New artisan market at Boroughbridge this weekend

An artisan market is being held at Minskip Farm Shop near Boroughbridge on Sunday.

The market is the result of a partnership between Yolk Farm, which owns the shop and Little Bird Markets, which already runs numerous markets. including ones in Harrogate. Knaresborough and Ripon.

Stalls will sell handmade goods, artisan products and local produce.

Minskip Farm Shop

Exhibitors include Marley Fields Pet Boutique, Flora & Co, which sells garden products, York Swirling Soapery and Blueberry Hill Preserves, which sells chutneys, preserves, honey, curds and cheeses.

Jackie Crozier, managing director of Little Bird Markets, said:

“We will have a wide variety of traders selling their artisan goods and Easter items, for last minute gifts. The farm shop will be open for food and the farm for visiting the animals.”

The farm, which provides alpaca experiences, is also running an Easter egg hunt.

The market will take place from 10am to 3pm at Yolk Farm on Minskip Road.

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Fashion retailer Jules B to open in Harrogate

Fashion retailer Jules B is to open a shop in Harrogate at the start of September.

The shop, which will be in the former Jaeger unit on Cambridge Crescent, will sell only womenswear.

It becomes the latest national retailer this month to confirm plans to move to Harrogate, after Oliver Bonas and Pret A Manger.

Julian Blades, managing director of Jules B, said its brands “will be perfect for the sophisticated customer demographic in Harrogate and surrounding areas”.

He added:

“We have wanted to open in Harrogate for a very long time but never found the right location but once I saw that the old Jaeger unit was available we decided the time was right.

“The store will be purely womenswear and we have some very exciting new collections that I’m sure will prove very popular with the discerning public.

“We will be looking for four full time members of staff and two part time, preferably with a good fashion retail background.”

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Mr Blades and his wife, Rhona, opened their first womenswear store in Jesmond in 1984.

The retailer offers collections by designers, including Hugo Boss, Armani, Victoria Beckham, Barbour and Vivienne Westwood.

Jackie Wilson, property manager for landlord Hornbeam Park Developments, said:

“We are delighted to have secured award-winning independent retailer Jules B as a tenant in the former Jaeger Shop on Cambridge Crescent; a great addition to the high street which will enhance the shopping experience of locals and visitors alike.”

Ripon’s annual St Wilfrid Procession under threat

A  large annual parade that has taken place in Ripon for about 1,000 years is under threat.

Thousands of people turn out for St Wilfrid’s Procession, which celebrates the city’s patron saint.

The procession sees decorated floats travel around the city led by an actor playing St Wilfrid on a horse, followed by musicians, dancers and finally the Wakeman of Ripon.

There are also stalls and events on the Market Square for what is one of Ripon’s main events of the year.

The parade traditionally takes place on the last Saturday of July but covid prevented it taking place for the last two years.

Most funding comes from street collections on the day. But when the organising committee applied for a street collection permit for this year’s event, on July 30, it discovered Harrogate Borough Council had already granted a permit to another organisation — and only one a day is allowed.

The council told St Wilfrid’s Procession committee it was unable to reveal the identity of the other organisation because of data protection legislation.

This prompted the committee to put an appeal on social media asking for anyone who knew who it was to get in touch to see if a solution could be reached.

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A committee spokesman said:

“We want an open discussion with whoever has the permit to see if they are able to switch days.

“Without a permit, the procession won’t take place next year because most donations are made on the day from people who give to fundraisers with buckets.”

The spokesman stressed nobody was to blame for the “unfortunate coincidence” and the council was trying to help find a solution.

The Stray Ferret contacted the council but did not receive a reply.

 

Jewellery stolen in Harrogate house burglary

Jewellery has been stolen from a house in Harrogate.

Police in Harrogate are appealing for witnesses to the incident, which happened on Green Lane sometime between 3pm and 6pm last Saturday.

A North Yorkshire Police statement today said:

“During the incident a quantity of jewellery with great sentimental value was stolen.

“As part of ongoing enquiries, we need to hear from anyone who may have been in the area around the time of the incident and possibly noticed suspicious individuals or vehicles.

“In particular, anyone who was walking down the path between Green Lane and Rossett Drive.”

Anyone with information can email ruby.rutter@northyorkshire.police.uk or call 101, select option 2, and ask for Ruby Rutter.

If you wish to remain anonymous, you can pass information to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Quote the North Yorkshire Police reference number 12220060386.

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Woodfield school parents ‘frustrated and upset’ after merger U-turn

A parent has spoken of her anger at the ongoing uncertainty over the future of a school in Bilton.

A planned merger between Woodfield Community Primary School and Grove Road Community Primary School fell through last week.

Governors at Grove Road said in a statement they were concerned about the risk and “must prioritise the future of Grove Road School”.

It means Woodfield faces the treat of closure having been unable to secure an academy sponsor since it was rated ‘inadequate’ by school inspector Ofsted.

Naomi Tomlinson said parents of the 40 or so pupils remaining at Woodfield didn’t know what to do and were “praying for a miracle” that it might survive. She said:

“Do we stick with the school or do we just try to get out? It’s a good school and we are like a family there.

“But the kids are struggling and parents are frustrated, disappointed and upset. We don’t know what to tell the kids or ourselves.

“Our mental health and the kids’ mental health is being sacrificed.”

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Ms Tomlinson, who has one child at the school and another due to start reception in September, said she had already had applications to two nearby schools declined and she was worried about potentially long journeys each day. She added:

“I have a few health considerations that make it hard for me to walk far so I need somewhere close.

She said the ongoing uncertainty meant parents felt like they were being pushed “from pillar to post”.

She also questioned why, once again, parents had received important news about the school just before the start of a school holiday, leaving them powerless to do anything for two weeks.

Ms Tomlinson said::

“Do we fight for the school or do we leave before it gets too much? We know nothing of the future of this lovely school.”

 

Burglars steal air rifles and pistol from Ripon shop

North Yorkshire Police is appealing for information about the theft of rifles and a pistol from a vintage shop in Ripon.

Thieves broke through one of the front door panels at All Kinds of Everything on Kirkgate and stole second hand items including two air rifles and one vintage pistol.

The incident occurred between 4pm on  January 13 and 9am on January 14.

North Yorkshire Police said in a statement today:

“We are requesting the public’s assistance to help gain any further information surrounding the full circumstances of the incident.

“In particular we are appealing for information about the vintage weapons seen in the pictures, one particularly distinctive rifle with the wording WALKER across the centre.”

Anyone with information can contact North Yorkshire Police on 101, select option 2, and ask to speak to Deborah Utley. You can also email deborah.utley@northyorkshire.police.uk

If you wish to remain anonymous, you can pass information to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Quote the North Yorkshire Police reference number 12220007164.

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Free Easter chicks delight Bilton kids during Holy Week

Churchgoers in Bilton have delighted children each day during Holy Week by giving away free Easter chicks.

Members of Bilton Grange United Reformed Church have knitted 165 chicks and leave about 20 on the hedge outside the church each morning.

Each one contains a message saying, ‘Please take this free gift’.

Bilton Grange United Reformed Church free chicks

The volunteers have run similar community-minded initiatives during other Christian festivals. For instance, they have put out angels at Christmas and doves at Whitsun to spread joy.

The gifts are knitted at their social gatherings.

Norma Trotter, who is one of the volunteers, said:

“There’s so many sad things going on in the world so we just hope it will raise a smile and make some children happy.

“It gives us pleasure to make them happy and it spreads the Easter message. If you do good you feel good.”

The chicks will appear on the hedge at the junction of Skipton Road and Woodfield Road every morning until Easter Sunday.

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Harrogate district MPs silent on Boris Johnson’s future

The three Conservative MPs whose constituencies include the Harrogate district have remained silent so far on whether Boris Johnson should resign.

Number 10 said today that the Prime Minister and his wife Carrie, plus Chancellor Rishi Sunak, had been notified by the Metropolitan Police that they would be given fixed penalty notices.

The Met, which is investigating alleged covid law-breaking at 12 Whitehall and Downing Street gatherings, has issued more than 50 fines.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer today led calls for Mr Johnson and Mr Sunak to resign.

Harrogate district MPs (from left) Nigel Adams, Andrew Jones and Julian Smith.

The Stray Ferret reported in January that Andrew Jones, who represents Harrogate and Knaresborough, had said in a letter to a constituent:

“I followed coronavirus restrictions. I take the maxim ‘lawmakers can’t be lawbreakers’ seriously.”

Mr Jones added:

“In respect of the investigation announced by the Prime Minister in December, if this finds wrongdoing, and the police find that these actions were criminal, then consequences must flow from that.”

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The Stray Ferret contacted Mr Jones today asking for his views on today’s fixed penalty notice and whether he felt Mr Johnson should resign.

We also contacted Julian Smith, MP for Skipton and Ripon, and Nigel Adams, MP for Selby and Ainsty, to ask whether they felt Mr Johnson should resign.

At the time of publication, none had replied.

Boroughbridge walled garden opens as wedding venue

An historic walled garden in the Harrogate district has completed a five-year renovation and is set to open for its first wedding season.

For years the walled garden at Helperby Hall near Boroughbridge languished in a state of disrepair, with its impressive neoclassical stone cupola and pavilions hidden by high walls.

Now, after a programme of refurbishment the garden has been brought back to life — as a wedding venue. It will cost about £3,500 to hire for two days.

The unusual venue is the idea of Lady Harriet Milnes Coates, who was determined to find a use for the four acres of lawns and historic outbuildings which sit in the grounds of the family home, Helperby Hall.

The Grade II listed walled garden, which was originally constructed in the late 19th century, was variously used as a formal garden, a kitchen garden and a horse riding arena.

But when it was left without a purpose, the corner pavilions and classical cupola were at risk of collapse.

First ever weddings

Planning permission for repairs to the buildings and change of use took three years to achieve.

Work then began to clear old greenhouses and overgrown planting, reestablish pathways and restore the buildings. But builders had to down tools during covid.

Once the lockdowns ended work resumed, with the gardeners cottage completely renovated.

One of the final pieces of work was to renew the roofing of the cupola, whose wooden beams had rotted.

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The garden finally received a wedding license to conduct ceremonies in October 2021, and this year will hold its first ever weddings.

Now the Walled Garden Helperby has teamed up with Leeds-based award-winning events company Dine, to organise and run weddings at the historic garden.

Daniel Gill of Dine says:

“Lady Milnes Coates had an extraordinary vision and determination to see through the project to give this historic garden a new life.”

The garden is holding an open day for wedding couples on April 23 from 12 noon until 4pm. Visits are by appointment only.

Oliver Bonas set to open store in Harrogate

Oliver Bonas looks set to be unveiled as the latest big name addition to Harrogate’s high street.

The clothing and homeware store is advertising for a store manager and deputy store manager to run a shop in Harrogate.

The Stray Ferret understands it has identified the former Next store on James Street as its home.

There are also rumours that German fashion giant Hugo Boss and USA clothes retailer Anthropologie are considering opening outlets in Harrogate.

The company’s website says:

“We have an amazing opportunity for a store manager to join Team Oliver Bonas in our Harrogate store.”

The salary is described as ‘competitive with benefits’. The website also advertises a deputy store manager vacancy.

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The Stray Ferret has approached Oliver Bonas for further details.

Tom Limbert, director of property consultants Central Retail, said:

“We are very close to letting the former Next store on James Street to a very exciting national lifestyle retailer who will be another great addition to the street.”

Oliver Bonas, which was founded by Oliver Tress, opened its first store in London in 1993. It now has 75 outlets in the UK and the Republic of Ireland.

The closest ones to Harrogate are currently in Ilkley, Leeds and York.