Accused in Harrogate schoolboy crash is US chief of space policy

The American accused of causing serious injury to two teenagers in a collision outside a Harrogate school is chief of the space policy division for the US joint chiefs of staff at the Pentagon.

The joint chiefs of staff consists of the most senior leaders in the United States Department of Defense, who advise the president.

Benjamin Oakes, 46, of Tewit Well Avenue, Harrogate, is a highly decorated colonel in the US military, according to his LinkedIn profile, which was taken down before yesterday’s hearing.

The profile said he has held his current role, which involves directing space policy for the joint chiefs of staff at the Pentagon in Washington, for more than four years.

He was previously a political-military analyst in the space policy division and before that was commander of the operational support squadron in the US Airforce.

Hundreds of US military personnel are stationed at RAF Menwith Hill, near Harrogate.

Mr Oakes pleaded not guilty yesterday to causing serious injury to two teenagers in a collision outside a Harrogate school.

He is charged with causing injury by careless or inconsiderate driving in the incident on Yew Tree Lane on February 2.

The court heard the two 15-year-old boys, who cannot be named for legal reasons, suffered serious injuries in the collision outside Ashville College.

Both he and magistrates opted not to send the case to crown court, where he would have faced a jury trial.

The trial will be heard a York Magistrates Court, provisionally on December 4 and 5.

Mr Oakes was released on unconditional bail.

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Bake Off star coming to Harrogate as town gears up for holiday home show

Great British Bake Off star and motorhome fan Karen Wright will join Yorkshire chef Steph Moon on the cookery stage at the Great Holiday Home Show next month.

The show, which is being held in Harrogate for the first time, features the latest holiday homes, caravans and motorhomes and other aspects of life exploring the great outdoors.

Described as the largest outdoor holiday home show in the country, it started in 1976 as The Lawns Show and was previously held in Hull.

A total of 227 holiday homes and 140 caravans and motorhomes will be on display at the Great Yorkshire Showground from September 8 to 10.

Visitors will include Ms Wright, from Wakefield, who was one of 12 contestants on the Great British Bake Off in 2018. She will give top tips for baking in a caravan.

Multi award winning consultant chef and camper van owner Ms Moon will also be there, hosting the cookery theatre throughout the three-day show.

Steph Moon

Besides the cookery theatre, there will be the Great Holiday Home Stage hosted by TV Presenter Christine Talbot.

Special guests include Matt Baker, adventurer Andy Torbet, YouTube motorhome family the Roaming Radfords and Peter Wright from Channel 5’s The Yorkshire Vet.

Hall 1 of the Yorkshire Event Centre will feature an e-bike testing arena. Hall 2 will be become the leisure world shopping village.

The event is organised by HERCMA (The Hull and East Riding of Yorkshire Caravan Manufacturers’ Association), which is a collaboration of four major holiday home manufacturers ABI, Carnaby, Swift and Willerby.

Tickets cost £12.50 and children under 16 go free with an accompanying paying adult.

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Police confirm missing Harrogate teenagers found

Three missing girls from Harrogate have been found safe.

North Yorkshire Police have confirmed that two 13-year-old and a 16-year-old girl were found in Leeds and returned to their families.

The girls were last seen at 5pm on Thursday (August 10).

A police statement said:

“Protecting vulnerable people is of paramount importance to North Yorkshire Police.”

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‘Proud Yorkshire lass’ wins £2m Harrogate farmhouse in Omaze draw

A ‘proud Yorkshire lass’ has won a £2m farmhouse near Birstwith in the latest Omaze Million Pound House Draw.

Eliza Yahioglu, 56, was celebrating her birthday in Luxembourg when she received the news.

She and husband Gokhan, who will celebrate their 30th anniversary in November, now own the 17th century property between Hampsthwaite and Birstwith.

The house comes mortgage free, with stamp duty and legal fees covered. Eliza is free to either live in the house, rent it out or sell it.

Eliza Yahioglu discovered she’d won this on her birthday.

If Ms Yahioglu decides to let it out, the property could yield almost £50,000 a year in rent.

The couple, who have two children, have lived in London for nearly 40 years.

When told on holiday she’d won, Ms Yahioglu joked her husband was “going to struggle to top this for my birthday next year”.

She said:

“It was actually my birthday the day we found out I’d won – so we’d gone abroad to celebrate.

“We were in a bar at the time, which was the perfect place to start celebrating, we got a bottle of fizz in straight away. When we went to bed we still weren’t convinced it was real, we expected to wake up realising it had all been a dream.

“I’ve lived in London for almost 40 years but I’m a proud Yorkshire lass at heart. My parents and sister still live there, so we come up as often as we can.

The house comes with five acres of manicured grounds.

The house comes with a guest cottage and five acres of manicured grounds and gardens.

The property is two and a half miles from Hampsthwaite and one and a half miles from Birstwith.

The draw raised £1,950,000 for the charity Blood Cancer UK.

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Harrogate pub hopes to reopen next week after ‘licensing issue’

The landlord of a Harrogate pub has said he hopes to reopen next week after a short closure.

The Stone Beck at Jennyfields closed on Friday last week.

Phill Kirby, who has been landlord for almost four years, told the Stray Ferret it was due to a “licensing issue”.

He added:

“I have apologised for what’s happened and the pub will be opening again in due course.”

Asked if he had a date, Mr Kirby said he was hoping for Tuesday next week.

The pub, on Grantley Drive, is located in the heart of Jennyfields, close to the Coop.

The pub is in the Jennyfields centre.

A spokesperson for North Yorkshire Council, the licensing authority, said:

“North Yorkshire Council has no current actions on this premises.”

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Red Arrows due to fly over Harrogate this afternoon

The Red Arrows are due to fly over the Harrogate area this afternoon.

According to the schedule, the jets will pass over Hampsthwaite at 4.14pm.

The RAF aerobatics display team is making a 26-minute flight from RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire to Blackpool, where an air show is being held tomorrow.

The Red Arrows was formed in 1964. It consists of nine red jets that are often accompanied with red, white and blue smoke.

If you catch the Red Arrows on camera, send us a photo at contact@thestrayferret.co.uk

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Firefighters tackle combine blaze

Firefighters were called to a field near Ripon last night when a combine harvester caught fire.

Crews from Thirsk and Ripon were called to Baldersby at 8.44pm.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service’s incident report said the combine was alight when the crews arrived.

It added:

“One hose reel jet was used to extinguish the contents and the combine was moved to a hard standing on the farm premises.

“The cause of the fire was overheating within the combine.”

Baldersby is situated between Ripon and Thirsk.

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‘Dog waste can now be placed in any bin’, says council

North Yorkshire Council has responded to criticism of its new system for street litter bins.

Some 1,500 smaller litter bins in the Harrogate area are being replaced by a smaller number of new larger bins.

Many of the new bins are situated alongside main roads rather on dog walking routes to make them easier for council workers to get to.

Some dog owners are dumping poo bags in areas where the old bins were rather than walk to main roads and put their dogs on leads.

Dog waste piling up in Jennyfields.

The Stray Ferret has recently reported concerns about this policy in Knox and Jennyfields.

Barrie Mason, assistant director for the environment at the council, said the old bins were removed following a service review and the new approach conformed with good practice guidance from the Waste and Recycling Action Partnership charity.

He said:

“We are currently implementing a new infrastructure for our street litter bins in the Harrogate area.

“The newer bins have a larger capacity and house a wheeled bin. This means they are efficiently emptied by our larger wagons, reducing the risk from manual handling individual bags.

“With the greater capacity, fewer bins are required which helps to reduce street furniture, particularly in locations where two bins may have been placed close together.”

Dog waste ‘no longer classified as hazardous’

Mr Mason added:

“We are implementing new routes which reduce the number of vehicle miles and emissions while freeing up our street cleansing teams to provide a more proactive service, including in our urban areas.

“There are some associated savings from the project, from a reduction in the amount of skips, single use plastic liners and fuel we use.

“Dog waste is no longer classified as hazardous waste and can now be placed in any bin, eliminating the need for specialist bins that further reduce street clutter and manual handling risks. This also means dog waste can be placed in owners’ general waste bins when they return home without adjusting walking routes.”

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Mr Mason said bins “are emptied less frequently” in off-road areas in places like Jennyfields “but will be emptied as frequently as required”. He added:

“The emptying frequencies and bin locations are something we’ll be continuing to monitor.

“The work in Jennyfields is still ongoing, and officers are communicating with the relevant local councillor over the new locations and any issues that may arise.

“Harrogate leisure centre has a large open space with a basketball court, so we will be installing a bin soon.”

Historic Harrogate family business to open for Heritage Open Days

One of Harrogate’s most historic family businesses is to offer tours during this year’s Heritage Open Days.

The annual open days, which take place from September 8 to 17, give people the chance to visit historic and cultural sites for free.

Harrogate Civic Society, which organises events in and around Harrogate, is finalising its list for 2023 but is already advertising more than 20.

Among the highlights are visits to jewellers and watch-makers Ogden of Harrogate, which has been a feature of James Street since 1893. Visitors have included Winston Churchill, the Roosevelts and King George VI.

Tours hosted by two of the fifth-generation family members will reveal artefacts relating to the business and family history, plus its in-house workshop and the firm’s 1937 replica of the imperial state crown.

Visitors will also learn about James Roberts Ogden’s interest in archaeology and his work with Howard Carter to test and replicate ancient objects found in the 1922 discovery of King Tutankhamun’s tomb.

The Ripon gazebo

This year’s Heritage Open Days also includes new heritage walks led by experts in Pannal, Ripley and Valley Gardens, along with tours of the belltower at St Wilfrid’s on Duchy Road in Harrogate, Stonefall Cemetery and the Harrogate Club.

Outside Harrogate, there is the chance to explore How Stean Gorge in Nidderdale, stroll in the surroundings of Ripon’s 18th century gazebo and have a backstage tour of Pateley Playhouse.

Events are free but many have to be booked. Further details and a searchable list of events is available here.

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Bilton to host second Party on the Pitch

Bilton Cricket Club in Harrogate is to host a second Party on the Pitch this month.

Last year’s first party, held as part of the late Queen’s jubilee celebrations in June, was a big hit, attracting about 2,500 people.

If the second event is also successful it could become an annual event.

It could even replace Bilton Gala, which has not been held since 2019, as the community’s main annual get-together, albeit on a smaller scale.

The party, which is free to enter, will be held on August 27 at the club’s pitch on Bilton Lane.

Starting at 12.30pm, it will include four live bands from 3pm to 9pm, a hog roast and various children’s entertainment, including a bouncy castle and a magician.

Bilton Cricket Club

Club president Jane Blackburn said:

“Unfortunately Bilton Gala no longer takes place and people in the community have asked if we will be doing our Party on the Pitch again.

“As we are primarily a cricket club, we didn’t want to do it in June or July in the middle of the season so we thought we’d have it at the end of August when there are only a couple of fixtures left.

“If the community likes it and it goes well we will do it every year.”

Ms Blackburn said she hoped the party would attract 2,000 people. Funds raised on the day will be divided between the club’s £42,000 appeal to buy new cricket nets and Yorkshire Cancer Research.

The club has currently raised £23,000 towards its target. It hopes the new nets will be installed by April in time for next season.

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