One of Harrogate’s most historic buildings looks set to be brought back to life as a major new care home and community facility.
Grove House, a grade two listed building opposite the fire station on Skipton Road, was the home of Victorian inventor, philanthropist and mayor Samson Fox.
The building was then used as a hospital during the First World War and shortly afterwards was acquired by the Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes.
Grove House
Harrogate’s Graeme Lee, chief executive of Springfield Healthcare, bought the six-acre site from the Buffaloes three years ago for more than £3m.
Mr Lee, whose company owns six care homes, including Harcourt Gardens in Harrogate, now wants to invest £15m to create what he calls “the holy grail of care”, combining high quality facilities for residents with extensive community use.
He told the Stray Ferret he expects to secure planning permission this autumn after lengthy negotiations with Harrogate Borough Council and begin work in spring next year.
Work is expected to last 18 months, meaning the project could be ready by January 2025.
How the 70-bed facility alongside Grove House will look.
Under the plans, Grove House will be converted to accommodate 23 independent living apartments. In addition, a 70-bed care home and eight houses providing supported living for over-65s will be built on land alongside Grove House.
Schoolchildren from nearby Grove Road Community Primary School will be invited to participate regularly in activities alongside residents and use the gardens for study and play.
The school, which doesn’t have any grass play areas for pupils, has already used the site for its summer sports day this year.
Mr Lee also wants to host an annual garden party for the community on the site.
An artist’s impression of how the site will look.
He said the currently disused site would be brought back to life and become “one of the best examples of developing relationships between older people and young people in the UK”.
He added:
“We are in a difficult period. As a business owner in Harrogate I want to do all I can to help the community.
“I’m driven by that and Grove House achieves that by giving back to the community and school.
“My 28 years in care has led me to this.”
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Harrogate Town’s new women’s manager leaves suddenly
The manager of Harrogate Town‘s women’s team has left — five days after his appointment was announced.
The club issued a press release last week saying Liam Cope had taken over the reins and had already recruited several players. He was also due to help with player development.
But today a Town spokesman said “the agreement has since been ended and we are looking to recruit again”.
Cope, who has managed Ossett Town Ladies and been assistant manager at Leeds United Women, was due to arrive with a backroom team including a nutritionist and goalkeeping coach.
He said his ambition was to take the club to the next stage up the football pyramid by reaching the Women’s National League.
But the role is being advertised again. The closing date for applicants is Tuesday next week.
The Stray Ferret asked the club why Mr Cope had left suddenly and whether his backroom team would also not be joining the club.
A club spokesman said he understood “the club and Liam had mutually agreed that it would be best for him not to continue in the role”.
Read more:
- Harrogate Town to kick off third Football League season
- Harrogate’s Grove House set for £15m transformation into care and community facility
Harrogate Town Ladies currently play in the North East Regional Women’s Football League, which is one step below the Women’s National League Division One North.
They play home matches on the 3G pitch at Rossett Sports Centre, with their first fixture scheduled to be at home to South Shields on September 4.
Mr Cope said it was a fantastic club and he didn’t have a bad word to say about anyone at it.
But he added it was a club “in a state of transition” and “I’m not at a stage in my life where I can join a club in transition”. He added he “wasn’t aware of the size of the project” when he agreed to take on the role.
Firefighters called to blaze at factory in Birstwith
Firefighters were called to Birstwith this morning when a drying plant in a food factory went up in flames.
Crews from Ripon and Knaresborough went to Kerry Ingredients shortly before 7am this morning.
They used breathing apparatus and hose reel jets to tackle the fire.
A spokeswoman for North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service said:
“There was damage to the drying equipment and pipework. The cause of the fire is not confirmed.”
Firefighters left the site by 9.18am.
Read more:
- Councillors have ‘major concerns’ about plans to reduce Harrogate fire engines
- Business group calls for more Harrogate town centre police
Harrogate man charged with strangling and ABH
A Harrogate man has appeared in court charged with intentionally strangling a woman and causing her actual bodily harm.
Gavin McClure, 53, of Avenue Grove, Starbeck, is alleged to have assaulted the female on Saturday night.
He was also charged with threatening to kill the woman, who was named in court.
Mr McClure appeared at York Magistrates Court on Monday, when the case was adjourned for trial by jury at York Crown Court on August 30.
Mr McClure, who did not enter a plea to the charges, was denied bail and remanded in custody.
He did, however, plead guilty to a further charge of possession of cannabis at Harrogate police station on Sunday.
Read more:
Birstwith and Weeton shows attract weekend crowds
Two of the Harrogate district’s premier village shows attracted sizeable crowds over the weekend.
Weeton Show drew its biggest attendance for 15 years on Sunday as early morning rain gave way to fine weather.
The event was one of the few country shows to defy covid last year and take place.
Here are some images from the day.
Read more:
- Village show season set to start in Harrogate district
- Historic Hampsthwaite village celebration set for return
Birstwith Show bounced back strongly with its first event in three years.
3SIXTY Bicycle Stunt Team (pictured below) were among the attractions at the Nidderdale event, which dates back to 1867.
Burnt Yates beat Knaresborough to win the centenary Addison Cup final last night.
The Addison Cup, which is contested by the top 16 teams in the Harrogate and District Amateur Evening Cricket League, is one of the oldest cricket competitions in the world, dating back to 1922.
Last night’s final saw Knaresborough post a competitive 143 for 6 in 20 overs at Follifoot Cricket Club. Tashmial Henry struck 64 and Toby Giddings hit 35.
But a skilful and composed unbeaten 67 in gloomy conditions from South African man of the match Byron Boshoff helped Burnt Yates to a six-wicket victory with seven balls to spare.
It’s the first time the village side, which was captained by Ryan Lamb, has won the district’s premier 20-over competition. They beat defending champions Harrogate in the quarter-final.
As usual, a member of the Addison family presented the winner’s medals.
Eric Wainwright, whose father played for The Gas Company, a Harrogate team that won the 1933 final, presented the runner’s-up medals.
Read more:
- Do you recognise any of these Harrogate cricketers from 1922?
- Ofsted praise for ‘ambitious’ leaders at Nidderdale village school
Last night also saw the final of the Atkinson Cup, which is contested by the teams that lose in the first round of the Addison Cup.
The final was postponed when heat stopped play two weeks ago when temperatures approached 40 degrees centigrade. It was then delayed again last week because of rain.
Yesterday at Spofforth, Pateley Bridge scored 134 and then bowled out North Stainley for 101 to win by 33 runs.
Tom Hardcastle, of Pateley, was adjudged man of the match.
Winning captain Ryan Lamb receives the Addison Cup.
Byron Boshoff is presented with the man of the match award.
Man arrested after shop worker allegedly assaulted in Harrogate
A man has been arrested after reports that a member of staff at a shop in the town centre was assaulted last night.
Police were called to Cambridge Street at 9pm after being told a man had stolen alcohol from a shop and threatened and assaulted a member of staff.
A statement by North Yorkshire Police today said:
“Officers quickly located a suspect nearby and arrested him on suspicion of assault, theft, criminal damage and possession of an offensive weapon.
“The man, who is in his 30s, currently remains in custody and the investigation is ongoing.”
Read more:
- Police warn of increase in house and car thefts in Harrogate
- BID launches campaign to increase reporting of crime in Harrogate town centre
Malnourished dogs found in Harrogate flat covered in faeces and urine
The RSPCA has revealed that two malnourished dogs rescued in Harrogate were living in a flat covered in faeces and with carpets soaked in urine.
Robbie Nelson, 24, of Woodfield View, was banned from keeping animals for five years last week.
The animal charity has revealed the mastiff called Rocco and the lurcher named Smudge were so underweight their ribs were protruding when RSPCA inspector Tom Hutton was called to a flat in High Street, Harrogate, on March 18 last year.
The inspector, who was called out by police executing a search warrant in relation to another matter, needed to squeeze through the living room door to reach the dogs because of the large amount of clutter, scrap bikes and household waste piled up.
The flat was full of clutter.
Areas of the flat were covered in faeces and the carpets were soaked in urine.
Nelson refused to sign over the dogs to the RSPCA so the animals were seized by the police.
They were taken to a vet for treatment and an examination showed Rocco had a body condition score of one out of nine, which is classed as a state of emaciation.
Rocco is back in good health after being emaciated.
The veterinary surgeon said in her witness statement:
“He (Rocco) weighed just 24.3kg and I would estimate a healthy weight would have been nearer 36kg,”
“The lurcher (Smudge) was also very thin. He weighed 17kg and his body condition score was two out of nine. I estimate a healthy weight for him would have been 23kg.”
The vet concluded that both dogs were malnourished and the “state of their accommodation had compromised their health”.
Robbie Nelson was banned from keeping animals for five years last week.
In mitigation, the court was told the defendant suffered from mental health issues and he felt his brother, Charlie Nelson, should have taken responsibility for the dogs as he was their “true owner”.
Smudge is waiting to be rehomed.
At an earlier hearing, a charge of failing to ensure the needs of the two dogs were met was also proven in absence against Charlie Nelson, 30, also of Woodfield View, Harrogate.
He has yet to be sentenced and a warrant remains outstanding for his arrest.
Read more:
- Dog owners who let their pets off the leash cause distress at Ripon Cemetery
- Harrogate man banned from keeping animals for five years
- Police to refer man who left four dogs in hot car to RSPCA
The RSPCA said in a statement that both Rocco and Smudge had “returned to good health and remain in the care of the RSPCA”. They will be rehomed when the outstanding court matter is settled.
After the hearing, inspector Hutton said:
“Both these dogs were skinny and living in awful conditions. The house was full of rubbish and dog faeces.
“We thank North Yorkshire Police for alerting us to the situation the dogs were in, which means we will be able to find them new homes where they are loved and cared for.”
Another record month for the Stray Ferret as readership soars
The Stray Ferret has set new monthly records as it continues to reshape the face of local news in the Harrogate district.
Articles on our website attracted just over one million page views from 218,000 site users in July.
A further 574,000 page views were made by almost 4,500 people on the Stray Ferret app, which was launched at the end of last year.
The combined total of 1.6 million monthly page views is a new record, as is the number of people visiting the site.
Page views have more than doubled in the last year as increasing numbers of people tune in to our lively combination of rolling news, human interest stories and political analysis. Our social media engagement is also leading the way in the district.
Read more:
- Stray Ferret’s election coverage attracts record audience
- Five reasons why you should download the Stray Ferret app
Last month we ran live blogs at the Great Yorkshire Show and during the heatwave. We led on coverage of plans to reduce the number of fire engines in Harrogate at night time to one, reported on Harrogate-born England footballer Rachel Daly’s ascent to international superstar, showcased businesses such as the re-opened Coach and Horses pub in Harrogate, covered visits to the district by celebrities including Alan Carr and Helen Skelton, and provided live footage on our Facebook page of St Wilfrid’s Procession in Ripon.
We also published daily business news a well as traffic and travel bulletins, and provided unparalleled scrutiny of our local MPs, councils and courts.
Tamsin O’Brien, managing director of the Stray Ferret, said:
“The Stray Ferret has become an unmissable read for anyone interested in the Harrogate district.
“Thank you to all our readers in Harrogate, Ripon, Knaresborough, Boroughbridge, Pateley Bridge, Masham and all points in between.
“We will continue to strive to bring the best daily news and hold those in power to account.”
You can download the Stray Ferret app by clicking on the banner below.
Firefighters called to Harrogate’s Victoria Shopping Centre
Harrogate’s Victoria Shopping Centre closed this afternoon after a reported fire.
The centre shut at about 3pm and staff and shoppers were evacuated as firefighters were summoned to the scene.
Eyewitness Paul Ivison, from Harrogate, said people were told there had been a small electrical fire in one of the stores, believed to be New Look, but no major damage had occurred.
“Three fire engines arrived but there was no smoke seen.
“About 100 people were outside when all the tenants and shoppers had been evacuated. The whole centre and exterior units were closed.
“Everyone was very calm.”
The shopping centre reopened at about 3.30pm.
We will update this article when more information is available.
Pic: Paul Ivison
Pic: Paul Ivison