John Plummer, Author at The Stray Ferret

New cocktail bar to open in Harrogate in 12 days

A new cocktail bar is to open in Harrogate in 12 days.

Cosy Club will be situated in the heart of the town on Cambridge Street.

Loungers, which owns the venture, operates 193 sites in England and Wales, including Leeds and York.

The company issued a press release today confirming it will open on what is predominantly a retail street on August 31. Forty jobs will be created.

It said in a statement:

“The popular Victorian spa town of Harrogate has been a target of ours for some time.

“Our new restaurant offers a very strong location, linking the main retail and leisure pitches within the town. The externals of this historic building have been extensively renovated by our landlord, Broadland Properties.”

The release said the building had “an arts and crafts feel with wallpaper originally designed in 1895, table lamps throughout the restaurant which were made by hand and the main bar featuring lots of bespoke handmade stained-glass work”.

Work is taking place on Cambridge Street to complete the refurbishment.

It added the “opulent all-day bar and restaurant brand” would “bring a touch of glamour and our fresh, modern menu to the food scene”.

The menus will include “fresh and modern classics, extensive brunch, gluten free and vegan menus”

Cosy Club’s licensing application proposed opening hours of 8am to 1am Monday to Wednesday and Sunday and 8am until 2am from Thursday to Saturday.

The Stray Ferret has asked Loungers if it still plans to operate between these hours. It replied to say it will open from 9am each day and would confirm the closing times shortly.

Loungers was founded by a trio of friends from Bristol: Dave Reid, Alex Reilley and Jake Bishop.

They opened their first first venue in Bristol in 2002 and then opened the first Cosy Club in Taunton eight years later. They set up the separate Cosy Club brand to cater for larger sites.

Police seize drugs, knife and machete from car near Harrogate

Police seized a large quantity of suspected class-A drugs, a machete and a knife after stopping a car near Harrogate last night.

Three men from Leeds, all aged 18, were arrested after police found the substances within one of the vehicle’s door panels.

Officers from North Yorkshire Police‘s Expedite team, which specialises in tackling county lines drug dealing, made the stop on the outskirts of Harrogate following intelligence reports.

A police statement today said:

“All three occupants gave differing stories about why they were in the area and were arrested.

“Police took the suspects and the vehicle to a police station for a full search and found a significant amount of what is believed to be class-A drugs stashed in the door panel.

“The substance has been sent away for lab analysis as part of the investigation.

“Officers also recovered and seized a machete and kitchen knife, along with other drugs, cash and items commonly associated with drug dealing.”

Free heritage days revealed for Harrogate

People will get a rare opportunity to explore Grove House, the former home of Samson Fox, during next month’s Heritage Open Days.

The historic house, off Skipton Road, is one of 23 heritage sites in Harrogate opening their doors for free from Friday 9 to Sunday 18 September for free open days.

It is part of a national scheme celebrating history and culture that enables people to see places that are often closed to the public.

Sponsored by Harrogate Spring Water and coordinated by the Harrogate Civic Society, this year’s festival includes guided tours, talks and music recitals.

There will be the chance to discover Harrogate’s spa history at the Royal Pump Room Museum, explore the Royal Hall, Harrogate library and The Harrogate Club, join a tour of Harrogate Theatre, climb a tower, or take part in one of four different heritage walks.

Seven religious sites will be open, some with special music recitals or talks, and there are tours at Stonefall Cemetery. Plus a castle, a well, a heritage centre, and even a council chamber to explore.

The opening of Grove House and its gardens is one of this year’s new features.

Graeme Lee, chief executive at Springfield Healthcare, which owns the house, has plans to transform the site into a new care project.

Mr Lee said:

“We’re delighted to be part of Harrogate’s Heritage Open Days and share the remarkable heritage of Grove House, the former home of Samson Fox, Harrogate’s famous engineering inventor, benefactor, and mayor.

“When I bought the building I knew we had a unique opportunity to restore this beautiful Grade II listed house and grounds into high quality retirement apartments and a luxury care home for the community, whilst safeguarding the property’s rich heritage.

“We’re looking forward to opening our doors to showcase one of Harrogate’s oldest buildings, share stories of its past and the exciting plans for the future.”

‘Most varied programme for years’

Stuart Holland, chair of Harrogate Civic Society, said:

“This year’s Heritage Open Days programme in Harrogate is the most varied and
interesting for some years, with a fascinating mix of the town’s historical, cultural, civic and religious sites to explore.

“The Harrogate Civic Society helps to coordinate participation by local venues in this festival, but all the hard work is done by the volunteers who open the doors, host the tours, and welcome their visitors. They all deserve our thanks.”

Richard Hall, managing director at Harrogate Spring Water, said:

“At Harrogate Spring Water, we have always been immensely proud to continue Harrogate’s rich legacy. From the town’s Victorian spa town heritage to its status today as a hub of culture and hospitality, we are delighted to lend our support to the 2022 Harrogate Heritage Open Days.”

Heritage Open Days, which is England’s largest festival of history and culture, is presented by the National Trust with support from players of People’s Postcode Lottery.

Staff turnover ‘uncomfortably high’ at Harrogate council

The turnover of Harrogate Borough Council staff has been described as “uncomfortably high” as the authority enters its final months.

A combination of uncertainty over jobs and rising living costs resulting in staff leaving for higher salaries has led to a turnover rate of 16% at the council, which will be abolished in April.

The rate is calculated from the number of leavers as a percentage of total staff – and is up from 10% in 2020/21.

It comes as the council is preparing to hand over all of its responsibilities to a new unitary authority covering the whole of North Yorkshire in what will mark the biggest change to local government in the county in almost 50 years.

Cllr Graham Swift, deputy leader of Harrogate Borough Council, told a meeting on Wednesday that it was “no surprise” staff were looking for new opportunities – despite them being given reassurances about their roles.

He said:

“Sixteen percent is starting to get uncomfortably high.

“Although all eight councils involved in the local government reforms have made it very clear about the plans and TUPE needs for staff in the future, uncertainty is one of the few things humans manage poorly.

“It is not a surprise therefore that you see some people are not necessarily comfortable in an uncertain world.”

The council has over 1,000 staff – and a total of 146 have left over the past 12 months.

The departments which have seen the highest percentage of leavers include organisational development and improvement, Harrogate Convention Centre, and place-shaping and economic growth.

ICT, legal and finance perform the best at staff retention.

As well as the high turnover, the council has struggled to recruit staff because of competition from the private sector.

This has been the case since the start of the covid outbreak in 2020 when the council introduced a recruitment freeze to keep costs down during the pandemic.

Pay concerns

Union officials have also complained that council jobs are unattractive because of pay.

David Houlgate, secretary at the Harrogate branch of Unison, previously said:

“Local government pay must be increased to match the cost of living squeeze our members are now experiencing on the back of year-on-year below inflation pay increases.

“Without a decent above inflation pay rise to help workers meet soaring costs, vital council services will struggle to hang on to skilled staff which could put some services at risk.

“Indeed this is already happening.”

Almost all council workers except some senior staff have been told they will transfer across to the new North Yorkshire Council under Transfer of Undertakings Protection of Employment (TUPE) regulations.

Those which won’t include the current eight chief executives whose roles will be subsumed into one. That top job is to be taken on by Richard Flinton who was appointed into the role this week.

Mr Flinton, who is the current chief executive of North Yorkshire County Council, will receive a salary of between £180,000 to £197,000 and have responsibility for an annual budget of £1.4 billion and a workforce of 10,500 staff.

Teen arrested after 500 cannabis plants seized in Harrogate house

A teenager has been arrested after police seized about 500 cannabis plants from a house in Harrogate.

North Yorkshire Police swooped on the property in Harlow Hill on Friday after being alerted by residents.

They forced entry and seized the plants and other items linked to drug production.

Officers from Expedite, a police team that tackles county lines drug dealing, and the Harrogate Safer Neighbourhood Team, were involved in the operation.

The 18-year-old suspect was arrested on suspicion of drug offences and remanded in custody.

He appeared in front of magistrates the next day and is due to appear in front of a judge at York Crown Court next month.

A North Yorkshire Police spokesman said:

“Information supplied by the community is just one of many ways we’re ensuring North Yorkshire stays the safest county in England.

“But it’s a vital source of information for any police force.

“If you have concerns about drug activity in your community, tell us by visiting our website and clicking ‘report it’, or call us on 101.

“You can also share information anonymously with the charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.”

Older half of Ripon Leisure Centre ‘would have to close for good’ without £3.5m groundworks

The older half of Ripon Leisure Centre would have to permanently close unless newly-approved groundworks costing £3.5 million are carried out, a council official has said.

Trevor Watson, director of economy, environment and housing at Harrogate Borough Council, made the statement at a cabinet meeting last night when councillors agreed to the remedial works on underground voids found at the site.

Mr Watson also stressed that the leisure centre’s new swimming pool – which opened in March – is unaffected by what is planned and will remain open throughout. He said:

“We really do need to seek to address the ground conditions.

“If we chose not to do the work, then the reality is we wouldn’t be reopening the leisure centre.”

Mr Watson added the underground voids are believed to have been present for several years and were not caused by building works for the new pool.

The discovery during the pool construction in 2020 prompted an investigation by an engineering firm which this month revealed the extent of the ground stability issues at the site.

Stantec found “significantly weak” areas of ground beneath the older half of the leisure centre built in 1995 and also warned that not carrying out groundworks would be “unacceptable from a public safety perspective”.

The works due to start in December mean more costs and delays for the venue’s new pool and refurbishment project which is believed to have cost in excess of £18 million so far.

The original contract awarded to construction company Willmott Dixon was worth £10.2 million for the scheme originally due for completion in May 2021.

The project was approved in 2019 despite some councillors raising “deep concerns” over ground issues at the site where a sinkhole opened up the previous year.

Mike Chambers and Graham Swift, Cabinet meeting

Cllr Swift speaking at last night’s meeting.

Speaking at Wednesday’s meeting, councillor Graham Swift, deputy leader of the council, said it was “good fortune” that the underground voids were discovered before a more serious collapse could have occurred.

He said:

“As a result of the fact that technologies have improved over the last 25 years, we have learnt a lot more about what is under the leisure facility.

“This is actually good fortune as it is good to know now. If we hadn’t had the swimming pool, we wouldn’t have discovered this until a genuine incident.”

Cllr Swift also said it was “very exciting” that a temporary gym is planned for the leisure centre car park during the groundworks which will close parts of the venue for at least 10 months from November.

The temporary gym will cost an additional £300,000, while the pool will remain open.

The leisure centre is reported to now have more than 14,000 members since the pool opened, generating around £34,000 a month which the council said will help offset some of the groundwork costs.

After these works are carried out, the refurbishment is scheduled for completion in spring 2024.

Ripon regeneration plans ‘paused’ amid contract talks

Work on a masterplan for the regeneration of Ripon has been paused due to negotiations over a £85,000 contract.

Harrogate Borough Council awarded the contract to Bauman Lyons Architects last year to draw up a vision for the future of the city and help it win funding for infrastructure, planning and community projects.

However, there have been delays for the Ripon Renewal scheme, which was due for completion earlier this year.

And now the project has been halted while a contract variation is agreed with the Leeds-based firm.

Ripon Moorside councillor Stuart Martin told a meeting on Monday that he was concerned about the delays as he questioned whether the project would be completed before the council is abolished.

In response, Trevor Watson, director of economy and culture at the council, said he did not know when the project would be done, but the aim was before the launch of the replacement North Yorkshire Council in April 2023.

He said:

“We are in dialogue with the consultants and it is very difficult to say when that conversation will be concluded.

“But it will be our intention to bring the project forward in that timeframe.”

The project started in February 2021 and was due for completion a year later. Bauman Lyons Architects has been contacted for comment on the delays.

Regeneration projects

The company was tasked with producing funding options and a business case for Ripon to bid for money for regeneration projects.

A consultation was held last year with residents, businesses and community groups which highlighted problems in the city.

These included not enough things for young people to do, traffic in the market place and a lack of affordable housing.

There were also calls for better traffic management on Low Skellgate and Westgate, and a new green route linking the Workhouse Museum and Ripon Cathedral.

The Ripon Renewal project is being funded by Harrogate Borough Council, North Yorkshire County Council and the York and North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership.

Separately, the borough council made a joint bid for £6 million from the government’s Levelling Up Fund for regeneration projects in Ripon, Skipton and Masham.

This included cash for “high-quality place-making, improved cultural and community assets, and improved sustainable connectivity” across the three areas.

However, the bid was rejected by the government last year and the plans have been put on hold.

Harrogate firefighters called to midnight hay fire

Firefighters from Harrogate dealt with a hay stack fire shortly after midnight today.

The crew were summoned to Little Ribston, near Knaresborough, at six minutes past midnight and requested assistance from a second fire engine.

According to North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service‘s incident log, firefighters used one hose reel jet to dampen down the fire and set up a water relay.

About half an hour earlier, Knaresborough firefighters were called to reports of a fire on Harrogate Road, near Mother Shipton’s cave.

The incident log said:

“Crew located an unattended bonfire. They used knapsack sprayers to dampen down the surrounding area.”

Asda Harrogate introduces new parking system

Asda is to introduce a new parking system at its supermarket in the centre of Harrogate.

Cameras are being introduced to check number plates when vehicles arrive and leave the large car park.

Visitors will receive two hours for free but face a fine if they overstay.

Under the old system, motorists bought a ticket from a machine entitling them to park for up to two hours for £1.

The £1 was refundable at the checkout providing at least £2 was spent in-store.

Parking was monitored by enforcement officers rather than by cameras and people could return throughout the day.

There have been concerns raised on social media that anyone wanting to return to the store later in the day under the new system could be fined £70 because the maximum stay is two hours in 24 hours.

The old machines are being replaced by camera technology.

The new system has not yet been activated.

The Stray Ferret asked Asda when the new system would go live and to respond to concerns that motorists could be fined for parking on site twice in one day.

However, the company declined to comment.

Harrogate park and ride plans could finally be revealed next year

A study looking into a park and ride bus service for Harrogate could finally bring forward proposals next year.

North Yorkshire County Council said feasibility work is underway and should take around six months to assess a scheme which has long been seen as part of the solution to the town’s congestion woes.

Plans would then be produced before a funding bid is made for the service where motorists would park outside Harrogate town centre and get the bus in.

However, it is unclear how much money would be needed and where it would come from as the council said “it is too early to provide costs”.

It was previously suggested that construction costs could exceed £10 million.

Cllr Keane Duncan, executive member for highways and transport at the council, said it was looking at several locations to run the service from and that there were no longer any plans for a trial.

He said:

“We are actively considering the feasibility of a park and ride for Harrogate and it remains a key priority for us as we work to tackle congestion.

“We expect this will take around six months to complete and then the findings will be used to determine which proposals should be developed into a bid for funding.

“There are no plans for a pilot.”

More than 100 locations have been examined and the two most promising were last year revealed as land near Pannal Golf Club and the Buttersyke Bar roundabout south of the village.

These were identified as they connect to the 36 bus service which runs between Harrogate, Ripon and Leeds on the A61.

Making use of existing bus routes is a priority for the council as its other park and ride services often run at a financial loss due to the high costs involved.

Harrogate Bus Company runs the 36 service, and Alex Hornby, chief executive of its parent company Transdev Blazefield, said he was happy to support the council in progressing its plans.

Mr Hornby said:

“The Harrogate Bus Company has long advocated for bus-based park and ride on the A61 – served by the 36 as an existing, high quality bus service – as we believe that will help manage congestion and emissions by reducing car journeys in the town centre.”

Determined to push ahead

The long-awaited progress comes at a worrying time for North Yorkshire’s buses after a bid for £116 million in government cash was rejected before warnings that services are at risk of being axed when other funding comes to an end in October.

The bid to the high-profile Bus Back Better scheme included new bus lanes, other infrastructure improvements and cash to keep services running.

However, it was rejected in its entirety by the Department for Transport which said the bid lacked “sufficient ambition”.

Although funding for a Harrogate park and ride service was not included in the bid, Cllr Duncan stressed the council’s determination to push ahead with the plans.

He said:

“While we suffered a setback with our Bus Service Improvement Plan bid to the Department for Transport being unsuccessful, we are working to identify potential sites along the A61 corridor and elsewhere in town.

“This will build on the work we’ve already undertaken as part of the Harrogate Transport Improvements Programme study that was completed in 2021.”

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‘Most varied programme for years’

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Pay concerns

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Regeneration projects

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Determined to push ahead