John Plummer, Author at The Stray Ferret

Harrogate trains cancelled as flood threat remains

Rail replacement buses are operating between Harrogate and Leeds this morning due to flooding.

Rail operator Northern said this morning some lines were blocked due to the wet conditions.

It added rail replacement were in place for the 6.30 Leeds to Harrogate 7.30 Leeds to Harrogate 8.30 Leeds to Harrogate, 9.30 Leeds to Harrogate, 7.00 Harrogate to Leeds, 8.00 Harrogate to Leeds. 9.00 Harrogate to Leeds and 10.00 Harrogate to Leeds.

A Met Office weather warning for rain remains in place for the Harrogate district until 9pm until tonight.

Environment Agency flood alerts are active for the upper and lower River Nidd catchments areas and for the Lower River Ure.

More severe flood warnings — which indicate flooding is expected — have been installed for Swinney Beck at Masham and the River Nidd at Hunsingore.

The Swinney Beck warning at 1.54am this morning said:

“Flooding is forecast to affect locations and properties near the Swinney Beck, with low lying land expected to be most affected, particularly around Masham including properties situated off the A6108, Fearby Road, Westholme Road, Leyburn Road, The Avenue, Avenue Bank, Quaker Terrance, Silver Street and College Lane.”

What has happened to Knaresborough’s new £6 million primary school?

Concerns have been expressed about the lack of progress on a new £6 million primary school in Knaresborough.

North Yorkshire County Council unveiled plans in 2020 to open primary schools in Knaresborough and Northallerton “to serve housing growth”.

The school in Northallerton, where the council is based, is due to open in autumn this year.

But three-and-a-half years after the schemes were announced, no work has begun in Knaresborough. A second proposed opening date of September 2024 looks certain to be missed and no new deadline has been set.

The school, which would predominantly be for children in the new 1,000-plus homes at the Manse Farm and Highfield Farm developments, is supposed to cater for 210 pupils and have the capacity to expand its roster to 420. The plans also included a nursery.

After Knaresborough Town Council expressed frustration at the lack of progress last month, the Stray Ferret asked North Yorkshire Council, which succeeded North Yorkshire County Council in April, why the project was taking so long and whether it would definitely still go ahead.

Amanda Newbold, the council’s assistant director for education and skills, said in a statement the local authority remained committed to the delivery of the project but will “will undertake regular reviews before it is able to confirm delivery”. She did not commit to a new deadline.

Ms Newbold’s full statement is:

“Development works have been postponed due to an overhead electric cable that runs across the land where the new school is due to be built. This is also delaying the developer to some degree.

“A sub-station needs to be built on the land and the cable diverted before the school site can be transferred from Taylor Wimpey to the council.

“The negotiations for the sub-station development are continuing and the parties involved have recently confirmed good progress on agreement of the legal terms. All of these matters need to be concluded before the site transfer of the school land can begin.

“We have no control over these issues, but we continue to put a great deal of effort into encouraging the third parties to resolve them.

“While this is disappointing, it does not change our commitment to the delivery of the project, and the application for the renewal of the planning permission for the new school will be submitted in the new year. As there would be for any project of this scale, the council will undertake regular reviews before it is able to confirm delivery of the school.”

Review needed before final commitment

The town council’s agenda items for its December meeting includes details of separate correspondence with a council officer who said the cost of the school was likely to be around £6 million. He added that once the land was transferred “a review of the need of the project would be undertaken before a final commitment to proceed is made”.

The town council voted to accept a motion by Cllr Matt Walker, a Liberal Democrat who represents Knaresborough Castle, to invite Taylor Wimpey “to provide an update on the transfer of land at Manse Farm housing estate to North Yorkshire Council so a primary school can be built”.

Knaresborough Town Council’s December meeting at Knaresborough House.

Cllr Walker said it was disappointing the school had not progressed and he hoped the meeting could help get things moving.

Kit Lacey, a Liberal Democrat who represents Scriven Park, said Meadowside Primary Academy was already at capacity due to new nearby housing developments.

Cllr David Goode, a Liberal Democrat who represents Eastfield, said there had been no progress on a community centre that had also been proposed for the town to mitigate for the impact of new housing developments.

A report to county councillors in September 2020 said the new primary schools in Knaresborough and Northallerton were necessary “to maintain school place sufficiency”, adding they were needed “primarily to serve housing growth”.

Looking Back: 8 of the best images of 2023

As 2023 draws to a close, we look back at some of the striking images that appeared on the Stray Ferret.

1 Historic Hampsthwaite Bridge damaged

One of our best-read stories this year was about the sudden closure of Hampsthwaite Bridge in June. The bridge was closed to vehicles for about two months after sustaining damage that cost £60,000 to repair. It occurred after this heavy goods vehicle squeezed over and this image of it doing so generated a lot of interest — and disbelief.

2 Northern Lights dazzle

The Northern Lights never seemed closer than they did in 2023. The aurora borealis appeared to be visible more often than ever and social media was flooded with images of multi-coloured skies. It’s doubtful if anyone captured it better than Paul Oldham, whose photos of it included this one beauty over How Hill in Ripon in late September.

3 The crushed Harrogate Porsche

Zenya Dunn, standing next to her partner’s Michael’s Porsche.

This year included more than its fair share of another natural phenomenon — storms. But although lightning never strikes twice, storms do, as a Harrogate couple discovered during Storm Otto in February. A large branch from a tree crashed onto their Porsche. Zenya Dunn, who lives on Granby Road, said her partner Michael woke to go to work, only to find his Porsche beneath a branch. She said it was the second time a branch from the same tree had crashed down on to one of their vehicles and her Range Rover only narrowly escaped this time. The tree was later severely pruned.

4 Cow in Valley Gardens

A genteel Saturday morning in Harrogate’s Valley Gardens was disturbed one summer morning when a cow appeared. Valley Gardens isn’t particularly near any cattle fields and where the cow came from remains a mystery. Police somehow led it to safely.

5 Bizarre cycling message

The felled tree at the junction with Bilton Lane pictured this morning.

Mystery also surrounds the message daubed on a fallen oak tree at the junction of Bilton Lane and Woodfield Road in Bilton. The decaying tree was felled by the council in August and this message appeared the following month. What it means, however — and what cyclists have to do with it — is anyone’s guess.

6 ‘Stonehenge of the north’ opens near Ripon

Photo of the neolithic Thornborough Henges.

A cluster of three Neolithic monuments on a raised plateau above the River Ure at West Tanfield opened to the public in September. Construction firms Tarmac and Lightwater Holdings gifted the site, known as Thornborough Henges, into the legal ownership of Historic England, although it is managed by the charity English Heritage. Historic England describes it as “probably the most important single ancient site between Stonehenge and the Orkney Islands in Scotland”.

7 Knaresborough Tractor Run dazzles again

Knaresborough tractor run

Knaresborough Tractor Run never fails to deliver. It doesn’t change much, but the sight of some 350 vehicles parading around the district, infuriating cars stuck behind them and delighting children lining the streets to watch, has become one of the most fun and fantastic days of the year.

8 Ripon’s streets lined for St Wilfrid’s Procession

The ancient tradition sees an actor on horseback adopt the role of St Wilfrid, Ripon’s patron saint, and ride around the city. The event attracts thousands of people and this year’s procession, which tied in with celebrations on Market Square, created a carnival atmosphere.

Knaresborough duck race cancelled due to high river level

Knaresborough’s traditional New Year’s Day duck race will be held online for the second consecutive year due to high river level.

Knaresborough Cricket Club, which organises the event, posted on social media today that it had acted on safety grounds.

It said the event will instead take place virtually rather than by releasing toy ducks off High Bridge on the River Nidd.

The club said:

“It is with a heavy heart that we need to tell you all that the duck race has been cancelled on New Year’s Day 2024 due to safety reasons.

“The river is very high, and with rain last night and heavy showers forecast our partners on the river think that the river will be much too high to have boats in the river and it will be unsafe for all.

“Thanks to all that have purchase tickets. The race will GO AHEAD ONLINE. A link will be posted on here. The race will start at 2.30pm, or why not join us in person at Knaresborough Cricket Club from 2pm.”

It added that all prized will be delivered and funds will go to the club’s junior cricket section and local disability charity Henshaws.

After a wet few weeks, Environment Agency flood alerts remain in place for the Lower River Ure and the River Nidd at Hunsingore in the Harrogate district.

The latest update for the Ure this morning said:

“Areas most at risk include low-lying land, including agricultural land, and local roads in the areas around Boroughbridge, Aldborough, Bishop Monkton and Aldwark.”

Harrogate care home owner “absolutely delighted” after Grove House conversion approved

The owner of Harrogate’s Grove House has said he is “absolutely delighted” after planners finally gave the go-ahead to convert the grade two listed building into a luxury care facility.

Graeme Lee, chief executive of Springfield Healthcare, bought Grove House for £3 million in 2019 and then spent five years working on plans to transform it into what he calls “the holy grail of care”.

North Yorkshire Council finally granted approval this month, which means the former home of Harrogate mayor, inventor and philanthropist Samson Fox will be converted into a care home consisting of 24 flats. In addition, a 62-bed care home and eight houses providing supported living for over-65s will be built on adjoining land.

Mr Lee, whose company already owns seven care homes, including Harcourt Gardens in Harrogate and the Chocolate Works in York, said:

“I’m absolutely delighted that after a five-year journey we can now bring to life what I believe is going to be the most innovative and unique intergenerational care scheme.

“When we did Chocolate Works I wondered how we would top that. But this will.

“Grove House will be restored to its former glory. The building, which has lots of leaks, will be given some TLC. The grand hall and billiards room will remain. We will bring it back to life and reforge the spirit of Samson Fox.”

Mr Lee admitted there were doubts about whether the scheme would go ahead because of the length of the planning process. He added the cost had risen from £15 million to £20 million due to inflation and the cost of living increase.

An artist’s impression of part of the new care facility.

An aerial view showing Grove House opposite the fire station on Skipton Road.

Mr Lee, who lives in Harrogate, said he hoped to appoint a contractor — probably Simpsons of York, which undertook Harcourt Gardens and the Chocolate Works — by spring and then begin work in summer. He added the scheme would be built in phases, with a planned opening date of summer 2026.

The six-acre site, which has been unused for years, will host an annual community day and be used widely by pupils at nearby Grove Road Community Primary School.Children will hold lessons on site and build relationships with residents with dementia to make the project a pioneering multi-generational scheme, Me Lee said.

They will also be able to track wildlife such as foxes and badgers on site through hidden cameras and use a new wildlife pond for study.

Read more:

Nearly 1,000 people to see out 2023 in Ripon Runners 10k

About 900 people will see out the year by taking part in Ripon Runners‘ Jolly Holly Jog 10k tomorrow.

The event, which is being held for the 35th time, is the club’s biggest of the year.

Usually held on a Sunday between Christmas and New Year, it attracts a mixture of seasoned club athletes and casual joggers.

Race director Anneke Imeson said:

“Whether you’re aiming for a personal best or just want to have a scenic jog out, it’s a fab time of year to run off the Christmas excess and prepare for the forthcoming New Year festivities.

“We’re extremely lucky as a club to have the support of the National Trust who are delighted every year to welcome so many runners to run around their stunning deer park as part of our 10k course.”

Starting at Hell Wath Nature Reserve, runners complete a multi-terrain loop through Mackershaw Woods and Studley Royal Deer Park, passing Monty’s bench, which is named in memory of Ripon Runners’ club co-founder and former club president. They then return via Mackershaw with a short section through Hell Wath woods, before approaching the finish line.

The race fills up fast and this year’s 925 capacity has been reached.

The event raises funds for Upper Nidderdale Food Bank, which is based at St Cuthberts’ Church in Pateley Bridge and entrants are offered the chance to plant a tree. Over 400 saplings were planted last year.

Ripon Runners, which was founded in 1985, hosts various races throughout the year including the Burn Valley Half Marathon, which is a road event in Masham, the Ripon 10 Mile around Studley’s seven bridges, The Round Ripon Ultra, which is a 35-mile solo or team event and the festive Jolly Holly Jog 10k.

Ms Imeson said:

“We’re especially pleased this year as in May we sadly had to cancel our Ripon 10 event which had struggled to get back to regular race numbers post-covid. Many local races suffered and those that did go ahead saw significantly reduced numbers with increased expenses. That said it’s fantastic to see such a high entry this Christmas.

“Without such a positive response from Ripon Runners who step up to marshal, such a hugely successful race would not be possible, so huge kudos to our own club members.”

Harrogate hospice chief executive awarded OBE

A Harrogate hospice leader has been awarded an OBE in the King’s New Year’s Honours List.

Tony Collins, who is chief executive of Saint Michael’s Hospice, has been awarded the honour for service to the community.

Mr Collins, who is also chief executive of specialist bereavement and emotional wellbeing service Just ‘B’ and Hambleton and Richmondshire-based Herriot Hospice Homecare, has been a leader in the hospice community in Yorkshire and the North East for 27 years, and also sits on the board of national charity Hospice UK.

He has been at the forefront of increasing hospice care at home, increasing accessibility to hospice care for people in rural areas and introducing Yorkshire’s first specialised community bereavement service – Just ‘B’ – in 2009.

Saint Michael’s provides care and support for families living with terminal illness and bereavement across the Harrogate district. It does this from its hospice building, as well as in the community. Alongside Just ‘B’ and Herriot Hospice Homecare, it makes up registered charity North Yorkshire Hospice Care.

Joint chairs of trustees for the charity, Colin Tweedie and Joanne Crewe, praised Mr Collins’ “commitment and dedication to ensuring people across North Yorkshire and beyond have access to high quality care and support at the right time, and in the right place” in a statement.

Missing 87-year-old Harrogate man found ‘safe but cold’

A missing 87-year-old man from Harrogate has been found safe, police said this morning.

North Yorkshire Police issued a statement last night saying the man had not been seen by his family for about 24 hours and had been unable to contact him.

Officers said they were “very concerned for his safety”.

But police issued a new statement this morning, which said:

“Yesterday evening (29 December) we issued an appeal to help find a missing 87-year-old man from Harrogate.

“We are very pleased to report that he has been found safe and well, but cold.”

We have amended our coverage to anonymise the man’s details.

No 6: Harrogate Station Gateway ‘descoped’ after legal flaws and political rows

In this article, which is part of a series on the 12 stories in the Harrogate district that shaped 2023, we look at the Harrogate Station Gateway saga in 2023.

The year 2023 was supposed to be the year when the Harrogate Station Gateway started to happen.

After years of talk, work would begin on reducing a section of Station Parade to single lane and James Street would be partly pedestrianised. But not a single shovel has entered the ground and the scheme remains mired in mess.

A meeting of North Yorkshire Council’s Harrogate and Knaresborough area constituency committee was supposed to bring clarity in May.

Cllr Keane Duncan, the council’s Conservative executive member for transport, turned the heat up on the Liberal Democrat-controlled committee beforehand by warning the scheme would be dead if the committee didn’t back it. The “majority of spend”, he added, must take place in 2023/24 budgets so there could be no delay.

Councillors voted 10-3 in favour, which paved the way for Cllr Duncan and the rest of the council’s ruling Conservative executive to press the go button. But the political consensus didn’t last long. The Lib Dems quickly withdrew their support, claiming the council had not engaged in meaningful consultation as promised in May.

Cllr Keane Duncan talks about the Station Gateway to Harrogate District Chamber of Commerce.

They called on Cllr Duncan, who would later win the Conservative nomination to stand in next year’s York and North Yorkshire mayoral election, to resign. He accused the Lib Dems of “weak and inconsistent leadership” and “playing games with the scheme”.

Meanwhile, local property firm Hornbeam Park Developments, which owns some buildings on James Street, launched a judicial review to challenge the council’s decision making.

Lawyers claimed there were six grounds for challenge, including the council’s failure to hold a public inquiry before issuing traffic regulation orders for the scheme. In August, the council confirmed it had “quashed” its May decision to proceed with the gateway. It conceded:

“Due to the necessity of having a public inquiry before confirming the relevant traffic regulation order, it was considered prudent to accept this ground of challenge.”

A computer visualisation of part of the Harrogate Station Gateway scheme, with large red x's over elements that have been scrapped.

A Harrogate District Cycle Action graphic showing the scrapped elements.

This prompted Andrew Jones, the Conservative MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough MP, to say the gateway was a” timed-out dead scheme” and offer to intervene to help retain the funding locally.

But the council, which had previously insisted the scheme would be dead if it wasn’t approved, ploughed on and began hastily assembling new proposals.

By November, they suggested public realm improvements to Station Square and One Arch, which is the foot tunnel under the railway at the bottom end of Station Parade, improved access into the bus station and linked sequencing of the traffic lights between the Ripon Road/King’s Road and the Station Parade/Victoria Avenue junctions. The possibility of a southbound segregated cycle lane on Station Parade, while retaining two lanes for motorised traffic, is also being explored.

The political wrangling continued when Lib Dem leader Cllr Pat Marsh accused Cllr Duncan of “pinching” their ideas.

The scheme is one of three worth £42 million being funded by the government’s Transforming Cities Fund to improve station gateways to town centres in Harrogate, Selby and Skipton.

By the end of the year all three had been “de-scoped” because “cost estimates have significantly increased during the detailed design development period”, according to a council report.

The council was keen to gloss over questions about its handling of a scheme, and how it had breached public law by failing to issue traffic regulation orders — particularly as it had awarded £2 million to consultants for help.

Cyclists were frustrated by the loss of what was once hailed as a key project in establishing a secure route from the town centre to Cardale Park. The gateway lexicon had also changed from being about active travel to sustainable transport, suggesting it’s more about better traffic lights than encouraging walking and cycling.

Councillors are expected to decide early in 2024 whether to accept the smaller Harrogate scheme — assuming the government lets the deadline slip. It appears smaller and less controversial than the original plans — but little about the gateway is ever straightforward.

Crime commissioner Zoë Metcalfe hints at council tax increase

Crime commissioner Zoë Metcalfe has hinted council taxpayers in North Yorkshire will have to pay more for police and fire services next year.

The commissioner sets the annual police and fire precepts – the amounts dedicated to policing and fire and rescue services in North Yorkshire and York from every household.

Ms Metcalfe has opened a consultation on how much people are willing to spend on this in their council tax bills from April next year. The sum will be added to the amount charged by North Yorkshire Council and local parish councils for residents’ final council tax bills from April next year.

Three of the options presented in the consultation are for council tax increases. One suggests a freeze and none suggest a reduction. The freeze option is accompanied by the statement, ‘this would be a significant cut to the fire budget due to inflation and current levels of service delivery could not be maintained’.

The suggested increases are for 2.99%, 6.2% and 9.3%, which would be the equivalent of an extra £2.41, £5 and £7.50 a year respectively.

Ms Metcalfe said:

“It is never easy to ask residents for more money, and I know that many individuals and families are facing financial pressures once again this coming year, but our emergency services are also dealing with rising costs as they continue their vital work to keep us all safe.

“And again, this year the decision will be challenging, as I have to balance the burden on taxpayers and the growing demands for services from our police and fire and rescue services, so it’s vital that I hear your views.

“Please go online, take just a few minutes to have your say and I will ensure your views are reflected when decisions are made.”

The survey runs until midnight Monday, January 21 and you can participate here.

After the consultation ends, Ms Metcalfe will submit her proposals to the North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Panel in February.

The panel, which is a joint committee of North Yorkshire Council and City of York Council, can make recommendations on the proposal but the commissioner will ultimately decide the outcome.

Ms Metcalfe’s role will be taken over by whoever is elected mayor of York and North Yorkshire in May next year.