Deer Shed music and arts festival in Topcliffe has received £119,708 from the government’s cultural recovery fund (CRF)

The government launched the £1.57 billion fund last year to support cultural and heritage sectors from the economic impact of covid.

The festival offers live music, comedy and arts across a weekend in Baldersby Park, which borders the Harrogate district. It has not been able to run a full festival for the last two years. However, it has run a smaller event on the site called Base Camp.

In November 2020, Deer Shed received a grant of £238,000 from the CRF.

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• Harrogate nightlife institution Montey’s celebrates 25 years

The festival tweeted that the money will help ensure its survival:

“Grateful to have been given support from DCMS in the 3rd round of the CRF. These have been difficult times having been unable to host a full Deer Shed for over two years, this helps ensure our survival alongside the support of our brilliant Deer Shed audience.”

Deer Shed will run next summer from July 29-31 and has announced headliners John Grant, Nadine Shah and Django Django.

Montey’s has been a favourite haunt of Harrogate night owls looking for quality cocktails and alternative music for 25 years.

The bar was opened by owner Jay Smith on this day in 1996. Back then, The Ginnel was a quiet back street and not one of the town’s most popular food and drink spots.

Montey’s took over a unit that was previously a pine shop, but Mr Smith said he saw the potential the area had.

He said:

“[The Ginnel] was dramatically different. I had looked around the town centre trying to find where hospitality could get driven to, in terms of available space, The Ginnel seemed to fit that brief.”

After working for Tesco in his early 20s, he followed his dream of opening a bar of his own. He combined savings with a loan from John Smiths brewery to open Montey’s as a jazz bar with a strictly over-25s policy.

But it struggled to attract punters during the week, so to save the business, Mr Smith scrapped the policy, recruited as many former Jack and Danny’s and Jimmy’s cocktail bartenders as he could find and shifted towards rock music.

“The over 25’s policy became a millstone around the neck of the business.

“So we went back to licencing at the council and asked them to remove the conditions or it will go up in smoke.”

Mr Smith said the best nights in Montey’s have been themed nights such as Halloween, New Year and whenever live bands perform, although his memory of the 90s is blurry after one too many lemon drops.

He said:

 “We’ve always done live music, we love it.”

Over the years Montey’s has developed a reputation for cocktails delivered with flair and fun.

“Flair bartending is where you’re throwing bottles around like Cocktail. It became popular and recognised bartending as a career and a skill.”

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Many businesses have come and gone around Parliament Street since 1996, including some massive chains such as Jamie Oliver and Ministry of Sound who pumped millions into venues that failed.

Mr Smith said it’s the independents that have been built to last.

“After 25 years in Harrogate there’s been an astonishing amount of bars, some with huge budgets who thought they could stroll into the town.

“A lot of them were in just massive, very expensive buildings.

“But if you look at long-term successful businesses in Harrogate, it’s places like Drum and Monkey, Will and Vics and G23.

“The indies are supported here. It’s a testament to the attitude of the people of Harrogate.”

Mr Smith still runs the bar today alongside his “partner in crime” and director of the business Colin Speirs, who was the first bartender he hired back in 1996. They hope to have a party next summer to celebrate their birthday.

He added:

“25 years is exactly half my life as I was 25 when it opened. I basically grew up in there.

“I’m genuinely proud and astonished we’ve suddenly arrived at 25 years.”

Staff at the collapsed Harrogate energy firm CNG Group are expected to be formally made redundant on Friday.

A meeting was held this morning between around 100 staff members, CNG management and Interpath, the financial advisory company that is expected to be appointed as administrators tomorrow.

CNG’s chief executive Paul Stanley told the Stray Ferret that the majority of staff will be made redundant once Interpath is appointed.

Around 40 people will continue working to help wind the company down, a process that is expected to take several weeks.

An anonymous source at the meeting told the Stray Ferret that “everyone is very sad” about the end of the company.

Staff have been paid for November but are not expected to be offered a redundancy settlement until after Christmas through a government scheme. The source said it was a “stressful time to have no income.”

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• Ofgem appoints company to take on CNG customers
• In Depth: Why Harrogate success story CNG ended in collapse

Mr Stanley, CNG’s CEO, said the company has had regular online meetings with staff since September 14 to discuss the future of the company.

He said:

“At each session, we have had extensive Q&A following the initial presentation.

“As we have been discussing the situation with colleagues since September, many people have thankfully already found new roles, and were eager to understand what the next stage would be and when they might be able to move on.

“We provided this information today so that colleagues can start to make plans and many of them had asked for clarity on when they might be released.

“Colleagues have also been advised about the redundancy process and the likely timescales for payment being made through the redundancy process. As you can imagine, we are all incredibly sad that this has happened to a business that has played such a significant part in the Harrogate community for so many years.”

For the majority of its 27 years, CNG was regarded as a Harrogate success story.

Mr Stanley said the reason CNG failed was that four of its main customers went out of business within two weeks, leaving it with unpaid bills.

Attempts to raise capital or sell the business were not successful due to continued market volatility and high prices in the energy sector.

Allegations of bullying and abuse at Harrogate’s Army Foundation College were raised in the House of Lords this week.

The college on Pennypot Lane recruits about 1,500 young men and women each year. It is the only British Army establishment that delivers military training to soldiers under the age of 18.

The issue of how the soldiers are treated by staff and instructors at the AFC has been back in the spotlight this month.

A female instructor at the college was demoted after being convicted of punching teenage soldiers and three parents also called for the college to be closed after claiming their children were abused.

A letter from the parents to Ofsted said that there had been 60 complaints from parents or trainees about the way 16 and 17-year-old soldiers were treated at the AFC between 2014 and 2020. These complaints included allegations of assault and battery.

Speaking in the Lords during a debate on the Armed Forces Bill, Lord Browne of Layton said that the scale of complaints from parents make him want to “reconsider many of the things said in support of AFC Harrogate and what it was actually doing with these young people.”

He added:

“My suspicion is that this issue will not go away—that, like many issues over the last 10 years that have become apparent about institutions, it will be a slow burner but eventually much more will come out.

“History tends to suggest that there is something there that needs to be investigated.”

Read more:

• Parents call for Harrogate army college to be closed after abuse claims
• Harrogate Army Foundation College instructor demoted for punching teenage soldiers

The college was recently rated ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted. It gave positive feedback on safeguarding at the college saying it investigated incidents thoroughly and made necessary improvements.

In response to Lord Layton, Baroness Goldie, who is a minister at the Ministry of Defence, defended the college and said it has been doing “a very good job”.

“I, on behalf of the MoD, think that this is a good system for young people aged between 16 and 18. It serves them well and is good for the Armed Forces.

“I totally understand the natural interests in issues of governance, well-being and welfare where this training is provided. I absolutely accept that and it is right and proper, but it would be quite wrong to cast this college in a negative light.

“The evidence is that it has been doing a very good job and a lot of young people have benefited as a result of their attendance at it.”

A British Army spokesman told the Stray Ferret:

“We have very strong duty of care and safeguarding mechanisms at AFC (Harrogate) to ensure Junior Soldiers have the right support structures.  This includes multiple methods of accessing welfare support, including confidential support lines.

“We take every incident seriously and will refer an allegation to the RMP for investigation. We also have a Ministry of Defence Police Officer based at AFC (Harrogate) to assist in education and investigation.”

Harrogate District Climate Change Coalition (HDCCC) has become a registered charity, which it says will help its aim of tackling climate change locally.

The group was initially set up by Harrogate Borough Council to bring together business, local government and the voluntary sector. In February, its members voted to become an independent organisation from the council.

The coalition has had a bumpy first couple of years. In February, Pat Marsh, the leader of Harrogate and Knaresborough Liberal Democrats, resigned saying the group had been ‘plagued by inaction’.

The aim of the coalition is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to improve local resilience to the effects of climate change such as flooding.

With charitable status, HDCCC said in a statement, puts it in a strong position to “accelerate action and increase its local impact”.

Last month, the coalition organised Harrogate’s first ‘Climate Action Festival’, which included a business conference at Harrogate Convention Centre.

Professor Neil Coles, HDCCC chair and environment scientist from the University of Leeds, said:

“Becoming a charity establishes the coalition as a fully independent body which can both raise awareness of solutions with the public, and also connect behind the scenes with regional and national leaders in order to bring about change that will reduce the burden of action for the greatest number.”

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12 charitable trustees have been appointed who all have influence in sectors such as transport, buildings and local policy.

The trustees are: Alec Walton (Green Jumper), Alex Hornby (Harrogate Bus Company), Chris Arnott (FM-MS), Danny Wild (Harrogate College), Jemima Parker (Zero Carbon Harrogate), Mike Kaye (Energy Oasis), Professor Neil Coles (Chair), Cllr Phil Ireland (Vice Chair), Wallace Sampson (Harrogate Borough Council).

Harrogate and Nidderdale District Scouts says unless new Scout leaders come forward, one of its Harrogate groups that has been running for 68 years could close after Christmas.

Scouts is an adventurous program where children develop skills, earn badges and awards, and have fun in the outdoors.

The 15th Harrogate Scouts, which is based at St Paul’s Church opposite Harrogate Library, has 15 young people aged 11-14. It could close in the new year due to a lack of leaders to organise trips and train the youngsters.

Mark Edwards, the Scouts county commissioner for North Yorkshire, appealed for new leaders to volunteer for the cause.

He said:

“We’re going to keep it going until Christmas, it would be a shame to close it.”

Since covid restrictions eased, Harrogate Scouts has been inundated with applications for new members but Mr Edwards said it does not have enough Scout leaders to cope with the demand.

The organisation has also seen some leaders leave to focus on their jobs and others have left due to illness.

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Mr Edwards said being a Scout leader has many benefits and is about “giving back”.

“Scouting for adults is good for you. You’re giving back to young people and gaining skills for life.”

He said Scout leaders at 15th Harrogate should be able to offer around two and a half hours a week of their time.

If you’re interested in becoming a Scout leader, contact Mr Edwards at cc@nys.org.uk

North Yorkshire County Council  says giving Woodfield Community Primary School more time to improve is out of its hands, and plans to amalgamate it next year with the nearby Grove Road school are likely to go ahead.

The council says amalgamation is necessary because Woodfield has been unable to find an academy willing to take it on since it was rated inadequate by Ofsted in January last year.

Woodfield would be effectively swallowed up by the bigger Grove Road, which would operate as a split-site 280-pupil school.

The Woodfield site would initially operate as a nursery for children from both schools while Grove Road would cater for all children from reception to year six.

A six-week consultation is set to start on December 2 and a final decision taken on April 19.

The Stray Ferret spoke to North Yorkshire County Council’s executive member for education and skills, Cllr Patrick Mulligan, about how Woodfield got to this point, and whether the decision to close the school could be changed.

Why isn’t NYCC giving the school more to improve given that its latest Ofsted visit recognised significant progress being made in a short space of time?

It’s out of our hands. Because of the system, when Ofsted finds a school is inadequate, it has to become an academy.

We tried to find a multi-academy trust to take on Woodfield but we couldn’t find anyone. The school was then faced with possible closure.

I don’t think people understand how little influence we have in the academy system. It’s frustrating. We get into a process where we can’t keep a school open even if we wanted to. The system is flawed. 

What were the reasons no academy trust wanted to take on Woodfield?

We can make suggestions to the trusts and ask them and come and look at school, but they do their due diligence and see declining numbers, financial difficulties. If it’s too risky they don’t take it on.

Parents have a choice now. If a school is deemed to be inadequate by Ofsted. You get into a downward spiral [and numbers of pupils then decline].

Would NYCC give Woodfield more time to improve if it had the power to?

We would probably give it more time and send our school improvement team to turn it around.

We’ve had a lot of discussions with governors over many years. We’ve been working with them to find a solution. We wanted an academy to take it on but none would.

Sometimes you get beyond that downward spiral.

We do everything we can to support schools. There’s another issue that we don’t receive enough funding to cover these small schools. We have good schools but the system is corroding it.

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Can the decision to close Woodfield be changed?

It is now with the regional schools commissioner.

We had a school in Ryedale. It had 20 kids and was facing closure. We had a public meeting and the community was in uproar. Unlike Woodfield, it did not have an academy order.

Parents formed a community group and they created a business plan to make the school sustainable. It was robust and looked at other things such as housing. It paused the process of closure. 

But over the summer, Ofsted came in and gave an inadequate judgement. In the following September, just six children came in, which was depressing. The school closed.

[The parents in Woodfield] could try to do that, but once an academisation order is in, it cannot be reversed.

What are the projected financial savings of this merger?

I don’t have that to hand. It’s not something that has come up in discussions. Grove Road school has done its due diligence and deems it can be successful. 

Is it possible that the Woodfield site could eventually be sold for housing?

That’s a very good question, that would be out of our hands. It would be a decision for the regional schools commissioner to take. 

One Woodfield parent has concerns about the proposed ‘walking bus’ from one school to the other. It does seem a long and not very safe route.

We have school transport and if it is deemed to be unsafe, we’d provide transportation. 

It’s just over half a mile and we’ll look at it very carefully. I can promise we’ll look at it very carefully. We’ll abide by the process.

It all depends on the results of the consultation.

Last weekend was the 21st Staveley table tennis marathon — a unique event where the village hall is kitted out with tables for games that last from 9am to 8pm on Saturday and Sunday.

The fundraiser was started in the late 1980s by 87-year-old Ken Barker and has raised over £100,000 for charities.

Mr Barker was inspired to start the event to support cancer charity Macmillan as there were some nurses that lived in the village. He thought table tennis was the most weatherproof way to run a fundraiser in the winter months.

Charities that have benefitted from the marathon include Martin House Children’s Hospice, St Michael’s Hospice and Children In Distress, among many others.

Mr Barker said:

“We’ve never stopped since, we’ve kept growing the number of charities we support.

“We’ve gone on nicely. I always try to choose charities for people who want help and can’t help themselves.”

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Mr Barker has lived in the village all his life, except for a couple of years in the 1950s when he served in the military during the Suez crisis.

He’s still sprightly and handy with a racket.

“I might make more tea then I play games these days but I always enjoy a game. I will continue having this marathon as long as i can.”

Last weekend over 60 players took part, including players in the Harrogate league as well as amateurs and villagers.

The marathon is supported by Staveley resident and chairman of the Harrogate Table Tennis Association, Graham Bowland, who managed to play for 19 hours.

Mr Barker said the fundraiser is a great way to meet new people and is an event that everyone in Staveley looks forward to.

This year, all money raised will go towards charities that tackle Parkinson’s disease.

Just 52 social homes were built last year in the Harrogate district, despite there being 1,867 households on the social housing waiting list.

The latest annual figures were published by the government yesterday.

Social homes are low-cost homes rented to tenants by housing associations or a local council. It is the only type of housing where rents are linked to local incomes with any increases limited by the government.

The charity Shelter says social housing is the only genuinely affordable type of “affordable” housing.

Affordable housing also includes homes sold under shared ownership schemes and those sold at 80% under the market rate.

The figures for the Harrogate district were criticised by both the local Liberal Democrat and Labour parties.

Lib Dem leader on Harrogate Borough Council Cllr Pat Marsh, who also sits on the council’s planning committee, said the numbers were “alarming but not surprising”.

She said the council needs to be more proactive instead of relying on developers to build them.

“New homes for social rent are being built on predominantly small infill sites such as former council garage sites and are relatively low in numbers.

“There doesn’t seem to be much of an emphasis on the council developing larger sites with social housing. When there are so many people on the housing waiting list this seems to be letting our residents down. We cannot just rely on developers providing affordable homes on their sites, as welcome as these truly are, they will not solve the problem.

“The council needs to be more proactive and that includes the new authority when it is up and running in 2023. We owe it to those people needing houses.”

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The figure of 52 is an improvement on recent years. In the three years prior to 2020/21, just 18 social homes were built out of a total of 2,355 new houses.

Margaret Smith, chair of the Harrogate & Knaresborough Constituency Labour Party, said the amount of social housing built in the last few years has been an “absolute disgrace”.

“It reflects really badly on the council and all its councillors when the waiting list for social housing is so large.”

According to Harrogate Borough Council, 359 new affordable homes were built in 2020/21 but Ms Smith said that not enough of these were genuinely affordable homes for social rent.

Ms Smith added:

“One assumes that social housing is not considered as much of a priority as the other categories in ‘affordable’.”

The Stray Ferret asked Harrogate & Knaresborough Conservative Party for a response, but we did not receive one at the time of publication.

A Harrogate Borough Council spokesperson said:

“Although we are limited by the amount of land available to us, and the high sale price of land on the open market, 359 new affordable homes were provided by Harrogate Borough Council, our partner housing associations and through the planning system last year (2020/21). In the first six months of this year, 170 new affordable homes have also been provided.

“There are currently 1,867 households on the housing waiting list. We urge anyone with a local connection to Harrogate district who would be interested in a council or housing association property to apply to join the list.”