Thomas Barrett, Author at The Stray Ferret

County council asks public to help win £1m cycling bid

North Yorkshire County Council is asking the public to help them win £1m of funding from the government to improve walking and cycling in the Harrogate district.

On NYCC’s website, people have until Friday to mark on a map where they think improvements could be made.

The authority is hoping to win a bid of up to £1,065,000 from the Department for Transport’s Emergency Active Travel Fund. The money will be spent on longer-term projects to “help deliver significant health, environmental and congestion benefits”.

In the first round of funding, the council was allocated £133,000 – half of what it was hoping for.

That money was to help councils put in place short-term solutions such as widening footpaths or the temporary closure of roads. The council said it would make up the other half of funding through its reserves.

Harrogate District Cycling Action told The Stray Ferret at the time that North Yorkshire’s plans “weren’t ambitious enough”.

Speaking about the council’s second bid for funding, Cllr Don Mackenzie, executive member for access at NYCC, said:

“The new facility we have added to our website to enable anyone to put forward ideas for improvements to cycling and walking provision anywhere in the county is further evidence of our commitment to active and sustainable travel.

“It will remain on our website as a tool to enable us to consider all suggestions from the public.

“If any suitable schemes are submitted immediately, it may be possible to look at those for this tranche of funding, but it is more likely that any schemes that are shown to be practical and appropriate could be considered for future funding opportunities.”

Harrogate Town says ‘thank you’ to fans with ticket price freeze

Harrogate Town will freeze both matchday and season ticket prices next season, even if the club gets promoted to League Two.

The club said it wants to “reward loyal fans” who have been unable to watch their team play in person since March due to the lockdown.

An advanced standing matchday ticket price will remain at £16 for an adult and £12 for a concession. A standing adult season ticket will be £269 and a concession will be £189. A full price list is on the club’s website.

The English Football League and the National League are yet to announce when the 2020/2021 will begin — but last week Prime Minister Boris Johnson gave the green light for fans to return to sporting grounds from October, albeit at a reduced capacity.

Town is currently building a new stand at the CNG stadium which will increase the ground’s capacity to 5,000.

Harrogate Town will play Boreham Wood at the CNG Stadium at 2.30pm on Saturday with the winner going onto Wembley on August 2 for the chance to play in League Two next season. The game will be shown live on BT Sport.

The Stray Ferret will be reporting live from the CNG Stadium.

The winner will play the winner of Notts County vs Barnet which also takes place on Saturday.

Harrogate Town manager Simon Weaver said:

“Over the last 12 weeks club business has continued and that has involved preparations for the new campaign. Part of that work involved ticket pricing. I am really pleased that, together with the directors, we decided to freeze the prices for next season whether we are playing our football in the National League or the EFL.”

“The players and I wanted supporters to know how much we count on your following, we wanted to say thank you at this difficult time. We look forward to seeing you all at the ground in the near future.”

The announcement was welcomed by Jordan Ford of the Harrogate Town Supporters Club.

The club was criticised by fans last season for raising ticket prices after its promotion from the National League North.

Jordan told The Stray Ferret that the ticket price freeze could attract more fans to the club.

He said:

“Credit to the club in identifying the mistakes which were made last season. Hopefully this decision will drive us forwards in expanding our supporters base.

“There’s a lot of potential for new supporters in the town, and by offering an affordable ticketing policy is a great way to attract this support. It would great if those supporters will be watching us in League Two.”

Environmental campaigner quits Harrogate Climate Coalition

Environmental campaigner Malcolm Margolis has resigned from the Harrogate Climate Coalition because of a “lack of action” around climate change.

The group was formed at the beginning of this year after Harrogate Borough Council rejected calls to declare a climate emergency in 2019.

It brings together councillors as well as green groups and local businesses — with the aim of working together in the name of sustainability and helping the environment.

Mr Margolis was a member of the Coalition’s sustainable transport subgroup that was set up to look at cycling lanes and how to get people out of cars.

Mr Margolis said he wanted to group to be “not just another talking shop”.

He said:

“The Climate Coalition was set up in recognition of environmental emergency – but it doesn’t feel there’s a sense of urgency if you don’t have meetings for months.

“The environental emergency is an infinitly more serious problem than Covid-19. It’s absolutely central that we act with urgency. The scientists are telling us we need to act now.

“Cllr Haslam said he wants the group to bring about small quick wins that can make a difference at a local level – but if nothing happens for two months then you’re not going to have any quick wins.”

Speaking to the Stray Ferret, the chair of the subgroup Cllr Paul Haslam said the Climate Coalition was a “great leap forward” for the environment in the district but conceded that action hasn’t been as fast as he would have liked.

He said:

“I agree fully with Malcolm that people haven’t seen anything yet.

Cllr Haslam said after the second meeting of the group, it became clear the members wanted to be “more than just a talking shop — they wanted it to be effective”.

Cllr Haslam said he has had meetings with senior figures in North Yorkshire County Council and has presented them with “every single idea” that the Climate Coalition has come up with.

The group will meet again next week.

He added:

“I want to get us into positions so we are effective, so we don’t just generate the ideas but they get through so we can make changes quicker.”

Coach and Horses alcohol licence revoked

The Coach & Horses pub has had its licence to sell alcohol revoked after showing a “blatant disregard” for social distancing guidelines.

Harrogate Borough Council’s licensing sub-committee met today to decide the pub’s fate after HBC officers and North Yorkshire Police reported customers drinking outside the pub and not observing social distancing over the weekend of May 30.

HBC committee members heard how landlord John Nelson and customers of the pub were “aggressive and abusive” towards HBC officials and police after being served with a prohibition order on May 31.

Mr Nelson’s lawyer Paddy Whur said his client “accepted he made a chronic error of judgement”.

He said Mr Nelson suffers from bipolar disorder but had not taken his medication for 10 days which “distinctly affected” his decision-making process during the weekend.

Mr Whur suggested that the pub’s licence be suspended until Mr Nelson steps down – which was rejected by councillors.

Calling on the committee to revoke the licence, PC Jackie Allen from North Yorkshire Police said they received 44 complaints from the public about social distancing. She said it “seriously undermined licensing objectives and caused alarm and distress to the local community”.

PC Allen also questioned whether Mr Nelson was really suffering from mental health problems calling it a “smokescreen” and an “eleventh-hour attempt” to prevent punishment.

Resident Peter Whittington spoke to defend the pub. He said on Sunday May 31 he witnessed Coach and Horses customers observing social distancing. He said: “it’s a brilliant pub and we need places like that in Harrogate”.

Mr Whur said he met with Mr Nelson and his family last week which he described as being a “hugely emotional and sad” meeting.

He said his mental health condition was genuine and hoped that any decision would reflect his long-standing position in the community.

He said:

“He’s chronically embarrassed that this is in the public domain. He said he’s disappointed he’s wasted HBC’s licensing committee and the police’s time. He regrets it hugely.”

“He has been the licensee for 33 years at one of the oldest pubs in Harrogate – I hope this gives him some credibility that we won’t be assessed as putting up a smokescreen”.

“He’s suffering from a significant mental health problem and is on medication. I wouldn’t try and deceive the licensing committee on something as serious as this.”

Mr Nelson has 21 days to appeal the decision.

Number of organ donations at Harrogate hospital falls

The number of people who donated organs after they died at Harrogate District Hospital fell from six in 2018/19 to four in 2019/20.

The figures were included in the NHS’ annual Transplant Activity Report and show that those who died donated eight kidneys, three livers and one pancreas to the hospital.

Organ donation law changed in May this year to an “opt out” system.

This means that if you are not in an excluded group, and have not confirmed whether you want to be an organ donor – it will be considered that you agree to donate your organs when you die.

Nationally 1,580 people donated at least one organ after they died, a fall of 1% from last year, which the NHS attributed to the coronavirus pandemic.

Across the UK, the number of people whose lives have been improved or saved by organ and tissue donation this year is 3,760.

There are currently 3,108 people in the UK awaiting an organ transplant.

To coincide with the release of the report, staff at Harrogate District Hospital have shared their own organ donation experiences and encouraged family members to talk to each other about donating organs.

Sarah Whitton, project manager for the programme management office and digital delivery team at Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust (HDFT), lost her younger brother in 2017.

She said:

“Gavin was one of the kindest people I know, so it seemed fitting that his final act of kindness after a tragic accident was to improve, if not save, the lives of five others.

“He had shared his organ donation wishes with his wife which made the family decision so much easier. Losing him has been life changing for our family but we take great comfort in knowing that he lives on in others.”

Beverley Harrison, complementary therapies co-ordinator at HDFT, received an organ donation in 2012 when her liver deteriorated due to auto-immune hepatitis.

After being told she had days to live, the donation saved her life.

She said:

“When it comes down to it and you have 48 hours left to live, you have to hope that people have already had that conversation with their relatives. It can happen to anyone, so it is vital we all have these conversations now.”

District’s MPs vote against protecting NHS in trade deal

Andrew Jones and Julian Smith both voted against protecting the NHS from any future trade deal with the United States or other country.

Last night’s amendment to the Trade Bill, which failed by 251 votes to 340, also included a provision to ensure the NHS principle of being “free at the point of delivery” was not compromised by any future trade deal.

The Trade Bill lays out what trading relationship UK will have with other countries post-Brexit. The amendment was submitted by Green MP Caroline Lucas and was backed by Labour leader Sir Kier Starmer.

Included in the failed amendment were attempts to protect NHS staff from having their wages or rights cut as the result of a trade deal, protections around the pricing of medicines, and stopping confidential patient data being sold off to private companies.

Trade minister Greg Hands told the Commons that the NHS “remains protected and will never be on the table at any trade deal”.

The campaign group We Own It said the MPs who voted against the amendment have “handed the NHS to Donald Trump on a silver platter”.

During the 2019 General Election, former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn produced a leaked document which claimed that the NHS was ‘on the table’ in future trade talks with the United States. This was denied by prime minister Boris Johnson.

When he visited the UK in June 2019, President Trump said that the NHS could form part of trade negotiations between the two countries.

Earlier this week, Andrew Jones, the Harrogate & Knaresborough MP, praised the new rainbow tribute in Harrogate to key workers.

The Stray Ferret contacted both Andrew Jones and Julian Smith to ask why they voted against the amendment last night but neither had responded at the time of publication.

New housing in Harrogate district creates £98m infrastructure shortfall

Housing developers in the Harrogate district will have to pay more money for schools, doctors surgeries and roads after the council identified a £98m infrastructure shortfall.

Harrogate Borough Council will introduce a Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) in October to complement Section 106 agreements that are agreed between the authority and developers.

Both are designed to pay for infrastructure that might be affected by new housing. For example, as part of a recent planning application for 170 homes on Kingsley Road, Harrogate High School asked for a Section 106 contribution of £307,435.

Unlike Section 106, CIL contributions will be calculated by floor space, meaning a housing development in central Harrogate, Knaresborough or Ripon would be charged up to £50 per square metre. Developments outside of town centres will not be subject to CIL charges.

Retail developments would also be subject to CIL contributions of up to £120 per square metre.

Harrogate Borough Council published its long-awaited Local Plan in March that includes a pipeline of over 13,000 new homes from 2014 to 2035 across the district.

To introduce the CIL, HBC has to demonstrate to central government there is a shortfall in funding between the cost of infrastructure needed to support development – which the council has estimated is over £98m over the next 15 years, including £42m for schools.

HBC will publish a list of infrastructure it intends to fund via CIL before the end of 2020.

A parish or town council with an adopted neighbourhood development plan will be eligible to receive 25% of the CIL receipts generated.

County council won’t budge on seven month Whinney Lane closure

North Yorkshire County Council says a controversial seven-month road closure at Whinney Lane won’t be reduced, despite pleas from the manager of the Squinting Cat that it could put his pub out of business.

Speaking to the Stray Ferret, Don Mackenzie, executive member for highways at North Yorkshire County Council, called the delay unfortunate but said the seven-month timeframe agreed with the housing developer Mulgrave is “reasonable”.

The Stray Ferret reported earlier this week that the road will be closed to build two access points for the Castle Hill Farm housing development as well as a new roundabout.

The roundabout will have four exits, including one into another site on Whinney Lane which is earmarked for development in Harrogate Borough Council’s Local Plan. However, planning permission is yet to be granted for the site and residents say North Yorkshire County Council should not allow the roundabout to be built.

Cllr Mackenzie said the authority is entitled to plan ahead for highways improvements.

He said:

“When one designs highways and roundabouts one has to have a certain amount of foresight to look ahead.

“We’d be criticised if we constructed the roundabout then it has to be completely redone. We’d be accused of wasting tax payers money.

“NYCC gets criticism that we don’t put infrastructure in place before development happens. In this case we are, even though permission has not been granted.”

Several residents have contacted the Stray Ferret this week to voice their complaints about the closure, with one calling it “absolute madness”.

Cllr Mackenzie sought to reassure residents and the Squinting Cat, saying access will be maintained.

He added:

“It’s unfortunate but residents needn’t worry. Their access will be maintained as will access to the Squinting Cat.

“But I cannot deny that large scale residential of this nature will cause disruption. Whinney Lane is not alone in that.”

Burton Leonard residents ‘about to erupt’ over housing development

Residents in Burton Leonard are “about to erupt” over a housing development which they say has breached planning conditions around the invasive plant Himalayan balsam.

Chartford Homes has planning permission to build 31 homes at Flats House in the village but an ecology report found there is an infestation of the plant on the site. Himalayan balsam is infamous for its impact on the environment and its explosive seed heads spread very easily.

According to Harrogate Borough Council planning documents, there is a condition attached to the development that says there must be an exclusion zone to remove the plant before construction can begin.

However, Keith Townson from Burton Leonard Parish Council told the Stray Ferret that construction workers were ignoring this for weeks and potentially spreading Himalayan balsam around the village.

Mr Townson said HBC’s planning enforcement department has been “as much use a chocolate fireguard” and called on them to pause the development until the problem is dealt with.

He said:

“Once you know there’s an invested area you have to fence it off but they’ve had trucks and land rovers through it. We’re worried it will spread all over the village. They were supposed to have a tyre washing but they’ve not got that in place either.

“It’s disgraceful. Harrogate Borough Council is allowing the developers to ride roughshod over planning conditions.”

Harrogate Borough Council said: “We have attended the site, spoken to the developers and the parish council and can confirm there are no further issues at this time.”

Chartford Homes declined to make a comment when asked by the Stray Ferret.

NHS Nightingale announcement a ‘huge blow’ say hospitality businesses

Businesses on Kings Road who normally benefit from Convention Centre trade are trying to stay positive as the news that NHS Nightingale will remain at the site until March.

South African couple Mark and Gill Church only moved to Harrogate in December after searching all over the UK to find their dream location. They fell in love with Scotia House, a hotel on King’s Road that stands in the shadow of the Convention Centre.

Mark and Gill are enjoying welcoming guests again after being closed for several months but Mick said it’s been a “brutal” start to their new life in Harrogate.

Mark watched the announcement that the NHS Nightingale hospitals will stay open from Boris Johnson on the news. He said that whilst he welcomed the NHS using the Convention Centre as a hospital, the longer it stays there the more damage it could cause the town.

He said:

“For our business and for the town, it’s very bad”

Mick Wren, co-owner at Cold Bath Brew Co said the Convention Centre being closed until March is a “huge blow” to Harrogate.

Mick Wren, co-owner of Cold Bath Brewing Co.

Mick said their business is not as reliant as nearby guesthouses for conference trade and estimates that around 10% of its business comes from people attending events.

He said he hopes that the Convention Centre can return to what it once was.

He said:

“I’d like to see it how people tell me it was around 15-20 years ago. But back then there weren’t as many convention facilities like this. Now there are 20 or 30 across the country.”

“The frightening thing is if big ones go somewhere else and like it – then they might not come back.”

Kim Wilson owns the Camberly and the Lodge on Kings Road. She has been part of the Harrogate Scrubbers group making PPE for hospital staff whilst her hotels have been closed.

Kim Wilson, co-owner of the Camberley.

Kim said July is normally their busiest month and it’s been tough to miss out on events at the conference centre as well as the Great Yorkshire Show and the Theakston Crime Writing Festival.

There have been calls for the government, the NHS or even the local authority to provide compensation to businesses affected by the Nightingale – which Kim says is wide of the mark.

She said:

“HBC doesn’t have an endless pot of money and we don’t want to take money from the NHS – they need it”

Looking to the future, Kim said that Harrogate can now position itself as more than just a conference town. She said she is optimistic that things will return back to normal eventually.

She said:

“I think things will recover and people will be surprised how quickly things snap back”.

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