John Plummer, Author at The Stray Ferret

First ever four-day Great Yorkshire Show confirmed

The organisers of the Great Yorkshire Show in Harrogate confirmed today this year’s event will take place over four days for the first time.

The Stray Ferret exclusively revealed yesterday that major changes to the format, which included adding a day, were due to be announced.

The Yorkshire Agricultural Society confirmed the news in a newsletter to members this morning.

“We can now reveal that the show will take place between Tuesday 13 July and Friday 16 July, from 8am to 5pm each day, if it is safe to do so.”

The show usually takes place from 7.30am to 7.30pm on Tuesdays and Wednesdays but finishes an hour earlier on Thursdays.

The newsletter added the event will only go ahead “if the government’s roadmap out of coronavirus restrictions remains unchanged”.

It said government guidelines on large gatherings after June 21 would be informed by a series of pilot events taking place during spring.

“However, we do anticipate there will be a strict cap on the number of people allowed to gather at large events and so by adding a fourth day, more visitors will have the chance to attend safely.”

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The Stray Ferret understands the number of daily visitors will be restricted to between 20,000 and 25,000 — well below the usual 44,000 average.

in a subsequent press release, Charles Mills, honorary show director, said:

“We are thrilled by the response to our plans for the show this year in what we know will not quite be normal circumstances.

“We do expect there to be a limit on how many people can attend on any one day of the show and so for the first time in our history we believe the best option is to offer a four-day event.”

“There will be some changes this year, but we want to deliver as much of a normal show as restrictions allow, and it remains our position that the Show will only go ahead if it is safe to do so.

“We understand there is an element of risk in planning for an event of such scale given the potential for restrictions to change, however we accept this and firmly believe it is well worth planning for the Show to take place.

The Stray Ferret understands livestock classes will be reduced, just one event hall will be open, and facemasks will also have to be worn inside marquees.

UPDATE 🔈 We can today announce our plans to hold the Great Yorkshire Show over 4 days for the first time in our history.

If the Covid-19 roadmap remains unchanged, the Show will take place on Tuesday 13th to Friday 16th July 2021, 8am-5pm each day. Tickets go on sale 1st June. pic.twitter.com/hGXm9QJMak

— Great Yorkshire Show (@greatyorkshow) March 31, 2021

Tickets must be purchased in advance and will be available from June 1.

Ripley Show, which was scheduled for August 4, was cancelled on the grounds that the “proposed conditions are near impossible to comply with on the show ground”.

Harrogate’s Army Foundation College at centre of child soldiers dispute

A bid to raise the British armed force’s minimum age of recruitment to 18, which would have had major repercussions for Harrogate’s Army Foundation College, has failed.

Carol Monaghan, the Scottish National Party’s spokesperson for the armed forces, attempted to introduce a clause in the Armed Forces Bill preventing 16 and 17-year-olds enlisting in the army. Anyone under the age of 18 in the UK is legally classified as a child.

The Harrogate college, which recruits about 1,500 young men and women each year, is the only British army establishment that delivers military training to junior soldiers aged 16 and 17.

The Army Foundation College in Harrogate.

Monaghan said raising the recruitment age to 18 would bring Britain in line with most of its NATO allies.

She added the United Nations convention on the rights of the child has urged the UK to increase its minimum recruitment age to 18.

Speaking at a public bill committee, which is a cross-bench committee examining the bill, she said:

“If we are to safeguard the wellbeing, development, educational opportunities and physical safety of our young people, it is crucial that we change the minimum age for armed forces recruitment to 18.”

Monaghan added a third of 16 and 17-year-old recruits dropped out and “re-enter the civilian world without immediate access to further employment, training and education”. Many, she added, were from economically deprived areas.

While 16 and 17-year-olds cannot serve on the frontline, recruitment at the ages of 16 and 17 is detrimental to international efforts to end the use of children in military settings.”

Kevan Jones, Labour MP for North Durham, said people campaigning for a ban on under-18s were wrong to “draw an analogy between what the army does and the situation of child soldiers around the world”.

He added concerns about welfare needed to be balanced against the opportunities presented to 16 to 17-year-olds recruits, adding:

“I suggest that anyone who wants to see the positive way individuals can and do improve their lives visits the Army Foundation College in Harrogate.

“On my visits there, what appalled me was the fact that the education system had failed individuals, but the army had given them a second chance with raising basic numeracy and literacy skills.

“Individuals who would possibly not have had an opportunity to have a fulfilled career were able to do so through the work undertaken at the Army Foundation College.”

Defence minister Johnny Mercer told the debate the government took its duty of care to entrants aged under 18 “extremely seriously”. He added:

“Close attention has been given to this subject in recent years, especially after the tragic deaths at Deepcut.

“We have robust, effective and independently verified safeguards in place to ensure that under-18s are cared for properly.”

The committee voted against the clause by nine votes to two.

Eight Conservatives and one Labour MP voted against; two SNP MPS voted in favour.

Do you have a family member at the College and have a view on this story? Get in touch at contact@thestrayferret.co.uk

Plans for 36 homes in Goldsborough sent back to drawing board

Developers behind plans to build 36 homes in a Harrogate district village have been sent back to the drawing board by councillors.

Stonebridge Homes proposed the homes for land near Goldsborough’s cricket club and primary school.

The plans were initially refused by Harrogate Borough Council’s planning committee in 2018 and then granted outline permission a year later.

At a meeting today, the developers were seeking a final stamp of approval for the Station Road scheme but were turned down by councillors concerned over the number and layout of the homes.

Cllr Zoe Metcalfe also said more needed to be done to reduce the impact on nearby homes and the village’s conservation area.

She said:

“This is a really important area that we need to look after and I do not think the developers are being respectful at all.

“They have got outline permission so these houses are going to happen but I would like to see less and a better layout.”

Layout for the 36 homes in Goldsborough.

Cllr Andrew Paraskos, a Conservative who represents Spofforth with Lower Wharfedale, added:

“I really do think with these smaller sites on the edges of villages and towns that we should be pushing for the best that we can get.

“This development will be the first thing you are going to see entering this village – and you will probably see it from the A59 too – so why not make it something that we are really proud of? We should be going for designs that are exemplary.”

One resident, Noel Evans, spoke in objection to the plans today saying the 36 homes were “not needed nor wanted by anyone in the village” and called for the number to be reduced to 12.

Mr Evans said.

“This is the most intense development ever considered in Goldsborough.

“Its urban density will be totally out of keeping with the Goldsborough conservation area which it borders directly. If houses must be built here, reducing the number to one third of the planned numbers would solve all of these problems.”

The plans included a mix of one to five-bedroom properties, with 14 classed as affordable.

Becky Lomas, an agent for the developers, told today’s meeting that the layout of the homes and landscaping had been “carefully” designed to minimise the impact on residents living on Station Road.

She said the proposals “do not give rise to any overbearing, overshadowing or overlooking harms” to the area, however, this did not ring true with councillors who have asked for a rethink on how the homes are set out.

Cllr Pat Marsh, a Liberal Democrat who represents Harrogate Hookstone, said the developers should make sure the proposals are “absolutely right” for the area before asking for planning permission again.

She said:

“At the moment I feel this is not right so taking it back and having those discussions with both residents and local members is the most sensible way forward.”

Plans to revive Harrogate district economy after April 12 revealed

A ‘Buy Local By Bike’ campaign, more pavement licences for hospitality businesses and cleaner public toilets have been revealed as part of Harrogate Borough Council’s plans to reopen the economy in a fortnight.

After more than three months of coronavirus closures, non-essential retailers are due to reopen their doors on April 12 under the next stage of the planned easing of lockdown restrictions.

As part of this, pubs, restaurants and cafes will return for outdoor service on that date.

Shoppers, diners and drinkers will be encouraged to get spending to help save Harrogate’s high streets.

But Richard Cooper, leader of Harrogate Borough Council, warned it will be “critical” to proceed cautiously to ensure infection rates remain low as the vaccine rollout continues.

The council’s plans include the launch of a ‘Buy Local By Bike’ initiative, with shoppers urged to get cycling and support local businesses using a digital London Underground-style map of routes around Harrogate and Knaresborough.

Pavement licences

Pubs, restaurants and cafes with little or no room for outdoor service are also being urged to apply to the council for pavement licences where they can be given permission to set up tables and chairs outside of their premises.

These licences were introduced by the government last summer and recently extended to make it easier and cheaper for hospitality businesses to serve people outside until the planned return of indoor service on May 17.

The council is also drafting in contract cleaners to step-up hygiene measures at public toilets, with a focus on the district’s towns and main visitor locations during bank holidays when an influx of visitors is expected.

Furthermore, the council has received an extra £141,714 under the government’s Reopening High Streets Safely Fund, which it said could be used for publicity campaigns for street food markets and improvements to green spaces and seating areas to encourage people back to town centres.

Councillor Cooper said he was optimistic about the lifting of lockdown restrictions but added it must be done “in a safe way so that we can ensure we remain open”. He added:

“All the statistics we see show infections and hospitalisations heading in the right direction because of the effect the vaccine is having coupled with the lockdown.

“I know it has been the toughest year for business. We all know that. That is why we should all make that extra effort to shop locally where possible and to choose a local retailer where we can if we are shopping online.”

Shops open until 10pm

The government has already announced shops will be allowed to stay open until 10pm when the economy reopens on April 12, as well as a Restart Grants scheme with non-essential businesses able to apply for up to £6,000 and hospitality and leisure firms up to £18,000.

Last summer, some Harrogate bars were given permission to set up tables and chairs on the Stray under the temporary pavement licences and the council is now in talks with the landowners over opening this up to more businesses.

It has yet to reach an agreement with the Duchy of Lancaster but it is hoped this could happen before summer when all restrictions on social contacts are due to end on 21 June before council-backed events return.

Harrogate Carnival 2021 – organised by Harrogate International Festivals – has been scheduled for either the 4th or 5th of September and will involve street theatre, music, arts and food, although the event is not anticipated to include a parade in the same way it did in 2019.

The carnival will be backed by a £50,000 council grant with a further £25,000 going to a Fire Garden event which will include fire shows and sculptures, and is due to be held in either October or November this year, or February 2022.

Harrogate police officers face social media restrictions

North Yorkshire Police is imposing restrictions on officers’ social media accounts that will prevent them posting directly to the public.

The move will have implications for the popular Twitter accounts of Harrogate traffic sergeant Paul Cording and Harrogate traffic constable David Minto, who between them have more than 20,000 followers.

Their tales of life on the road include live traffic updates from accident scenes and details of motoring offences.

But soon they will be unable to post directly to Twitter under their police names.

North Yorkshire Police is centralising its approach to social media by encouraging people to follow its official accounts, rather than those of individual officers.

Officers can still post under their names provided their messages go through official channels first.

Another spot by @NypAnpr and @TC174_NYP & my @NYorksRPG team stop this vehicle near #AllertonPark Driver tests positive for #Cocaine & is arrested. I assisted with bloods in custody & they will be sent to @RSSS_DianeFair for analysis #Fatal4 pic.twitter.com/4NxBO3hYGO

— Sgt Paul Cording BEM (@OscarRomeo1268) March 21, 2021

This vehicle received a deferred prohibition for carrying expired fire extinguishers. Both the cab and load 🧯were well past their service intervals. The driver was also reported for an insecure load #CDG #ADR #SaferRoads #RoadSafety #SealSands #Teesside pic.twitter.com/aYagLuSNU0

— David Minto (@TC174_NYP) March 17, 2021

A North Yorkshire Police spokesperson told the Stray Ferret:

“We are reducing our accounts to make it easier for our communities to find the latest updates from North Yorkshire Police and what is happening in their area, as well as enabling us to respond to the issues that matter to those communities more quickly and effectively.

“The changes are not banning anyone from social media. The many officers and staff who already post and share fantastic social media content will move to posting that content across our force wide and district accounts. Some have already started doing this.

“If they wish to they will be able to give their name so the public still know who is the voice behind the post as we know how much their personalities are valued by our communities.”

Sgt Cording told the Stray Ferret he was aware changes are coming but at this stage it was inappropriate for him to comment.

In an interview with the Stray Ferret last year, he said there were “some issues” within the force when he started tweeting in 2011 but increasingly the police had recognised the value of officers engaging directly with the public and showing a bit of personality.

Harrogate district GPs start giving vaccine to under-50s

Some North Yorkshire GPs have vaccinated all top-priority patients and are using spare doses on under-50s, a chief nurse has said.

Sue Peckitt, chief nursing officer at NHS North Yorkshire Clinical Commissioning Group, said the county’s vaccination programme was going “exceptionally well”.

She added some surgeries had reached all eligible patients in the top nine priority groups two weeks earlier than expected.

Ms Peckitt added although bookings for all other adults aged under 50 were not yet open, some would soon be called up for last minute appointments using doses that would otherwise go to waste.

Speaking at a meeting of the North Yorkshire Outbreak Management Advisory Board today, she said:

“Many of our primary care networks are asking if they can move into the lower age cohorts and we are telling them to try not to unless it would mean vaccine wastage.

“We do know some of them have exhausted all of their eligible cohorts so you might start to hear some challenge coming back that some individuals below the age of 50 are starting to get pulled forward.”

As of Friday, more than 404,000 people in North Yorkshire had received their first dose of a covid vaccine, with almost 40,000 people having received their second.

In the Harrogate district, a total of 82,118 people have had a first dose of a covid vaccine.

The figure for first doses across the UK is 30m and 3.5m for second doses.

The government aims to offer a first vaccine to about 32 million people in nine priority groups by 15 April and every other adult by the end of July.

The programme is now inviting those aged 50 and above who haven’t yet received jabs to book appointments after the first four groups – those aged 70 and over, care home residents, healthcare workers and people required to shield – were offered a jab by mid-February.

Ms Peckitt said while take up of the vaccine in North Yorkshire has been high, some residents were still reluctant to come forward.

She said:

“We are still trying to get the reminder of the eligible cohorts to come forward.

“There have been repeated calls to individuals that haven’t and we are working with them to try understand why they would not want to access the vaccine.”

Bettys and Taylors to keep using tea supplier accused of sexual abuse

Harrogate company Bettys and Taylors has said it will continue trading with a supplier in Malawi that is being sued over the alleged sexual abuse of workers.

A Sunday Times article today revealed a group of tea pickers, many of them single mothers earning about £1 a day, have filed a claim in the High Court against Lujeri Tea Estates and its British owners. PGI Group.

The lawsuit alleges there is a ‘systematic problem of male workers at plantations abusing their positions of power’ to rape, sexually assault, harass and coerce women they supervise into sex.

It names 36 alleged male perpetrators of sexual abuse.

Bettys and Taylors of Harrogate, which produces Yorkshire Tea, is one of several British companies named in the article for being supplied by Lujeri.

Unilever, whose tea brands include PG Tips and Lipton, and Tetley, are also named.

Bettys and Taylors published an 850-word statement on its website today saying ‘human rights abuses have no place in our supply chain’.

But it added at this stage it did not plan to cut ties with its suppliers in Malawi:

“We can’t improve things unless we’re involved, and that’s why news of something going wrong in our supply chain doesn’t immediately result in us walking away from a producer, which can be harmful for the people reliant on our trade for their livelihoods.

“A key foundation of sustainable trade is long-term relationships – and our contracts guarantee that we’ll buy for several years in advance, at a level above the Fairtrade minimum price, plus an additional premium for quality.

“In situations like this, companies will often immediately stop trading with a supplier to try and limit reputational damage to their brands.

“We understand why but it’s hard to overstate the impact of suddenly cutting off some of the world’s poorest workers and smallholders from their source of income.

“So our first position is to work with a supplier, understand what’s gone wrong and support them to develop plans to put things right. If that’s not something they can do, we’d stop buying from them.”

The statement added Bettys and Taylors’ suppliers were “engaging fully and openly with this process”.

Grant Bramsen, managing director of Lujeri Tea Estates, told the Sunday Times it was “deeply troubled by these allegations” and processes it had introduced to prevent abuse “did not go far enough”.

Killinghall man who headbutted police officer spared jail

A judge has spoken out about violence to police officers after a Killinghall man head-butted a constable.

Two officers were called to Bedlam Lane, near Fewston reservoir, after reports of a man slumped on the steering wheel in a Peugeot 20 parked in an isolated spot, York Crown Court heard.

When the officers arrived, they found 38-year-old Richard Brewins intoxicated but, despite his slurred speech, able to identify himself.

Prosecutor Thomas Parsons-Munn said that after noticing empty Strongbow cans in the footwell, officers asked Brewins to undergo an alcohol breath test but he became aggressive, shouting and swearing at the officers, one of whom grabbed him by the arm.

Brewins pushed one of the officers and tried to get away, at which point the other officer used his pepper spray.

Mr Parsons-Munn said:

“Brewins responded by head-butting (the named officer) in his face, cutting the bridge of his nose.”

A passer-by helped the police restrain Brewins and take him to ground, where he was handcuffed.

Due to his heavily intoxicated state, Brewins was taken to Harrogate District Hospital as a precaution. He was later discharged and taken in for questioning, where he denied “assaulting anyone”.

Brewins, of Thomas Drive, ultimately admitted assaulting the officer, causing actual bodily harm. The offence occurred on January 19.

Seven previous convictions

The court heard that Brewins, a pizza delivery driver, had seven previous convictions for 15 offences, including three for common assault.

Defence barrister Ayman Khokhar said Brewins was “at the end of his tether” at the time and had parked up in the secluded spot in a highly emotional state.

He said Brewins had “complex” psychiatric difficulties and was now receiving treatment.

Recorder Andrew Dallas told Brewins:

“You head-butted a police officer, causing a nasty cut to the bridge of his nose.

“It was very painful and there appears to be some ongoing psychological effect (to the victim).

“Just because a person is in a uniform doesn’t mean he isn’t a human being and doesn’t suffer the effects of psychological trauma. He should not have to put up with this sort of behaviour.”

It was the second time in a week that Mr Dallas had bemoaned attacks on police officers, which is a topical issue following recent protests in Bristol and London that descended into violence.

Police attacks

The day before Brewins’ court appearance, a 40-year-old man from Scarborough was jailed for attacking a traffic constable at a funeral wake.

Mr Dallas said Brewins’ offence was so serious that it could only be met with a custodial sentence but agreed to suspend this because he was trying to turn his life around through professional help.

The eight-month prison term was suspended for two years but Brewins was ordered to carry out 150 hours’ unpaid work.

He must also complete a 25-day rehabilitation programme and pay the injured officer £300 compensation.

St George Hotel in Harrogate set to re-open

One of Harrogate’s oldest and most famous hotels is set to re-open.

St George Hotel, opposite Harrogate Convention Centre in the town centre, has been closed for more than a year since the first lockdown began.

Previous owner Specialist Leisure Group went into administration in May with the loss of 2,500 jobs throughout the company.

It is now owned by Bespoke Hotels, which was founded in 2000 by Haydn Fentum and Robin Sheppard and describes itself as ‘the UK’s largest independent hotel group’, with 120 properties.

Paul Donkin, general manager of York Pavilion Hotel, revealed on social media he was leaving his position to take on the challenge of re-opening the hotel and building a new team to bring the hotel back to its glory.

Mr Donkin, who lives in Harrogate and has extensive experience of the town’s hospitality sector having worked previously at the Cedar Court Hotel, the Old Swan Hotel and the Crown Hotel, told the Stray Ferret he would be happy to discuss the matter in more detail when he took up the role on April 7.

The hotel grew out of the Chequers Inn and was renamed after George III’s gift of the Stray to the people of Harrogate in 1778.

It was enlarged several times during the nineteenth century and renamed the St George shortly before the First World War.

It was badly damaged by fire in 1927 and requisitioned by the Post Office and Air Ministry during the Second World War before re-opening as a hotel in 1952. It acquired a spa facility in 1985.

It has 90 bedrooms, a restaurant, bar, library and terrace and its close proximity to the town centre makes it a popular spot for visitors.

Summertime starts: and Tuesday will hit 20 degrees

Temperatures in the Harrogate district are forecast to rise to 20 degrees centigrade on Tuesday, making it the warmest day so far this year.

The clocks went forward last night, marking the start of British summer time.

Although it has been a grey and blustery Palm Sunday, it will soon feel like summer as the temperature briefly soars.

It should reach 17 degrees tomorrow before peaking at 20 degrees on Tuesday.

However, the warm snap is unlikely to last, according to the Met Office. Temperatures are expected to plummet by almost half to 11 degrees on Wednesday then struggle to get into double figures for the four-day Easter bank holiday weekend.

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Pavement licences

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Shops open until 10pm

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Seven previous convictions

Police attacks

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