Crowds enjoy the fun at Knaresborough Spring Fayre

A carousel ride, choir performances and the Easter bunny were among he attractions at today’s Knaresborough Spring Fayre.

Patches of rain didn’t dampen spirits as crowds flocked to Market Place in the town centre for the new event.

From 10am this morning, there were queues of young families waiting to get on the carousel or to have their picture with the Easter bunny.

By midday the Easter parade was underway — children were able to get dressed up and walk around with the bunny.

There were also performances from Meadowside School Choir, All Together Now choir and Studio 3 Dance in Knaresborough.

The carousel was a crowd pleaser, with long queues for most of the day

Dancers from Studio 3 kept visitors entertained.

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Lots of children enjoyed getting their picture with the Easter bunny.

The All Together Now choir performed just after midday.

There were also local businesses holding stalls.

Harrogate district MP Nigel Adams to step down at next election

Harrogate district MP Nigel Adams will stand down at the next general election, according to the BBC News.

The broadcaster reported today that the Conservative MP for Selby and Ainsty, whose constituency includes Spofforth, Follifoot, Huby and Weeton, wanted to spend time on other interests.

The next general election is due to take place in 2024.

Mr Adams was first elected in 2010 and has defended the seat in three subsequent elections.

Last September, he was appointed minister without portfolio in the Cabinet Office.

The role does not have responsibility for a specific department but instead helps to coordinate government policy and includes a vote at Cabinet meetings.

A donation to Mr Adams from a Russian businessman came under the spotlight last year. Viktor Fedotov, donated £33,800 to the MP.

Mr Adams was also in the news last year for swearing at anti-Brexit campaigner Steve Bray outside the Commons.

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Display of 1,300 clay poppies takes over Himalayan Gardens

A cascading installation of ceramic Himalayan blue poppies has been installed at the Himalayan Garden and Sculpture Park near Ripon.

More than 1,300 of the clay poppies have been installed on a banking at the park to create an 80 square metre sculpture called ‘bursting from the slumber’.

Harrogate-based artist Anna Whitehouse was commissioned in 2019 but due to the pandemic has only been able to install the poppies in the past two weeks.

The poppies have been handmade with the help of local schools, colleges and public workshops. Each poppy has been personalised with messages about the pandemic or the names of family and friends they lost.

Ms Waterhouse said:

“This project was designed in 2019, when the idea of a global pandemic shutting down the world was still only found in the pages of a sci fi novel. As such, the sculpture has taken on a greater meaning than I could have ever imagined, a symbol of re-emergence and the power of community, with tactile clay workshops providing space for people to relax and socialise again.”

The blue poppy, known as Meconopsis, is very rare but due to the microclimate of the park it manages to grow there. The park also houses the North’s largest collection of rhododendrons, azaleas and magnolias.

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Will Roberts, owner of the Himalayan Garden & Sculpture Park said:

“We are more than excited to be seeing this project come to fruition after a two-year delay due to covid. Anna has done the most amazing job designing, creating and coordinating this large installation and we want to say a huge thank you to all those who contributed to deliver such an incredible piece of art.”

The park reopens next Tuesday, April 12, until October 30.

Farm animals and bunny hunts play a part in tomorrow’s first Knaresborough Spring Fayre

Knaresborough’s Market Place is set to host a new event tomorrow of family activities, food and drink and even farm animals.

The Knaresborough Spring Fayre, organised by Knaresborough Business Collective, is being held from 10am until 4pm tomorrow.

There’ll be fairground rides, a mobile petting farm, the chance to meet the Easter bunny and foam clay and flower crown making workshops.

There is also live entertainment throughout the day with the Meadowside School Choir and All Together Now choir, an easter parade at 12pm, a live dance performance from Studio 3 and music from Albert Stott.

Local businesses will also be holding stalls for visitors to buy from and there will be food and drink vendors too.

Organisers Natalie Horner and Annie Wilkinson-Gill said:

“We are super excited as it looks to be a very busy and amazing day, we have things happening all day long and so much love and effort has been put into it, right down to the smallest details.

“We have involved as many local businesses as possible as that’s what this is all about, bringing people to town not taking trade away from shops.”

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People can arrive throughout the day and entry is free. Activities like the fairground rides, easter bunny grotto and face painting are one token per child which can be bought for £3 each.

This is the first event organised by Knaresborough Business Collective. The not-for-profit venture launched in January to stage events and be a voice for businesses. About 30 businesses have signed up so far as subscribers.

Harrogate Theatre scaffolding to come down from this weekend

The scaffolding that has covered one of Harrogate’s most-loved historical landmarks for almost a year will be coming down from this weekend.

Harrogate Theatre was in need of a huge, £1 million restoration on its roof. The works were initially meant to be completed last September but covid delays and bad weather meant they were only finished last month.

As a council-owned building, the project has been run in conjunction with Harrogate Borough Council and Harrogate Theatre Trust.

Now that additional works to the building on Oxford Street have been completed, Harrogate Borough Council has confirmed the scaffolding will be dismantled from this weekend.

The scaffolding on Oxford Street will come down first with the rest on Cheltenham Parade coming down towards the end of the month.

A council spokesperson said:

“Like any heritage building of this age, the investment project at Harrogate Theatre has been complex and faced a number of challenges. Not least, material and labour shortages – impacted by Covid-19 and isolation requirements – as well as the numerous storms in the last few months.

“During the removal of the scaffolding, final work will take place to re-point brickwork, re-glaze the canopy above the front entrance, along with decoration to the windows and the shop frontages.”

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The renovations haven’t been without their challenges, during stormy weather in November and February the theatre had to close and cancel performances. In November, the theatre had to cancel a full weekend of its pantomime performances due to a leak and again in February, the final performance of Kinky Boots was cancelled after a second leak.

There was also an incident in January where three young teens scaled the roof and caused £800 damage.

Despite all the ongoing works the theatre has continued to stage multiple productions including its annual pantomime.

It is not clear if the delays have caused the £1 million restoration fee to increase.

Property developer Adam Thorpe pleads not guilty to drink-driving

Harrogate property developer Adam Thorpe has pleaded not guilty to driving at almost twice the legal limit for alcohol.

Mr Thorpe, of Ingerthorpe Hall, Markington, was stopped by police in November 2021 on the B6265 near Risplith Hill.

He was charged with having 66 micrograms of alcohol per 100 ml of breath. The legal limit is 35 micrograms.

Mr Thorpe attended Harrogate Magistrates Court today and pleaded not guilty.

Charlotte Dangerfield, prosecuting, said if the case were adjourned the prosecution would call two witnesses, including a forensic toxicologist.

The chair of the magistrates agreed to adjourn the trial until September 26. It will be heard at Harrogate Magistrates Court.

Mr Thorpe received unconditional bail.

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Harrogate Borough Council announced in 2017 that Mr Thorpe had bought its former offices at Crescent Gardens for £6.31 million.

But the deal never went through and the site was eventually sold to Impala Estates.

Harrogate estate agents take on Yorkshire Three Peaks

Harrogate estate agents take on Yorkshire Three Peaks for charity 

Harrogate estate agents, Feather Smailes Scales (FSS) are hoping to raise more money for Maggie’s Centres by climbing the Yorkshire Three Peaks.

The team at FSS said they wanted to support a charity that helps those undergoing treatment.

Maggie’s Centres builds centres next to NHS hospitals to offer professional support for anything from treatment side effects to money worries.

The FSS team will take on the 24-mile hiking challenge tomorrow.

Partner and auctioneer Richard Smailes said:

“Last November, I was incredibly touched by the enthusiasm of those supporting the charity. Those who were affected by cancer planned to carry out incredible tasks to raise money for a cause that supports those suffering take back control when cancer turns their life upside down.”

To donate click here.

Networking event for SMEs at Harrogate Convention Centre this month

Harrogate Borough Council and SME Growth Managers have organised an event for Harrogate district businesses to share ideas and solve problems.

The event, on April 21, is aimed at local SMEs, small to middle-sized businesses.

‘Five tips to sales and marketing effectiveness in challenging times’ will hear from numerous business owners about the impact of marketing.

The event lasts 90 minutes and is free to attend. It will highlight funding opportunities and give business owners the chance to meet with similar, like-minded businesses.

The event begins at 9.30am at Co-Lab Harrogate, through entrance three at the convention centre.

Harrogate Convention Centre

 

MP Andrew Jones ‘disappointed’ at funding snub for £116m bid to boost bus services

Harrogate and Knaresborough MP Andrew Jones has added his voice to the widespread disappointment that the area has not been awarded any money from the government’s Bus Back Better scheme.

After the announcement on Monday, Mr Jones said he was particularly concerned about a government suggestion that North Yorkshire County Council’s £116 million bid had failed because it did not show “sufficient ambition”.

He said:

“I am disappointed that we weren’t successful in getting this funding.”

“We need to look at the bid that was submitted and the Department for Transport’s analysis of that bid to see why they felt that was the case.

“We might disagree with them or we might find there are things we can learn for next time.”

It had been hoped the £116 million would have funded new bus lanes, more affordable fares, real-time passenger information and a simpler ticketing system for services across North Yorkshire.

Despite the disappointment, Mr Jones said he was pleased that a separate bid to bring 39 new zero-emission buses to Harrogate was successful and that a park and ride pilot scheme for the town was still a possibility.

Speaking about the park and ride plans, Mr Jones said:

“If people use it, it has the potential to get more traffic off our roads and improve our environment.

“And we shouldn’t forget that we have been very successful in securing cash for public transport investment – particularly buses – in our area.

“We won £7.8 million from the government’s Zero Emissions Bus Regional Areas scheme to create an entirely electric bus fleet for our area last month.

“In 2016 we won over £200,000 to install clean bus technology in our local fleet.  We also won cash from the government to start the journey to being a zero emission bus town.

“So we must temper our disappointment with pride in how far we have come and re-double our efforts to bring back axed services on our rail line and getting even more cash into our local bus services.”

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The £7.8 million was awarded in March after a joint bid from North Yorkshire County Council and Harrogate Bus Company to make the firm’s fleet all-electric was successful.

This project will cost almost £20 million in total, with more than £12 million being invested by Transdev – the parent firm of Harrogate Bus Company.

A total of 20 single-decker and 19 double-decker buses will be bought over the next three years, as well as the supporting charging infrastructure.

Alex Hornby, chief executive of Transdev, said this project should be seen as a positive and that he believes passenger numbers will continue to grow in Harrogate – even without more government funding.”

“Obviously on behalf of our customers, we are disappointed to see that the proposed improvements for bus travel by North Yorkshire County Council were not approved by the central government.

“However, we remain confident that we will be able to grow demand for bus travel thanks to the funding support from the Department for Transport in a new electric bus fleet in Harrogate which will result in a fully zero-emission network in our town and convert our base in Starbeck to a 100% electric bus depot.”

Mr Hornby added:

“We will continue working closely with North Yorkshire County Council to see how else we can introduce any of the original Bus Back Better proposals, including a pilot park and ride site at Pannal on our class-leading 36 route.”

Death of Harrogate man, 45, was due to drugs, inquest hears

The death of a 45-year-old man at a Harrogate hostel was due to “multi-drug toxicity”, an inquest heard today.

The inquest into the death of Stephen Paul Cattanach on October 26, 2020 was heard at Northallerton Coroners Court this afternoon.

At the time of his death, Mr Cattanach was living in temporary accommodation provided by Harrogate Borough Council at Cavendish House on Robert Street.

The inquest heard the 45-year-old was found in his room by a member of staff on the afternoon of October 26.

Dr Joy Shacklock, of the Spa Surgery in Harrogate, told the inquest Mr Cattanach had a “complex history of drug and alcohol addiction and mental health issues”.

Dr Shacklock added her patient had suffered a number of overdoses, most recently twice in July 2020. She said Mr Cattanach insisted neither was intentional.

A toxicology report performed after his death, found high levels of drugs, including morphine and heroin, in his blood.

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He had previously been helped by North Yorkshire Horizons, an adult drug and alcohol recovery service. Mr Cattanach reached out for support from Horizons five days before his death and had a follow-up appointment booked for October 27, the day after he died.

Coroner Jon Heath agreed with the post-mortem assessment and concluded that his death was drug related. He said:

“I am satisfied that the cause of death was multi-drug toxicity, this alongside the police evidence which found no suspicious circumstances or suicidal indications suggests he did not intend to take his own life.

“I am able to conclude that on the balance of probability his death was drug related.”

Ripon estate agent wins gold property award

Ripon estate agent wins gold award for the city 

Ripon-based estate agent, Davis & Lund, has won the British Property Award for Ripon.

The agency will now be shortlisted for a number of national awards set to be announced later this year.

This award focused on customer service levels which the British Property Awards judges found to be “outstanding” at Davis & Lund.

Paul Lund, director, said:

“I am delighted and exceptionally proud of my team for all their hard work helping us win this award. Not only are we market leading agents in Ripon, we have now been recognised with this award.”

Chris Davis, co-director added:

“We have also just found out this week that we have won that same award for our new branch in Thirsk, which just goes to show customer service is at the heart of everything we do.”

Chris Davis

Harrogate mobile app business targets growth after a difficult two years

Harrogate-based mobile app business, Mobile Tornado, has said that after an unpredictable two years is it is now focused on growth.

The listed company reported total revenue of £2.59m for the year ended 31 December 2021, up from £2.53m in 2020. Its pre-tax losses also reduced to £861,000 from £1.39m.

Jeremy Fenn, chairman of Mobile Tornado, said:

“It has been an extremely difficult two years for the business. The principal markets we operate in have been badly hit by the pandemic, dramatically constraining our business development activities.

“We have managed to maintain our revenue levels through this period, and executed significant improvements to our operational efficiency, such that we have reduced our operating expense from £3.16m in 2019 to £2.53m in 2021. This has allowed the business to trade through the period with modest losses, funded by a small working capital facility provided by our principal shareholder, and no further recourse to shareholders.”

Mr Fenn added that business had been “promising” in the first quarter of 2022.