Humanist celebrants across the district have given their support to the six couples who are challenging the government to change the law to legally recognise humanist marriages.
The current laws in England and Wales force couples who want a humanist wedding to have a separate civil ceremony for their marriage to be legally recognised.
The couples are going to the High Court July 7-8 and will argue that the current law discriminates against them because of their humanitarian belief.
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Rachael Meyer, a Harrogate based humanist celebrant, was fully booked for humanist weddings in 2020 and continues to be busy next year.
She said:
““It’s no surprise that the demand for humanist wedding ceremonies is rising rapidly. It is frustrating and completely unfair that non-religious couples in England and Wales who want a beautiful, bespoke, meaningful humanist ceremony that reflects their values have to go through a completely separate legal ceremony with a registrar, whereas religious couples do not.
Marriage laws need to be updated now so that we are in line with Scotland and Northern Ireland.”
Lisa and Matthew Taylor signing a certificate rather than a register.
In England and Wales, over 1,000 couples a year already have a humanist wedding without legal recognition. The government was given the power to give legal recognition to humanist marriages in 2013 but has failed to act on it.
Humanists UK Chief Executive, Andrew Copson said:
“Couples who have humanist weddings see that day as the epitome of their love and commitment to each other, and all they want is the same legal recognition for that as is given to every religious person in our country.
Government has dragged its heels and that’s why it’s been left to these couples to bring this case.”
The Harrogate and District Soroptimists found a new way to handover presidency last week.
Social distancing has made it impossible for new president Sandra Frier to receive the chain of office given to her back in April. However, being able to meet in small groups in gardens has meant that the handover has finally taken place.
Immediate past presidents Sylvia Purser and Sue Williams passed the chain of office over to new president via a broom handle.
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Soroptimist International of Harrogate and District work with other Soroptimist clubs and organisations globally to make a difference to the lives of women and girls.
Sandra Frier the new Club President has chosen the theme of people, partnership and the planet, with her chosen charity being ‘Just B’ and Saint Michaels Hospice.
President Sandra Frier wearing chain in foreground with Sylvia Purse (Left) & Sue Williams (Right)
She said:
“Harrogate and District Soroptimists have a reputation for combining fun and friendship with hard work. Whilst some members have continued to work, others have worked together virtually to assist the community during these very difficult times.”
Some of their voluntary activities have included making scrubs with the Harrogate Scrubbers, providing pamper bags for NHS front-line staff and making laundry bags for Ripon Hospital.
Rudding Park volunteers pick up 400kg of rubbishFurloughed staff at Rudding Park Hotel in Harrogate have been supporting a number of volunteering initiatives during lockdown.
One of the initiatives was a “Litter Pick Up Pop Up” in order to help Harrogate look its best for when lockdown restrictions are eased further. In 320 hours, the team collected 400kg of rubbish and walked 1,600,000 steps, equating to 640 miles.
This comes as the public raised concern over huge amounts of litter being left in beauty spots across the district as hot weather arrived and lockdown restrictions were eased.
Peter Banks, managing director at Rudding Park said:
“Whilst they are unable to work for Rudding Park during this time, they can volunteer and many were keen to do their bit in the community. When the time comes for hotels to reopen it’s going to be important for us to showcase our beautiful town to its absolute best, so we hope this will help in some small way.”
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The volunteers also took part in another two initiatives including Hospitality Action, a service providing a helpline to retired hospitality workers, and Ripon Walled Garden, a charity which supports young children and adults with a learning disability.
Harrogate International Festivals commission ‘exclusive’ new piece of musicAn exclusive new piece of music commissioned by Harrogate International Festivals will premiere online next month.
The charity commissioned internationally renowned composer Dr David Lancaster to write the music, before asking musicians from all over the world to get involved by playing their part from the comfort of their living rooms.
HIF said the response was “phenomenal” with musicians submitting videos from countries including Australia, South Africa and Malaysia, as well as the UK.
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One of the submissions came from Matthew Gee, Principal Trombone with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. He said:
“It’s great to see the arts organisations taking a fresh and radical approach to music making – for them to be commissioning new material during lockdown is even better.”
Internationally renowned composer, Professor David Lancaster.
The chief executive of Harrogate International Festivals, Sharon Canavar, also noted the importance of “keeping the arts alive in Harrogate”, despite coronavirus putting paid to its usual summer programme. She said:
“We are incredibly excited to be able to bring the world premiere of Eclipse to life this July. It is going to be a truly international collaboration and one that will help shine a bright light on the power of the arts.”
Eclipse will premiere globally from 23 to 26 July. Further details of HIF at Home are available here – https://harrogateinternationalfestivals.com/hif-at-home/.
Harrogate pub owners’ pop-up shop finds permanent homeA new fruit and veg shop has opened on Harlow Hill in Harrogate after a lockdown pop-up proved a huge hit with the community.
Mike and Donna Schofield, owners of The Shepherd’s Dog on Harlow Hill, set up a temporary greengrocery store during lockdown, but business was so good, they’ve decided to open a permanent shop.
The couple were forced to close their pub as lockdown struck, and they began doing weekly shops for their neighbours.
When they couldn’t get their hands on fresh fruit and vegetables, Mike and Donna decided to open a pop-up grocery shop behind their pub.
Wharfedale Fruiterers source all their produce locally
Since setting up their small stall nearly seven weeks ago, trade has boomed, getting “bigger and bigger” every day. The couple have now signed a five-year lease on what was a barber shop on Otley Road and turned it into Wharfedale Fruiterers.
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Mike, who has previously worked in the fruit and vegetable trade for big supermarkets, has been going to Leeds market every day for produce. He told The Stray Ferret:
“People are buying little and often. We are getting repeat services day in and day out, people get what they need for that day and they know they are getting it fresh from market.”
Inside the new shop.
The shop owners have been sourcing their other produce from local companies such as The Yorkshire Cheese Company and Brymor Ice Cream. Donna told The Stray Ferret:
“It was lovely having the pop-up shop but people wanted more. If we can give the locals that bit more then we will”
Resident David Silkstone, who was out buying his groceries when The Stray Ferret visited the shop, said:
WATCH: Harrogate gymnasts set up outdoor gym“We’ve stopped buying most of our fruit and veg from Ocado and are buying from here instead. We used to have a butchers, a post office and a fish and chip shop, so to have a fruiterer here is fantastic.”
Harrogate Gymnastics Club, led by head coach Chloe Carey, is “excited to be back” after over three months off.
Since closing the gym doors on March 18, the gymnasts have been taking part in online sessions and competitions via zoom. However, they are now able to train in small groups and have set up an ‘outdoor gym’ in order to keep practicing.
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The gymnasts videoed all compete at national level but have unfortunately missed out on this year’s competition due to coronavirus.
The gymnasts train in small groups and are socially distant at all times.
However, the girls are now determined than ever to get their training in as they wait for the go ahead on future competitions.
WATCH: Harrogate junior tennis players get back into the swing of thingsThe junior players at David Lloyds Tennis Club were able to get back on court yesterday after not being able to train for nearly two months.
The young players, five of whom play for Yorkshire, and their coaches were happy to be back training in the sunshine yesterday.
Roberta Gaskell is the current Yorkshire junior tennis champion
Although they haven’t been able to get back to their usual indoor training, the players have been able to play on the courts at Valley Gardens, getting some important training in before the Yorkshire championships in August.
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Jane Tate, one of the coaches at David Lloyd, told The Stray Ferret that it’s great to see everyone back training. She said:
“It’s great getting the kids back playing competitive matches, they’ve really missed it and it’s great to see them playing again.”
Harrogate couple to marry after twice cancelled wedding
A Harrogate couple has received some good news from The Majestic Hotel in Harrogate who has offered to host their wedding after their original plans were ruined.
Ali Farr and Ben Cross ,who both work for the NHS, had their wedding plans cancelled twice. Firstly due to lockdown and secondly because their chosen venue, St George Hotel on Ripon Road, went into administration.
The couple had their wedding invitations re-printed for free and then heard the venue had gone bust.
However, thanks to the help of Ali’s grandma and bridesmaids, The Majestic Hotel in Harrogate has offered their venue for the couples wedding on December 31- the day they’d been due to marry at the St George.
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Bride- to- be, Ali Farr told The Stray Ferret that she is still apprehensive and hopes there isn’t a second wave. She said:
“It has all been quite overwhelming, if it happens on New Year’s Eve it will be amazing, but I am trying not to get too excited just in case, but who knows what’s going to happen.”
The Majestic Hotel in Harrogate will host Ali and Ben’s wedding at the end of the year.
The Cedar Court Hotel in Harrogate also offered their venue up for the couples wedding. Guests travelling from as far as Australia and Singapore have been told about the new date.
The couple, who have been working throughout the crisis, have still had no correspondence with St George Hotel except for the information given on their website.
Queues form outside Bettys as Harrogate shop reopensLong queues have formed outside Bettys in Harrogate today as its shop reopened to the public.
Bettys closed all of its six cafes and shops back in March but today has opened their Harrogate shop, with Ilkley, Harlow Carr and York opening next week.
Queues have been forming all day outside the Harrogate shop.
Managing Director of Bettys, Simon Eyles said:
“We are truly delighted to be welcoming customers back to our Bettys shops, we’ve missed them. To ensure their safety and that of our colleagues, we have new shopping systems in place. So, while it might not be the full Bettys experience that customers are used to, people will still find the mouth-watering Bettys treats they have been missing and, of course, our warm Yorkshire welcome.”
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Queues are being monitored by the Bettys staff with a limited number of people allowed in at once. Hand sanitiser is provided on entrance as well as floor markings throughout the shop.
Screens have been placed in the shop to protect customers and staff.
All of the Bettys cafes remain closed until further notice.
Harrogate support helpline Just B is ‘Hear to Help’Just B, the bereavement and counselling service run by St Michael’s Hospice, has encouraged those who are struggling to reach out.
The ‘Hear to Help’ initiative was launched by Just B, a service provided by Saint Michaels Hospice, as a response to covid-19. The community support line helps those feeling anxious or struggling emotionally during lockdown.
Numbers have risen during lockdown, and the specialist team is now answering calls for a wide range of needs, including bereavement, mental health troubles and relationship worries.
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Tony Collins, chief executive of Just B, said:
“We have all been challenged over the last few months by the ever-changing situation caused by coronavirus. As lockdown rules see some relaxation and a new normal begins to emerge, it stands to reason that different worries and concerns may appear as well all adjust to the changes in our daily lives.”
Just B has also joined with other charities as part of the NHS Staff Support Initiative which provides help to frontline NHS staff who are experiencing the devastating effects of Covid-19.
The Hear to Help support-line is available to all ages and lines are open between 8am-8pm, seven days a week. To speak to a specialist support worker call 01423 856799.