An independent panel of judges, braved heavy showers to view and cast their votes for the 23 entries in the Ripon Business Improvement District’s Christmas Windows competition.

The panel, including the city’s Mayor and Mayoress Councillor Sid Hawke and his wife Linda and the Dean of Ripon the Very Revd John Dobson have had their say, but the final outcome of the competition rests with a public vote and the winning entry will be announced on December 19.

Dean John judging the window at Specsavers

Ripon BID manager Lilla Bathurst, said:

“Like Strictly Come Dancing, the votes of the public will be added to the marks given by the judges.”

More details on how to vote for your favourite Christmas window click here

Children were involved in producing the window display at Cathedral View Cafe

Ms Bathurst, pointed out:

“The theme that we set was peace and sanctuary and the judges were asked to bear this in mind when assessing the entries.”

She added:

“We are delighted with the number of businesses that took part, as the window displays combined with the city’s festive lights and our free parking after 3pm initiative on the Fridays running up to Christmas, all add to the attraction of Ripon.”

Dean John, said:

“It’s great to see the business community embracing the central Christmas messages of peace and sanctuary in an imaginative way that helps to lift all of our spirits in these difficult times.”

Former Ripon Grammar School (RGS) student Mark Hills has won an Emmy award for his work in creating an audio production system credited with revolutionising the television industry.

The computer expert and his business partner Marc Bacos created the ground-breaking system used in the production of innovative soundtracks for hit TV series such as The Crown, The Queen’s Gambit, The Flight Attendant and Line of Duty.

The pair received their Emmys at a glitzy award ceremony in Beverley Hills and afterwards Mr Hills said that receipt of the small screen equivalent of an Oscar had come ‘completely out of the blue.’

He added:

“It’s great that as a technologist these awards are within reach. We hadn’t had any previous contact with the Television Academy.

“The judges seemed to be really impressed with what we had done.”

Their Cleanfeed system, which works for radio, TV and film, connects studios together so that the quality sounds as if it’s all being recorded in the same room.

Mr Hills, whose parents Peter and Greta live in Sharow, pointed out:

“We made this kind of technology accessible in a way it wasn’t before.”

The 41-year-old, who left RGS in 1999 to study computer science at university, is no stranger to awards.

In 2014, he was part of a large team at British visual effects company Framestore which won both the Oscar and Bafta for best visual effects for the film Gravity, starring George Clooney and Sandra Bullock.

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With fuel bills soaring, a guide to more than 40 activities that people can join in to keep warm this winter has been produced by the Ripon Cathedral Community Connections group (C3).

The guide titled Find a Warm Welcome in Ripon, features the activities and facilities that churches, including the cathedral, charities, community groups, the library and other organisations across the city are providing, as people of all ages face a cost-of-living crisis caused by rising gas, electricity and heating oil prices.

Anne-Marie Tarter, of C3, told the Stray Ferret:

“The response from the community to production of the guide has been magnificent – for example, the Ripon churches told me what they were already doing and then added in whole new sessions specifically designed for people wanting a warm place to go this winter.”

Holy Trinity Church is providing a wide range of activities to help people keep warm

She added:

“Before long I had an amazing list of ideas for people looking for a warm place in Ripon and these have been included in a 4-page booklet.”

The activities cover people of all ages from families with babies and toddlers to the elderly and include free play sessions, free breakfasts and lunches, opportunities to become involved with sewing, knitting and other craft groups and indoor bowling.

Full details can be found by clicking here.

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Hundreds gathered on Ripon Market Square yesterday evening as the city council signalled the beginning of the festive season with its Christmas lights switch-on.

With heavy rain relenting by early afternoon, the crowd, largely made up of family groups, grew throughout the day, visiting the square to see Santa and his reindeer and enjoy the free fairground rides and musical entertainment.

Families met with Santa and his reindeer Alfie, Dancer and Izzy

Among the early visitors to see Santa were two-year-old Taylor, her 12-year-old brother Toby and their mother Catherine (pictured above).

The three free fairground rides proved popular throughout the afternoon and into the evening

Live musical entertainment was provided from 2pm by local singer-songwriter Freddie Cleary, and tribute acts Tamsin and Kaylie and Jersey Beyond (pictured below)

By 5pm when the Mayor of Ripon Cllr Sid Hawke performed the switch-on, the large crowd was in festive mood, joining with him in singing We Wish You a Merry Christmas.

The Christmas lights on Kirkgate

Among those hoping that Ripon’s traders have a happy and successful festive season is city council leader Cllr Andrew Williams.

He told the Stray Ferret:

“This is going to be a very challenging end of year for the vast majority of people with the cost of living crisis meaning they have less disposable income to spend.”

He added:

“We hope, however, that the lights will help to attract increased footfall and provide a festive boost to the city’s economy with local residents, as well as visitors, supporting Ripon’s independent shops, cafes, restaurants and pubs by spending their money here.”

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Planning consent has been granted for the demolition of a block of four empty homes in Ripon’s conservation area, which have been affected by subsidence and sinkhole issues.

The properties at 1,3 and 5 Bedern Court and 17 Skellgarths, were evacuated in October 2020 after being deemed unsafe for habitation.

A section of Peacock’s Passage, which is adjacent to the site, has been fenced off ever since.

Permission has also been granted for steps (pictured below) to be demolished and for the erection of hoardings following demolition of the block, so the area can be enclosed while investigation of the site is carried out.

A report from Harrogate Borough Council (HBC) planners states that:

“Demolition of the buildings is considered appropriate to ensure safety within the conservation area and to allow for investigations to determine an appropriate redevelopment of the site.”

The report says that the four properties:

“Have been adversely affected by the local ground conditions that arise notably from the dissolution of gypsum.”

It also points out that HBC’s building control officers:

“Have been involved with these buildings as a dangerous structure in recent months so we are aware of the concerns regarding their stability.”

Bedern Court Ltd, a not-for-profit company controlled by owners and leaseholders with houses and apartments in the 29-unit residential development, employed engineers to monitor and report for more than a decade on signs of movement in the affected block, after subsidence occurred on an adjacent site.

With signs that subsidence causing damage to the block of the four properties is continuing, the application seeking permission to demolish was submitted to HBC in September.

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• Council answers call to remove bins from Ripon car park
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Harrogate Borough Council (HBC) has taken swift action to remove two bins from Sainsbury’s car park in Ripon, that were causing access problems for disabled people and parents with buggies and prams.

The issue was raised with both HBC and North Yorkshire County Council by Jeremy Dunford, a trustee of Ripon Disability Forum, who pointed out that the waste and recycling bins on the pavement linking The Arcade to the supermarket, were leaving little room for people in wheelchairs, or families with young children to pass safely.

The bins seen in situ before they were removed

Following their removal, Mr Dunford told the Stray Ferret:

“Getting this resolved so quickly shows the benefits of community groups and councils developing relationships to address issues in a proactive way.

“However, it does also highlight the need for greater thought being given to works so that remedial action is not then needed after the event. It is cheaper and more cost effective this way.”

Mr Dunford added:

“As always, we encourage people to raise such issues with us to try and get them resolved in the best way that is possible.”

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Ripon’s festive season gets into full swing this week, with late night shopping tomorrow and the switch on of the city’s Christmas lights on Saturday.

Tomorrow, eight independent retailers located on North Steet and Fishergate will remain open until 8pm and there is the opportunity for shoppers to win a hamper.

The participating retailers are: The Castle, The GreenHouse, Memorable Moments. Carlton Couture Bridal, Absolute Bliss Health & Beauty, Eastwick, St Michael’s Hospice and  Halls of Ripon department store.

On Saturday, Ripon Market Square will be a hive of activity from 1pm ahead of the Christmas lights switch on, which takes place at 5pm.

Santa’s reindeer return to Ripon Market Square on Saturday afternoon

The reindeer, which proved popular when they visited Ripon for last year’s switch on will be returning with Santa and once again and there will also be free fairground rides and a climbing wall for children to enjoy.

The Ripon City Council event will also provide free musical entertainment from 2pm with singer-songwriter Freddie Cleary followed by Christmas songs from Tamsin and Kaylie, before the Jersey Beyond tribute act take centre stage.

This year, the council’s festive programme in Ripon is being supported by Ripon Business Improvement District, which is paying for the production and distribution of a Christmas brochure, setting out the events that will be happening in the city between now and New Year’s Eve.

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A charity that supports desperately ill children and their families will benefit for the fourth consecutive year from a fundraising event staged by Ripon cafe owner Tina Whincup.

Ms Whincup, who owns Caffe Tempo in The Arcade, will be hosting story time with Santa on the evenings of December 13 and 14, to raise money for Yorkshire Children’s Trust.

The popularity of the event is underlined by the fact that tickets sold out within days of going on sale.

Santa will be reading Christmas stories at Caffe Tempo next month to raise money for Yorkshire Children’s Trust.

Ms Whincup told the Stray Ferret:

“We are going to raise a record of at least £700 this year through ticket sales and a silent auction being conducted online for an exclusive Caffe Tempo jumper, made for us by The British Christmas Jumper Company.

“The trust is a wonderful charity that helps families across Yorkshire and I would encourage people to support them in whatever way they can.”

The auction for the jumper lasts until Sunday (November 20) and anybody wanting to make a bid can find out more details by clicking here.

Yorkshire Children’s Trust was founded by two sets of parents after their daughters were diagnosed with leukaemia. The charity helps children and their families cope with the emotional and financial strain of many life-changing illnesses, something the founders of the charity understand after dealing with their own children going through the long and harsh treatments for cancer.

The charity doesn’t receive any lottery, NHS or government funding and relies heavily on voluntary donations.

Following this afternoon’s closure of the Halifax, Ripon will have one remaining bank and no access outside shopping hours to city centre cash machines.

The closure comes less than three months after the long-established Barclays branch closed its doors on August 25, leaving HSBC – which has no external cash machine – as Ripon’s only bank.

The Barclays bank Ripon branch closed in August.

Cash machines are available during shopping hours at Sainsbury’s on Market Place East and Booths at the Marshall Way Retail Park.

Announcing its branch closure in July, Halifax said in a statement:

“Like many other high street businesses, we’ve seen people using our branches less frequently in recent years as more customers choose to do most of their everyday banking online.

“We’re responding to the way our customers use our branches. We’ll continue to invest in our branch network, but we have to make sure our branches are where customers need and use them most.

“As a result, we’ve made the difficult decision to close this branch because customers are using it less often. In addition the majority of customers are also using alternative ways to bank.”

Ripon Racecourse has finished ahead of a strong field of entrants to become a winner at the 2022 Racecourse Association Showcase & Awards event.

Ripon, known as Yorkshire’s Garden Racecourse, beat Hamilton Park, Go Racing in Yorkshire, Scottish Racing and The Jockey Club to collect the Racing Connection Award.

Their winning entry was the Goodbye Flys Stables Championship, which saw a total of more than £14,000 going to stable staff over the course of the 2022 season.

The showcase & awards, held on Thursday at Pontefract, is the marquee event of British racecourses and celebrates excellence and innovation in racecourse operations and raceday experience.

The Racing Connection Award celebrates initiatives that enrich and extend the reach of the sport to customers, including racegoers or colleagues from the thoroughbred group (professionals connected with the horse).

Entrants were asked to demonstrate the passion, enthusiasm, knowledge and skill of those who work in the sport, enhancing both customer enjoyment and education of horseracing.

Wilf Walsh, chairman of the RCA, commented:

“Congratulations to Ripon Racecourse for their fantastic initiative to bring stable staff into the heart of the raceday experience.

“In what has been a challenging year for racecourses, I was buoyed by the quality of the initiatives on show, not least this one which I hope will act as inspiration to other racecourses in future.

“The RCA will share the best practice arising from this year’s Showcase Awards amongst all racecourses in the year ahead.”

Jonathan Mullin, operations and marketing manager at Ripon Racecourse, said:

“We’re delighted to win our second showcase award, keeping our place in the winners’ enclosure after winning the spotlight award with our green scheme in 2019.

“We felt it was important to highlight and acknowledge the great work that stable staff do in the industry. Together with our sponsor, Goodbye Flys, we found a good way of rewarding them and it is fantastic that it has been recognised.

“We’re looking forward to bringing the championship back next year along with some other initiatives and it would be fantastic if we could make the finals at the 2023 showcase and awards at Aintree.”

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