rail network.”

Appeal for missing man seen in Harrogate

Police are appealing for information about a missing man seen in Harrogate.

Richard Pask, 54, of Bramham near Wetherby, was seen at Enterprise car rental on Ripon Road in Harrogate.

A subsequent police social media post said he was later captured on CCTV getting off a bus at Thorner on Monday.

https://twitter.com/WestYorksPolice/status/1676337464435265536?s=20

West Yorkshire Police described him as white, 5ft 8, bald with white partial hair and stubble.

Richard was wearing a blue raincoat, cream trousers and brown shoes.

Anyone with any information on his whereabouts is urged to contact West Yorkshire Police.

Reduced speed limit at A59 Kex Gill to remain until September

A reduced speed limit on the A59 at Kex Gill is set to remain in place until September due to an “uneven road surface”.

North Yorkshire Council has introduced the reduction which sees the speed limit lowered from 60 to 40 miles per hour.

Officials at the authority said the measure had been implemented due to the stretch of Kex Gill Road being uneven.

It added that the speed limit reduction will remain in place until September when the road will be closed for two weeks and resurfaced.

Barrie Mason, assistant director for highways and transport at the council, said:

“We have introduced a 40mph speed limit on a section of the existing A59 at Kex Gill due to the uneven road surface. This will only be in place until we carry out a resurfacing scheme.

“A start date is yet to be confirmed but we anticipate early September, lasting for two weeks under full road closures with signed diversions in place. We will notify the public in due course.”

Business Breakfast: Harrogate builders’ merchants supports retrofitting scheme

The Stray Ferret Business Club’s next meeting is a breakfast event on Thursday, 27 July at Banyan in Harrogate between 8-10am.

The Business Club provides monthly opportunities to network, make new connections and hear local success stories. Tickets will be available later this week.

A Harrogate builders’ merchants is supporting an online training course to teach builders about retrofitting homes.

GH Brooks is hosting a sign-up event at its branch on Claro Road to help the initiative to make buildings more energy efficient.

The course is being launched by the charity Zero Carbon Harrogate on July 7 between 7am and 11am.

It is designed to help prepare the local building trade for home retrofit specifications.

John Kerr, Zero Carbon Harrogate’s retrofit programme manager, said:

“We are so pleased that GH Brooks are helping us spread the word about retrofit and the free training we have on offer.

“A big part of retrofitting homes is supported by good suppliers like them and supporting their customers. We really hope that the local building trades take advantage of this training, preparing them for both demand from homeowners and new legislation in home efficiency measures.”

For more information on how to sign up for the online course, visit the Zero Carbon Harrogate website here.

Rudding Park wins at industry award ceremony

Rudding Park Hotel and Spa has won an award at the annual Good Spa Guide awards.

The spa, which is based on Rudding Lane, picked up the best spa for the eco conscious award.

The ceremony was held at the Spa Life Convention in Gloucestershire on July 3.

Sarah Johnson, Rudding Park head of Spa, collecting the award with members of her team; Lorraine Kennedy, Emma Sorby and Megan Ainsworth.

Rudding Park was one of eight finalists, which also included The Spa at Carden Park and Swinton Country Club & Spa.

Sarah Johnson head of Rudding Park Spa said:

“As a responsible business the environment and sustainability is a key focus for us combined with ensuring we provide guests with an exceptional spa experience.

“Offering guests something new and embracing our natural environment is really important, so we are absolutely thrilled to have won the award for the best spa for the eco conscious.”

Highways boss defends North Yorkshire speed limit review

The councillor responsible for highways in North Yorkshire has defended a review into speeding amid concern the local authority is delaying the introduction of 20 miles per hour speed limits.

Campaigners, headteachers and local councillors have called for a timescale on bringing in 20 miles per hour speed limits in Pannal Ash and Oatlands areas in Harrogate.

But Cllr Keane Duncan, the executive councillor for highways at North Yorkshire Council, said today the authority would not support default 20 miles per hour zones within the county.

It will instead draw up a speed management strategy to “guide a countywide review of speed limits across towns, villages and rural road”.

Cllr Duncan said this “tailored approach” to road safety measures that would not delay road safety measures.

Hazel Peacock, of the Oatlands Road Safety and Active Travel Campaign, and Dr Jennie Marks, of Pannal Ash Safe Streets, told the meeting 20 miles per hour limits in their areas were “urgently needed” and called for timescales on implementation.

Councillors on the council’s Harrogate and Knaresborough area constituency committee passed a motion supporting the campaigners’ plea last year.

Earlier this week, leaders of 13 schools and education settings in Harrogate also backed the measure.

But it required the support of the council’s Conservative-controlled executive today.

Headteachers, councillors and campaigners united to call for urgent road safety measures this week.

In response, Cllr Duncan said measures were already being considered for the areas which are “not narrowly limited to 20 miles per hour limits only”.

He added:

“Work on these measures is already in progress and nothing within today’s new approach to setting speed limits will delay work that is already ongoing nor prevent implementation of appropriate 20 miles per hour zones in Pannal Ash and Oatlands.”

Cllr Duncan added that proposals for the Otley Road sustainable transport package would go before the council’s Harrogate and Knaresborough area constituency committee in September.

Meanwhile, further consultation on the delayed Oatlands feasibility study, which aims to cut congestion in the area, would be carried out later this year.

Temporary lights at Knaresborough’s Bond End to remain until Friday

Drivers are set to face delays at Bond End in Knaresborough until Friday.

Temporary traffic lights were installed yesterday by North Yorkshire Council.

According to the council’s roadworks map, the lights are necessary because scaffolding has been erected to enable roofing work to take place.

Motorists have taken to social media to report long delays at the notorious bottleneck.

The council website shows that the lights will remain in place until Friday.

Further roadworks at nearby Scotton are also due to last until Friday.

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