Harrogate builder James Moss in court

A judge has adjourned a civil claim against Harrogate builder James Moss, after he told the court he was self-isolating.

Karen Macgillvray-Fallis says she paid Mr Moss over £30,000 to convert a garage in Burton Leonard into a living space for her mother-in-law, but she was not happy with the quality of the work.

Ms Macgillvray-Fallis is claiming £9,996 through the small claims court, which is close to the maximum threshold of £10,000.

At Harrogate Justice Centre, Judge Ross attempted to proceed with the case against Mr Moss via a hybrid hearing, which would involve him defending himself via telephone.

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Ms Macgillvray-Fallis is suing James Moss, trading as Yorkshire Outdoor Design, but Mr Moss told the judge he was only an employee of the company, whose sole director was his wife, Paula Moss.

He also claimed that building control signed the work off, which Ms Macgillvray-Fallis disputed.

However, as proceedings continued Mr Moss repeatedly told the judge that the telephone line was poor and he was unable to hear what was going on in the court, which forced Judge Ross to adjourn the case until January.

Andrew Jones MP calls for HS2 work to start in Yorkshire

Andrew Jones MP asked Prime Minister Boris Johnson today if the government would consider starting construction of the Birmingham to Leeds section of HS2 in Yorkshire.

Mr Jones, the Conservative MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough, said starting work on the high speed rail link in the north would be “good for jobs, connectivity to the Midlands and help drive up the levelling up agenda”.

Speaking at Prime Minister’s Questions today, Mr Jones began by hailing the 60th anniversary of TV soap Coronation Street, calling it “an amazing landmark, so congratulations to it”.

He then added that infrastructure promises for the north had gone on for “just as long”.

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Mr Johnson praised Mr Jones, a former rail minister, as a “big expert in this field and a great campaigner for transport”.

However, he stopped short of agreeing to his request. He said:

“I’ve asked the National Infrastructure Commission and Network Rail to look at how the eastern leg of HS2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail can boost the economy for the north.”

Construction work for phase 1 of the high speed rail link, from London to Birmingham, began in September.

Work on the 198 kilometre second leg from Birmingham to Leeds has yet to begin. It is estimated to be completed between 2035 and 2040.

Plans for the Birmingham to Leeds section have been paused while the government draws up an integrated rail plan for the north and Midlands. The plan was expected before the end of 2020.

This pause raised questions about the future of the route, with former Labour transport minister Andrew Adonis tweeting in October that the eastern leg will “probably not now go ahead”.

 

Thousands of new trees could be planted in Harrogate

Thousands of new trees could be planted in the Harrogate district after the government earmarked £3.7m for the new White Rose Forest.

The White Rose Forest is one of 10 community forests being created in England. It will span north and west Yorkshire.

The funding will enable 218 hectares of trees to be planted — but specific details on how much of the new tree coverage will fall within our district are yet to be announced.

The White Rose Forest will consist of pockets of woodland rather than huge expanses and is part of the government’s commitment to increase UK tree planting to 30,000 hectares a year by 2025.

A Harrogate Borough Council report in September identified 17.2 acres of council-owned land that could potentially be used to plant trees for the White Rose Forest.

It consisted of 14 hectares of land on either side of the Bilton to Ripley cycleway and 3.2 hectares of land next to Conyngham Hall in Knaresborough.

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The average woodland cover in Europe is about 36%. In the UK the average is 12%. In the Harrogate district and the Yorkshire Dales the figure is 8%.

Landowners within the White Rose Forest area have been invited to apply for grants, incentives and support to create woodlands on their land.

The first White Rose Forest trees were planted in the Harrogate district last year in Nidderdale by the Rotary Club of Harrogate, Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and Ashville College.

£9.8m upgrade of Knaresborough to Poppleton rail route complete

Network Rail has completed a £9.8m upgrade of the Knaresborough to Poppleton route, which could increase the number of trains between Harrogate and York.

The works have improved the signalling system and changed the track layout at Cattal station, which will allow two trains to enter the station at the same time.

Work has also taken place to install new safety measures at some level crossings on the route.

£9.6m was secured by York & North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership from the government’s Local Growth Fund.

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Harrogate and Knaresborough MP Andrew Jones, who is a former rail minister, called the works a “huge step forward” for trains in the district.

“The importance of this is that it removes a bottleneck to future increases in capacity on the line. This means that the ability to increase services to and from York now exists whereas previously the infrastructure constrained that. It is another huge step forward for our local rail line.

“In recent years we’ve seen more services and faster services on the York-Harrogate-Leeds line. We have seen signalling upgrades and the new Azuma services to and from London coming to Harrogate.  We have also seen the back of the old, leaky pacer trains.”

North Yorkshire County Councillor Don Mackenzie, executive member for access, said the project would enable “an increased, quicker and more reliable service in the future”. He added:

“The line now benefits from more modern technology and Network Rail have increased safety at a number of level crossings and reduced congestion at Harrogate railway station.”

Stalemate continues over Harrogate Spring Water’s tree-felling plans

Harrogate Spring Water and local voluntary groups have failed to reach agreement on where to plant trees to replace ones that would be lost as part of the company’s plans to expand in the Pinewoods.

Trees in the area of Pinewoods known as Rotary Wood, which were planted by families in 2015, would be felled as part of Danone’s plans to expand its bottling plant.

The plans are controversial, and the groups are putting pressure on Danone to ensure the loss of trees and biodiversity will be compensated for.

The groups have met representatives from the company’s owner, Danone, twice over the last month. Further meetings are planned for late December and early January.

The groups include Harrogate Civic Society, Harrogate and District Green Party, Pinewoods Conservation Group, Zero Carbon Harrogate, the Rotary Club of Harrogate and Duchy Residents’ Association.

A spokesperson for Pinewoods Conservation Group said Danone’s current proposals to re-plant trees close to the site were not satisfactory as the area is not currently open to the public.

The spokesperson said:

“It is felt the current plan does not take account of the full ecological loss and this area would not be open to the public. As such it does not account for the loss of public space and amenity either.

“The working group has therefore suggested a few alternative suggestions that the consultants have agreed to investigate further.

“Should planning be agreed there will still be a need for public consultation on the loss of public land and the disposal of an asset of community value.”

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Danone’s plans were originally due to be considered by Harrogate Borough Council’s planning committee in December but were delayed to allow for more talks between the company and the public.

The committee is now due to discuss the proposal on January 26 and the Pinewoods Conservation Group spokesperson said there was still time for an acceptable solution for all parties to be found.

Nicky Cain, brand manager at Harrogate Spring Water, told the Stray Ferret last month the company hoped to find a solution that will satisfy all parties.

She said:

“The delay gives us longer to consult with local stakeholders and discuss the issues around landscaping.”

‘We couldn’t afford to buy a home in Knaresborough’

In previous generations, getting on the housing ladder for a young couple with steady incomes was a given.

But in today’s housing crisis, it’s a pipe dream for too many people, particularly in high-value areas like Knaresborough and Harrogate.

Married Knaresborough couple Steph Getao, 32 and Scott Gibson 35, spent three years looking for their perfect property in Knaresborough and Harrogate — but failed to find one within their budget.

It forced them to look further afield and they recently purchased a two-bedroom house with a conservatory and garden in Allerton Bywater, a village south-east of Leeds.

At £175,000, Steph said the home was much cheaper than similar properties locally.

Scott works for an electrical manufacturer in Boroughbridge and Steph works in an office in Harrogate. Steph told the Stray Ferret it was “upsetting” that they couldn’t buy a home closer to Scott’s hometown.

She said:

“We both love it here. He has his childhood friends here. It was so depressing. It was either get what you can in Knaresborough or Harrogate or have a choice and look further afield.”

According to property website Rightmove, the average property price in Knaresborough last year was £320,000

In new housing developments, Harrogate Borough Council demands that 40% of all homes are classed as “affordable”.

The government defines affordable as homes sold at a discounted rate, homes for social rent, or through shared ownership schemes.

Steph dismissed shared ownership schemes as a “different face of renting” and questioned how “affordable” these homes really are.

“An affordable home was £200,000 plus. I don’t understand what they mean by affordable. You can’t put that amount of money down and call it affordable.”

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Steph is a director of Knaresborough Community Land Trust, a not-for-profit organisation that is hoping to develop a disused area in the town centre into three flats as affordable housing.

Such initiatives provide small scale solutions. But for Knaresborough to flourish, Steph says the town needs young people to stay and put down roots.

She added:

“Without young people, Knaresborough will get more and more sleepy. The high street is basically all old dear shops! Knaresborough needs its young.

“Scott’s parents and aunts all have houses locally, then you go to the next generation and we’ve all moved out of Knaresborough [due to house prices].

“You’ve got to do what’s best for your pocket, so we went Allerton Bywater. I wish we had more local people being able to purchase within Knaresborough. If we had an influx of young people, we’d see a change in the high street immediately.”

Vaccine prompts surge in bookings for Harrogate travel agent

A Harrogate travel agent has reported a surge in bookings since news of coronavirus vaccines broke, and says there is “light at the end of the tunnel” for the stricken industry.

Holidays have been cancelled and dream itineraries to far-flung destinations dismantled due to the pandemic.

The continued uncertainty over travel corridors and which countries people can and can’t visit has prompted many to curb their wanderlust and stay in the UK.

Melanie O’Boyle, owner of TravelGate, on Albert Street in Harrogate said it had been been a “very challenging” year but there were finally signs of an improvement.

“It’s been a very dark tunnel for the industry but we’re starting to see some light ahead. It’s been a minefield constantly reassessing where people can go.”

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Melanie and her husband Phil have run their business in Harrogate for five years. The majority of the holidays they sell are long haul to countries such as Canada, the United States and Australia — and she said the vaccine has given travellers some confidence to start making plans for 2021.

“The vaccine news has given people that reassurance and the appetite is starting to come back. People are thinking ‘I can do this’.”

Melanie has a couple of recommendations for travellers looking to get away from the surgical masks, hand sanitisers and tiers that have dominated UK life in 2020:

“At the moment restrictions have been lifted in Dubai and Maldives. The hotels are geared up for tourists there. Villas are also popular as you have that private space and you’re not impacted by people around you or on top of you.”

 

Harrogate sees biggest increase in new homes in 20 years

There was a net increase of 975 homes in Harrogate during 2019/20, the biggest increase in at least 20 years.

The latest figures were published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and show a sharp rise in new housing compared with previous years.

The figures go back to 2001/2 and cover new builds, conversions, changes of use, and demolitions.

in 2018/19 there was an increase of 682 and in 2017/18 it was 611 — but in the ten years prior the average figure was 291 homes a year.

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The figures show the impact of Harrogate’s Local Plan, finally adopted earlier this year after over a decade of wrangling. The plan calls for  637 homes to be built in the district every year until 2035.

Last week, the Stray Ferret published a major investigation that explored the impact of the Local Plan on the people living in Harrogate, Knaresborough and Ripon.

According to the Harrogate Borough Council Housing Strategy 2019-2024, Harrogate is the least affordable area in the north of England.

Spiralling house prices have affected people like Megan McHugh, 24, who has lived in Harrogate all her life. She told the Stray Ferret it’s “heartbreaking” that she cannot afford to buy a house in her hometown. 

She said:

“If you’re like me and you want to buy your own home in Harrogate, you’ve got absolutely no chance. I feel stuck.”

 

 

County council plays down Brexit food stockpiling fears

North Yorkshire County Council has played down fears that food is being stockpiled at schools and care homes to prepare for the end of the Brexit transition period.

The UK’s transition period to leave the EU will end on December 31. Many companies and public bodies are having to make plans, with transport firms expecting queues at the border.

Stella Perrott, a member of the campaign group North Yorkshire for Europe, sent a Freedom of Information request to North Yorkshire County Council, asking what preparations it was undertaking as the December 31 deadline approached.

NYCC released a Brexit risk assessment, published in September, which states that “there is significant risk of delays at ports that will impact supply chains” and that the authority is evaluating capacity for frozen food storage.

As the council has responsibility for education and public health in the Harrogate district, Ms Perrot suggested the council’s response meant it could be stockpiling food at schools and care homes.

The Stray Ferret asked the county council to update us on its plans for Brexit. In a statement, NYCC said it is “managing any adverse impact” that may arise from Brexit, but said this did not involve stockpiling food.

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Shaun Mancrief, head of traded service at NYCC said:

“These frozen food supplies are the regular supplies to our school catering service and elderly persons’ homes. This includes vegetables, bread, ice cream and fish. These products are sourced locally as far as possible, including all vegetables.

“Our aim is simply to manage any adverse impact that may arise from Brexit so that we can continue the regular service of providing meals to schools and elderly persons’ homes.

“We are working closely with our suppliers on this. At this stage, there are no issues with supply or storage of frozen food. Under normal circumstances, our suppliers hold high levels of stock as this allows them to manage pricing to give us the best possible value.

“We are not stockpiling food for our services, simply ensuring that business as usual can be maintained.”

Harrogate district charities receive £200,000 boost

Local charities received a £200,000 boost last night from Harrogate Borough Council.

The council agreed to make a one-off payment for the sum to the Local Fund for the Harrogate District, which was set up in 2018 to encourage long-term, sustainable income for voluntary organisations.

The council currently allocates £30,000 a year to the fund, which it set up in collaboration with Harrogate and District Community Action and Two Ridings Community Foundation.

But at last night’s cabinet meeting, the council agreed to give a one-off lump sum of £200,000, which will be placed into an endowment.

This will replace its £30,000 annual contribution.

Interest from the endowment, along with private donations and contributions from the Local Lotto and dormant trust funds, will be awarded to charities.

The Local Fund’s latest funding round allowed not-for-profit organisations to apply for grants of up to £5,000.

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The council’s £200,000 will be used to attract match funding, with council leader Richard Cooper suggesting this could potentially double its value.

In 2018/19, the Local Fund distributed £70,000 to 23 different projects.

At last night’s meeting, council leader Richard Cooper called the fund a “brilliant initiative”.

He said:

“This is an opportunity to establish a permanent fund for good causes in the Harrogate district.

“We expect to double our money from match funding, so our investment could potentially grow to be £400,000.”