This Easter Sunday message is written by John Dobson, the Dean of Ripon Cathedral. 

Happy Easter!   It seems odd to be wishing people a happy Easter this year, when social isolation leads to us all keeping apart from each other. It seems odd not to have the cathedral packed with joyful worshippers.  But all of this makes the message of Easter so much more important.

Many of us have been taking part in the great national cheer and applause on Thursday evenings. It’s good to see the country so united. This is a sincere, heart-felt expression of gratitude for essential workers. These include those in the forefront of the fight against the Covid-19 virus – NHS staff and other care workers; and others providing vital services – in supermarkets, food production and distribution, running schools, emptying bins… and so on. Some of these are certainly risking their own wellbeing in their self-sacrificing service of others.

We probably all cheered to ourselves when hearing that the Prime Minster was out of intensive care; as when we hear of friends and family recovering from coronavirus symptoms. Life is seen to be conquering that which threatens it.

Both these themes: self-sacrificing service, and life conquering those forces that would threaten it, go deep to the heart of what we celebrate this weekend.

Good Friday each year reminds us of the ultimate act of self-sacrificing service. Jesus gave himself totally for our sake. At a moment in history he showed that God does this all the time because of his love for us.  I believe it is this divine love we see doing its work through all those people we cheer on Thursday evenings.

Yes, this is a strange Easter. But Easter should always be strange. Who expects the dead to rise? Some disciples simply couldn’t accept it – do you remember doubting Thomas? Yet we believe the resurrection to be possible because God’s life-creating, life-sustaining love can be conquered by nothing, certainly not human frailty and death. So, life does conquer death.

In every situation in life, joyful and tragic, God’s love remains steadfast – on earth and in heaven. This is the good news that, if we accept it, can transform life and give us hope and courage in the face of all suffering and death. We do right to wish each other a happy, if strange, Easter.

An Easter Prayer:

Risen Lord, on this strange yet joyful Easter Day, help us to see that you have conquered human failings, put death to flight, and have assured us that we remain in your love on earth and in heaven.

In these challenging times:

banish our fears;

strengthen all working courageously in the NHS and other care providers;

uphold all working tirelessly in supermarkets and many other organisations to serve our needs;

and give hope to every situation as we celebrate again your resurrection from the dead.

For your name’s sake. Amen.

Read: This morning Ripon Cathedral will make history when its Easter Day service is streamed live on YouTube, as the building remains closed to the public because of restrictions caused by the coronavirus crisis.

The national charity which operates Berwick Grange in Harrogate has confirmed that a number of its residents  have died of suspected coronavirus at the home but said without testing it cannot be certain.

MHA which was founded by the Methodist Church, operates Berwick Grange and is the largest UK provider of care with 133 homes. Berwick Grange has 52 residents and is a specialist dementia care unit.

The company said residents have died of suspected coronavirus at a number of its homes- Berwick Grange had seen cases but was not one of the worst affected. It said it could not confirm specific numbers at individual homes as residents aren’t being tested. Some had existing illnesses or had been on end of life care.

In a statement MHA said

A small number of our homes have already been badly affected, although the extent to which these losses can be attributed to Covid-19 is debatable as our residents are not being tested. Without that testing, we may never know the true extent of outbreaks in our homes.

Our residents are a second family and this will take its toll on our teams as they sadly lose people they have cared for, in some cases for a number of years. We will make sure we care for our colleagues as well as our residents throughout all of this and would urge you to support us and our colleagues at this difficult time

MHA said it has set up a Critical Incident Management system – convening daily bronze, silver and gold command meetings that are modelled on emergency service disaster responses to manage the rapidly changing nature of the emergency. It has highlighted a serious shortage of PPE (personal protective equipment) to protect its residents and staff- saying its weekly allocation of 300 face masks for a home of 70 residents can be used in a single day.

We convene three daily meetings taking rapid decisions to re-allocate PPE stock across regions, staff cover and analyse the spread of the virus across our services taking immediate appropriate action; this includes suspected, confirmed and recovered cases.

The company has put out a plea to schools, colleges and factories to consider donating any supplies that are not currently needed.

The latest figures show that 3 more patients who tested positive to covid-19 have died at Harrogate Hospital. The deaths were recorded on Wednesday April 8th.

The number of deaths recorded since yesterdays figures in England is 866 – 99 of those are from the North East and Yorkshire.

NHS England said the patients who died were aged between 27 and 100 years old.  56 of the 866 patients (aged between 40 and 93 years old) had no known underlying health condition.

There are no published statistics for the number of patients who test positive for coronavirus are admitted to Harrogate District Hospital who then recover and are discharged.

19 Harrogate Churches have organised a continuous, uninhttps://thestrayferret.co.uk/harrogate-church…r-easter-weekend/terrupted prayer over the Easter weekend for those affected by coronavirus.

Pray for The Peak is part of a wider global movement for virtual 24/7 prayer.  The Harrogate Hub, which works to coordinate projects across the town’s churches, has organised a prayer which aims to last 72 hours.

Colin Ashurst from the Harrogate Hub said:

“We have been aware of the 24/7 movement and we felt with the Nightingale hospital coming here and the risk of there being real grief in Harrogate and for people self-isolating at home, this was something churches could do, to spend time in prayer. The movement has given us advice and guidance on how to do this virtually.”

A 24/7 prayer room in normal times

There is a calendar people can sign up to individually to pray for an hour or more – last night every slot was filled. Mr Ashurst said:

“We’ve had a good response as we only got the word out yesterday. We’re doing ok- we got through last night and we’ve still got people coming in. It’s looking good for tonight but after that there are some gaps and we’d encourage people to get involved.. I’m signed up for the midnight and one o’clock slots tonight.”

For those interested in being involved, you can register at http://theharrogatehub.org/24-7/.

Blue lights will be switched on tonight at 8pm at the Harrogate Nightingale Hospital as part of a special Clap for Carers to mark its construction.

Harrogate Convention Centre and the NHS Nightingale Hospital Yorkshire and Humber want to encourage residents nearby to ‘Clap for Carers’ or to bang pots, cheer and generally make a noise. Emergency services, construction workers and NHS teams will also be invited to join the applause at the centre itself.

The lighting is part of a national movement to light theatres, bridges and cathedrals, castles, sports stadiums, and national landmarks for the #lightitblue campaign.

Around 20 blue lights have been lent to the HCC by AV Matrix from Wetherby and Yorkshire Lighting and Electrical Services which is based in Harrogate installed them around the front of the building.  Glen Molloy, the owner of Yorkshire Lighting and Electrical Services, said:

“Normally it would take about 2 weeks to get it organised but on this occasion we turned it around in a matter or hours.

Lights For Fun also based in Harrogate have donated blue fairy lights for the 12 trees that line the Kings Road beside the centre. Jo Naughton Co-Founder of Lights for Fun told The Stray Ferret:

“The whole centre will be illuminated blue. The idea is that we are all behind the NHS and that Harrogate is in full support of having a Nightingale hospital here in our town. We just wanted to show appreciation for what the NHS does for us and it feels good to help.”

Paula Lorimer, the HCC’s Director said:

“All who have worked on the project, including Convention Centre staff from caterers to electricians, have put their heart, soul, sweat and tears into the transformation, working around the clock to support the NHS. I am incredibly proud of my team, and I hope all the town will want to show their thanks tonight.”

NOTE: Residents in or near Kings Road are asked to please not leave gardens, balconies, doorsteps etc. or congregate in any way outside of the venue. Residents across Harrogate are also asked to not congregate in any way at the venue, and to stay in their homes and comply with government guidelines on social isolating.

St Michael’s Chief Executive has welcomed the announcement by Chancellor Rishi Sunak that a £750m fund had been set aside to help charities during the coronavirus crisis. Many charities in the Harrogate district have seen huge falls in revenue with their shops shut and fundraising activities postponed. 

The chancellor earmarked £360m of the money to charities “that were on the frontline of fighting the coronavirus”, such as the hospice.

St Michael’s needs £6m a year to run the hospice which cares for people living with terminal illness and its bereavement service- it traditionally gets little government money and is reliant on donations, shop revenue and fundraising activity to operate.

St Michael’s Chief Executive, Tony Collins

Saint Michael’s Hospice Chief Executive Tony Collins said:

“We welcome this investment in the hospice movement. It is exactly what we need to be able to continue to care for people affected by terminal illness and bereavement and support our community with their emotional wellbeing.

“This includes keeping as many of our traditional services running as possible so we can help release pressure from the NHS.”

As well as keeping its traditional services running to alleviate pressure on the NHS, the hospice’s bereavement service Just B, has a new helpline for those feeling anxious or struggling with their emotional wellbeing during this crisis. Hear to Help is available to everyone between 8am-8pm, seven days a week, and is staffed by specialist support workers. The number to ring is (01423) 856 799.

The hospice is also supporting the national NHS mental health hotline for staff. The phone number is 0300 131 7000 or staff can text FRONTLINE to 85258. Lines are open from 07:00 to 23:00 every day,

The number of coronavirus-related deaths at Harrogate District Hospital has risen to 16 in the latest figures released by the NHS.

No deaths were reported yesterday, but the number confirmed for Monday rose from one to three.

In the figures released today by NHS England, the number of deaths reported across the UK is 828, bringing the total to of hospital deaths of patients with coronavirus to 6,483.

Of those reported today, the youngest was 22 and the eldest 103. While most had underlying health conditions, 46 patients did not, and the youngest of these was 35 years old.

Figures for the number of patients who have been treated in hospital and discharged are not currently available.

Meanwhile, the Nightingale hospital being created at Harrogate Convention Centre is expected to be complete by this weekend.

Messages of support are being sent from the Harrogate district to Boris Johnson tonight as the Prime Minister has been moved to intensive care. The decision to move Mr Johnson to intensive care was taken by medical staff at  St Thomas’ Hospital in London after his symptoms for coronavirus worsened.

John Dobson, the Dean of Ripon has tweeted that the Cathedral is praying for the Prime Minister and the government at this most difficult time:

Very sorry to hear of the PM going into intensive care. Prayers @riponcathedral for his speedy recovery, and for those sharing the burden of government in this time of crisis. @LeedsCofE

— John Dobson (@RiponDean) April 6, 2020

And this from Conservative MP for Skipton and Ripon:

All thoughts and prayers for a quick recovery for @BorisJohnson & to his medical team. @GSTTnhs is a very special place with the best possible care

— Julian Smith MP (@JulianSmithUK) April 6, 2020

Figures released today show that two more patients at Harrogate District Hospital, who tested positive for virus have died– one on Friday and one on Saturday.

It brings the total number of people who’ve died of coronavirus at the hospital to 10.

103 out of the 555 latest deaths reported today were in Yorkshire and the North East .

The total number of confirmed reported deaths in hospitals in England has risen to 4,494.

An NHS statement said those who’d died were aged between 33 years and 103 years old.

29 of the 555 patients (aged between 35 and 95 years old) had no known underlying health condition.

David Waddington, Land and New Homes Director for Linley and Simpson, gives his views on the impact of coronavirus on the Harrogate district property market:

Estate agents are reporting difficult trading conditions as a result of the near lockdown situation, but is our North Yorkshire bubble more insulated than most?

Our local agents are experiencing tough times again, Brexit was a three year turn off for both sellers and buyers culminating in a general election in December 19 followed by the Boris Bounce which lasted for a total of four weeks. This was short lived and when things couldn’t get much worse Coronavirus came hurtling over the hills in early March.

It is clear to see that the property market and associated industries have not had an easy ride for at least three years, but what will be the real outcome be when this current disaster has returned back over the hills?

The positives are that inflation is low, as is the cost of borrowing but job security is by far the most concerning aspect. Many employees are currently furloughed, a word that most had to look up on Google to understand, and will they have a job to return to? This will inevitably have an effect on the market, we can only hope that the lenders will be understanding. Once the virus is a  memory, hopefully home ownership will return with gusto, particularly in the new homes sector where the Government’s Help to Buy scheme will be available in its current format for the next 11 months giving buyers a 20% helping hand.

The supply of larger homes, particularly within the Harrogate area is at an all-time low with a mere 150 homes for sale over £750,000, therefore the choice is limited. Owners of larger homes have deferred marketing their properties for many years and it is hoped that the choice will become wider once this current catastrophe is out of the way. The up-sizers from the leafy semi’s will have an aspirational target to aim at, something that has been lacking for a few years.

The burning question is, will values be adversely affected once COVID-19 is a memory? We still don’t know how long this situation will last but once the dust has settled and confidence has returned, the factors look good for our “bubble” and hopefully we will see little lasting damage. North Yorkshire is special with many unique properties and locations, it can’t be replicated, it can’t be beaten. It will still remain what it was, with its people returning to its local iconic landmarks perhaps affording them a greater appreciation than before.

This column has been written by Mr Waddington for The Stray Ferret