91 more covid cases in Harrogate district

91 positive covid cases have been reported in the Harrogate district today, according to Public Health England figures.

It means the district’s seven-day case rate has crept back up above 300 to 309 infections per 100,000 people.

It is the second highest rate in North Yorkshire, with Scarborough’s rate of 318 the highest.

The North Yorkshire rate is 270 and the England rate is 264.

The death toll at Harrogate District Hospital from covid-related illnesses since March 2020 remains at 186.

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‘Political bias’ row in Starbeck over appointment of residents’ group chair

A political row has broken out in Starbeck over the election of a new chair to a residents’ group tonight.

Chris Watt has put his name forward to be on the committee of Starbeck Residents’ Association and to become its new chair.

The association, which awards grants and campaigns to safeguard local facilities, holds its annual general meeting at St Andrew’s Church in Starbeck at 7.30pm.

A vote will take place to appoint a new chair, vice-chair, secretary and treasurer and a new committee will be appointed.

However, Mr Watt’s decision to stand has attracted criticism from a local business owner because he is a member of Harrogate and Knaresborough Labour Party.

Andrew Hart, who owns the Red Box Post Office on Starbeck High Street, told the Stray Ferret he opposed Mr Watt standing because his decisions could be influenced by his Labour affiliation.

The group’s current chair, Geoff Foxall, also has connections with the local Labour party.

Mr Hart pointed to the association’s constitution, which states one of its objectives is to be “a strong non-political community voice” that represents the views of Starbeck residents.

He said this meant active political party members should be prevented from standing for senior positions.

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He added:

“I think for the sake of transparency the Starbeck Residents’ Association needs to be dissolved tonight and hold full and proper elections in one month’s time without any political office holders standing.”

Mr Hart set up a group called Starbeck Community Group this year to debate Starbeck issues.

Mr Watt told the Stray Ferret he would not comment until after the AGM tonight.

Harrogate motorists encouraged to ditch car on Fridays

Motorists in the Harrogate district are being encouraged to ditch their car for one day a week and instead walk, cycle or take public transport to work.

It’s for a new weekly initiative called ‘Car Free Fridays’ that has been launched by local green charity Zero Carbon Harrogate. 

It will take place every Friday beginning October 8 and ZCH hopes it will encourage some new greener habits. Transport is the largest source of emissions in the Harrogate District, making up 49% of the total figure.

Jemima Parker, chair of Zero-Carbon Harrogate said:

“It’s a good way of encouraging people to have one day a week where they leave their car at home. It encourages good habits”.

“Reducing cars on our roads also has the added benefit of improving air quality and reducing traffic congestion, and active travel such as cycling and walking is great for our health and mental wellbeing. Good for us, and good for the planet.”

Car Free Fridays is being backed by Harrogate Borough Council and Bettys & Taylors of Harrogate.

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Walk to School Day

Car-Free Fridays will also coincide with the district’s second Walk to School Day on October 8.

More than 7,000 pupils from 31 schools across the Harrogate district ditched their usual method of transport to take part in the first ZCH event in June.

North Stainley Church of England School won the ‘Zero Hero Primary‘ award, with 94% of its pupils taking part.

Electrifying Harrogate’s school buses ‘has to be cost effective’

Yesterday, the Stray Ferret published an investigation that found that children in Harrogate are being taken to school in diesel buses that are amongst the dirtiest and most polluting vehicles on our roads.

We discovered through a freedom of information request that 50% of these buses are over a decade old and almost 20% of these go back at least 20 years.

University of Leeds climate scientist and Harrogate resident Professor Piers Forster told the Stray Ferret that the old school buses will be having a damaging impact on children’s lungs in Harrogate.

He called on North Yorkshire County Council to electrify the school bus fleet.

The County Council’s response: 

Michael Leah, assistant director for transport and the environment at NYCC, said the council is working with Transdev to bid for government funding for electric buses.

However, it is not clear how many of these buses would be used on school routes should the bid be successful.

He said:

“Bus companies are bound by regulatory compliance and as a home to school transport authority we are required to seek best value for money in securing transport provision.   

“We have also set an aspiration of achieving carbon neutrality by 2030 or as near to that date as possible; accordingly we work closely with our bus operators moving towards a more modern fleet.

“Indeed we are working with The Harrogate Bus Company, part of Transdev, on a scheme that – if the funding bid succeeds – would see 39 zero-emission buses delivered in Harrogate over the next three years.”

The bus companies response: 

The Stray Ferret contacted the four main school bus providers in Harrogate to ask what they are doing to clean up their fleet.

Craig Temple, managing director of Connexionsbuses said because it is a family-owned business, any upgrades have to be “cost-effective”. He said none of their buses are 20 years old.

“When providing commercial school services, as ours are in Harrogate, our main priority is to provide a value for money, safe and reliable service.

“Each bus carries 70-80 pupils, and as such takes that number of cars off the road. The pollution from this number of cars would massively increase the impact on everyone’s health, and cause congestion (which further damages peoples health).

“I think most people fail to realise what the effect would be on parents through ticket prices if we were to buy much newer vehicles (or even new) at a cost of nearly £400,000 each.

“To purchase vehicles less than 10 years old would add massive costs on to the daily tickets of the children travelling, which, in turn, would no doubt lead to less travelling on the bus and more cars on the road, leading to more congestion and pollution.”

Steve Ottley, general manager of Harrogate Bus Company said some children go to school on electric buses that are part of its main network.

“We are one of 10 operators that run school buses in the district and so this survey is not a representation of our impact as an individual operator. Over 95% of our total fleet is ultra-low or zero emission, running all day and night, compared to school buses which will only run two trips a day.

“As a result of integrating the school bus network into our main network, which improves ticketing and connectivity for customers, the numbers of specific school buses have been reduced, and a third of specific school journeys are now run by electric or ultra-low emission vehicles.

“The remaining five buses are fitted with Greenroad telematics technology to limit fuel usage and idling, and we continue our programme to transform to a fully zero-emission bus operation for Harrogate in the coming years.”

Abbotts of Leeming and York Pullman did not respond.

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Schools response:

The Stray Ferret also contacted Harrogate’s four public high schools to ask if they were concerned with our findings and what they were doing to encourage cleaner buses. St Aidan’s and St John Fisher did not respond.

Helen Woodcock, the headteacher at Rossett School, said the school actively promotes cycling and walking to its students.

“Technology has moved on in the last 30 years, from a period where leaded fuel was considered acceptable, to a real focus on the need to use sustainable sources of energy for transport.

“Some of our students use the new public electric bus services to get to school and we actively promote the alternatives of cycling and walking to all parents and students. The school student council have focused on recommending other sustainable changes to school life over the years.

“We have a policy that buses directly controlled by NYCC have to enter the school site and turn off their engines whilst waiting for students.

“We look forward to changes in government policy impacting on legal limits for emissions as they move towards fulfilling the promises made in 2019, in the amendments to the Climate Change Act.”

A Harrogate Grammar School spokesperson said it provides in-house new minibuses on four school bus routes.

NYCC provides 11 bus routes to HGS and several are shared with Rossett pupils.

“Harrogate Grammar School directly manage four bus routes to and from the following destinations including the surrounding areas; Pateley Bridge, Tadcaster, Boroughbridge and Leeds.

“We no longer use external coach providers for the Leeds and Tadcaster routes, we operate these services in-house with our own Ultra Low Emission Zone compliant minibuses. Our minibuses are leased brand new and receive regular services and vehicle checks to ensure high standards are kept.

“The two remaining routes however, Pateley Bridge and Boroughbridge, are too over-populated for minibuses and so we work closely with our coach providers in ensuring the high standards of these vehicles provided. We source the most local firms with capacity to fulfil the route requirements which ensures that emissions are reduced.

“NYCC also manage school routes which combine at least 3 routes with Harrogate Grammar School and Rossett High School which we are happy to support to reduce further vehicles on the road.”

Micah Richards tackled by Harrogate council in bid to go green

Ex-England footballer Micah Richards has claimed Harrogate Borough Council thwarted his bid to install an electric vehicle charging point at his Harrogate home.

Richards is a regular pundit on Sky Sports alongside Roy Keane and Graeme Souness. During Sunday’s coverage, the trio discussed what steps they had taken to tackle climate change and improve the environment.

Richards said he had an electric car and hoped to install a charging point at his home.

However, the former England player claimed he was held back by the council’s planning department. He said:

“I had an electric car for a while. Harrogate council though didn’t allow me to have a charger. So I had to stop that for about six months.”

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Richards’ comments received support on Twitter, with one person saying councils and government should do more to install charging points and encourage electric vehicle use:

“Good of Micah Richards to mention Harrogate council. The government and councils don’t help on the expense involved of electric cars and charging points to make it practical. You either want to do this as a country for people or not.”

Another person tweeted:

“Micah Richards calling out Harrogate planning department for refusing an electric charging point was not the content I was expecting when turning on Sky Sports today!”

A council spokesman said:

“Planning permission is not normally required for the installation of wall-mounted electric vehicle charging points so we’d welcome Mr Richards getting in touch with us as we’d be happy to help.

“He is also welcome to use the charging points at our civic centre on St Luke’s Avenue in Harrogate.”

 

Welcome to Yorkshire chief executive resigns

Welcome to Yorkshire chief executive James Mason has resigned and will leave the organisation next month.

Mr Mason, who has led the tourism body since January last year, will depart on October 22 to take on a new yet-to-be-announced job in the new year.

The news comes less than a month after it was announced the 2022 Tour de Yorkshire had been cancelled.

Mr Mason joined Welcome to Yorkshire after former boss, Sir Gary Verity, resigned in March 2019 on health grounds. Mr Verity later faced allegations of bullying and inappropriately claiming expenses, which he denied.

Speaking about his departure, Mr Mason said “the decision wasn’t an easy one” but that he was “excited” for his new role.

He said:

“Whilst working under difficult conditions at times, there is lots we can be proud of, such as the much-loved Walkshire campaign, the launch of a personal membership and tree planting scheme, as well as the implementation of a tourism recovery plan.

“The brief when I joined was to guide Welcome to Yorkshire towards steadier waters and drastically reduce costs.

“We achieved this despite all the restrictions we faced and never stopped innovating or striving for excellence.

“I’d like to thank everyone for their involvement in trying to bring the Tour de Yorkshire back especially our local authority partners with their continued commitment. These high-profile events will return to the region when the time is right.”

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Chair of Welcome to Yorkshire, Peter Box, thanked Mr Mason for the “commitment and energy” he brought to the role.

He added Welcome to Yorkshire will arrange a board meeting to discuss the future of the organisation.

Mr Box said:

“We would like to thank James for the commitment and energy he has demonstrated during a particularly turbulent time for tourism and for the organisation. When James joined as chief executive almost two years ago there were many challenges to deal with.

“A positive plan was put in place to continue showcasing Yorkshire to the world and despite the covid pandemic adding a new and unexpected level of challenges for the tourism industry, James tackled all issues head-on and worked tirelessly.

“He embraced all aspects of the role passionately and with creativity. A board meeting will be arranged to discuss the next steps for Welcome to Yorkshire.”

Fraudsters offering £200 to fix TVs following Bilsdale fire

Fraudsters are offering to retune residents’ TVs for £200 in the wake of the Bilsdale mast fire.

Since fire damaged the mast in August, thousands of residents across the Harrogate district have been without a TV signal. Some have also experienced intermittent service.

This has prompted some opportunistic scammers to knock on doors in North Yorkshire and offer to fix TVs for a fee.

A North Yorkshire Police spokesperson said:

“If anyone knocks on your door to offer this service, do not let them into your home and do not give them any money.

“If anyone approaches you at your home and you are concerned, do not let them in and call the police on 101 to report this.”

Arqiva, has said a temporary mast should be up by October 5, meaning local residents should finally see an improvement to their TV signal.

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Stray Ferret reveals high number of old and harmful school buses in Harrogate

A Stray Ferret investigation has found that children in Harrogate are being taken to school in diesel buses that are amongst the dirtiest and most polluting vehicles on our roads.

As our local councils push for sustainable transport, we have discovered that schoolchildren in Harrogate are being allowed to get to school on buses that are over 20 years old and pump out high levels of toxic fumes that can harm their growing lungs.

The Stray Ferret sent a freedom of information request to North Yorkshire County Council, which is in charge of school buses in the district, asking them for the registration number of every bus contracted to pick up and drop off children at Harrogate district secondary schools.

The council awards contracts to private bus providers to run routes.

We then used DVLA data to find out what year the vehicle was made and what type of fuel it used. We found that all 91 buses that were currently taxed and MOT’d are fuelled by diesel.

Almost 50% of these buses are over a decade old and almost 20% of these go back at least 20 years.

How old are Harrogate’s school buses?

“Not appropriate anymore”

These older buses pump out significantly higher levels of air pollution compared with newer models.

European Union emissions tests on buses made 20 years ago found they produce over 10 times as much nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions than buses made in the last five years. This figure halves for buses made around 2011.

The Stray Ferret also observed some school buses outside St Aidans, Rossett, and Harrogate Grammar school with their engines idle, effectively creating concentrated arenas of air pollution as children end the school day.

University of Leeds climate scientist and Harrogate resident Professor Piers Forster told the Stray Ferret that the old school buses will be having a damaging impact on children’s lungs in Harrogate.

He said:

“That is the time when your lungs are developing. It’s not just kids on buses, either, but those who walk or cycle have to stand by these buses that are belting out diesel. It’s not really appropriate anymore.”

What damage can diesel fumes cause?

A 14-year-old Abbotts of Leeming school bus on the Prince of Wales roundabout

Knowledge about the harm diesel fumes can cause to children’s growing lungs has been known for decades.

Diesel buses pump out nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions through their exhausts. Multiple studies have found it can cause reduced lung function in children, trigger asthma attacks and hospital admissions.

Diesel also produces particulate matter (PM2.5) particles which when breathed in can penetrate deep into the lungs and be absorbed into the bloodstream. It’s been linked with a myriad of health impacts for children, including asthma.

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In a landmark case in December 2020, a coroner said air pollution from diesel vehicles contributed to the death of nine-year-old Londoner Ella Kissi-Debrah due to her exposure to toxic exhaust fumes near her home by a busy road.

Sarah Hart is a parent of a child at Harrogate Grammar School who previously went to Western Primary School on Cold Bath Road. She told the Stray Ferret that her daughter suffers from a lung condition that she believes is exacerbated by air pollution from Harrogate’s school buses.

Buses outside St Aidan’s

She said:

“She found the experience of walking to Western really uncomfortable as she has issues with her lungs.

“The buses are really, really old. When they are stationary you can physically see the fumes.

“They should try and get cleaner buses.”

Jemima Hartshorn created a campaign group to tackle air pollution called Mums for Lungs. She told the Stray Ferret that it was “worrying” that so many of Harrogate’s buses are “very old” and use “very polluting diesel”.

She added:

“We really urge schools, authorities and bus companies to work together and electrify this bus fleet to ensure pollution levels across Yorkshire drop and health levels increase.”

“We need electric buses”

A 16-year-old Transdev bus on Hookstone Drive

Not only does air pollution have a potentially deadly impact on children’s lungs, but a 2019 US study also found it affects cognitive performance too.

It reported that children who went to school on diesel buses that had been retrofitted to make them cleaner achieved 10% better exam results at the end of the school year, particularly in English.

It also found that the children saw improvements in cardiovascular health, meaning cleaning up Harrogate’s school buses would have widespread benefits.

Prof Forster added:

“We certainly need a bus fleet that is ideally electric and kids biking and walking to school as much as possible, this is better than anything for both their health and their social development.”

Tomorrow we ask the council, schools and bus companies what they are doing to tackle air pollution on school buses.

Bilton residents voice frustration over crime at public meeting

There was frustration and anger at a meeting of Bilton and Woodfield Residents’ Association last night about crime and anti-social behaviour in the area.

Residents voiced criticism towards North Yorkshire Police for a perceived lack of action over the issue.

The meeting was held at Bilton Grange United Reform Church and residents asked questions to a panel that included PC Brendan Frith from NYP, Bilton Conservative councillors Matt Scott and Paul Haslam, Liberal Democrat councillor and Mayor of Harrogate Trevor Chapman and Julia Stack from Harrogate Borough Council’s safer communities team.

It was chaired by Reverend Alan Crump who invited questions from around 30 residents that were in attendance.

The main topic of debate was anti-social behaviour and crime with several questions focusing on issues around the Woodfield Road and Albany Avenue areas of Bilton.

One person received a round of applause after they said the area had deteriorated.

“I’ve been on this street for 50 years and it’s never been like this. Good neighbours are moving out and we are sick of it”.

Another said:

“We’re stuck here but we’re not living the lives we want to live. Nothing gets done.”

Cllr Scott, whose Bilton ward includes Woodfield Road, said he is in regular contact with residents of Albany Avenue about what he called “a very complex situation”.

He added:

“There is an issue with tenants who don’t respect neighbours. That isn’t right. They are being let down by a small minority.”.

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Andrew Hart, the owner of Bilton’s post office, said the community police officers in Bilton were doing a “good job” but his reports of suspected drug dealing had been ignored. Other residents told the panel that they did not have faith that their reports to police would be followed up.

Mr Hart said:

“I sent names of drug dealers dealing crack to NYP. Did I get a response? No, nothing seems to happen and you feel like you’ve interrupted them.”

In response, PC Frith said the police often need more information before they can take action. Cllr Haslam also urged residents to report any suspected criminality to the police.

PC Frith said:

“We need a lot of information. If we want warrants for a drugs bust we need information from more than one person. We need to be sure that we will get results.”

Speeding

Also discussed was speeding in Bilton, with calls to make the whole of the Harrogate suburb a 20mph zone.

Cllr Scott said he was in favour of traffic calming measures in Bilton but there were obstacles to overcome.

“Getting a 20 mph zone is not as easy as I’d like it to be. I can’t wave a magic wand and get them.”

PC Frith reiterated that the public must report to the police issues of crime or anti-social behaviour, including speeding.

“We’ve had zero reports of speeding on Woodfield Road. We know it’s happening but we need reports.”

Harrogate climate change festival to ‘excite and inspire’

A series of events will take place in Harrogate next month as part of the town’s first-ever Climate Action Festival.

Organisers hope the festival from October 2-24 will encourage positive actions that make a difference to our local and global environment.

Events include a nature reserve walk, talks from world-renowned climate scientists, and a net-zero business conference.

An eco-friendly house is set to be built in just two days at Harrogate College and an all-electric coach will also make a pit stop in the town on its way to major climate conference COP26 in Glasgow.

The festival is being co-ordinated by the Harrogate District Climate Change Coalition (HDCCC), a group 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.

Chris Arnott, comms lead for HDCCC, said she was “excited and inspired” by the range of events on offer.

 She said:

“I’m so excited and feel inspired by all that is going on, such as our Net Zero Business Conference on October 15 at the Harrogate Convention Centre. I’m looking forward to exhibitions by our generous principle sponsors, Chameleon Technology, amongst many others and learning from businesses who are far along their sustainability journeys.

“I am intensely proud that PlanetMark has chosen our Net Zero Business Conference as the only stop in Yorkshire for their first fully electric ‘Carbon Battle Bus’ on its tour from the Eden Project in Cornwall on its way up to COP 26 in Glasgow.”

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What’s on

October 2: At Harrogate College from 10am-4pm the festival will be launched with demonstrations and discussions on skills and technologies that help to take climate action. Organised by HDCCC who say the event is “free fun and everyone is invited”.

October 4: At Nidderdale High School from 7pm-9pm a panel of geographers, economists and policy specialists as well as farmers and estate managers will discuss the reasons why changes in land use are necessary in Nidderdale and the wider uplands of Britain. Organised by the Royal Geographical Society.

October 8: Walk to School Day. Organised by Zero-Carbon Harrogate.

October 15: At Harrogate Convention Centre from 9am-6pm there will be a “Net-zero business” conference to discuss the concept of net zero carbon and why it is critical for businesses to make this transition. Organised by HDCCC.

October 17: At the Royal Hall from 7pm TV wildlife presenters Martin Hughes-Games and Lolo Williams will give a talk on their lives and love of nature. Organised by Harrogate Theatre.

October 23: At the Crown Hotel from 4pm a panel of experts including journalist Alister Doyle, climate professor Peter Stott and law specialist Claire Bradbury will discuss what can we do to save the planet and how will this change the way we all live. Organised by Harrogate International Festivals.

October 23/24: From 10am-3pm an opportunity to tour Horticap and see their on-site green credentials. Organised by Horticap.

To find out more about the festival and the events visit its website.