Harrogate district libraries offer self-care toolkit for young peopleA toolkit which encourages self-care and aims to enhance the mental health and wellbeing of young people is now available to borrow from libraries across the Harrogate district.
The kit, which contains a variety of self-help activities, includes a portable collection of items and books for individuals or groups to share at home, in the library, or out in the community.
They also provide contact details for organisations, including Childline Mind and Health for Teens, that offer help and advice for young people.
Kits can borrowed for up to three weeks by library members, who can also borrow books, e-books, audiobooks and DVDs free of charge and use computers to access free online resources.
Cllr Greg White, executive North Yorkshire county councillor for libraries, said:
“We are delighted to be launching the self-care toolkits. The last two years have presented a number of challenges for us all – especially young people – with the impact highlighting more than ever the need and importance for all of us to look after our mental health.
“The self-care toolkits are a valuable addition to the wider health and wellbeing offer at your local library, including wellbeing bags for adults, Reading Well books on prescription and events and activities to support social connections.”
More details are available by clicking on this link.
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Ripon joins in Chinese New Year celebrationsBambudda restaurant in Ripon served up a taste of Chinese New Year celebration with a lion dance yesterday evening.
The colourful event was due to take place on Kirkgate at 6pm, but the dancers and musicians were held up in traffic on their way from Manchester.
However, a large crowd of people, including families with young children, returned for 7.30pm to see two puppet lions gyrating to the percussive beat of drum, cymbals and tambourine.
The Chinese New Year, or Spring Festival, dates back more than 4,000 years and is the longest holiday of the year in China. This year is the year of the tiger.
The lions ‘scare off evil spirits and bring positive energy’
The celebrations will last until 15 February and end in China and other countries with a spectacular Lantern Festival, which features ancient spiritual traditions and celebrates family reunions and society.
Some ancient Chinese traditions were on display in Ripon, as Bambudda owner Benjamin Wu, who was born in Hong Kong, told the Stray Ferret:
“It is believed that the lions will scare off evil spirits and bring positive energy.”
He added:
“They can also bring good luck and good health, which is what everybody wants and I’m delighted that so many people came to share and enjoy this cultural tradition with us. “
Bambudda owner Benjamin Wu, with the lions who bring good luck and good health
General manager Lucy Nguyen, said:
“I come from Vietnam and the New year is also celebrated there in a similar way.
“It’s like Christmas in this country and is a time to be with family and friends.”
The musicians
She added:
“We’ve brought the lion dance to Ripon since we opened four years ago, but we couldn’t hold it last year because of the covid lockdown.”
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North Stainley school’s fundraising 10K race to return next monthAfter two year’s off because of covid restrictions, a major fundraising race day is back on track.
The Lightwater Valley 10K and 3K Challenges, organised by Friends of North Stainley School (FONSS), will take place on Saturday March 12.
With the number of runners limited to 500, would-be entrants are being asked to book their place as soon as possible.
Places can be purchased in advance from Race Best on https://racebest.com/races/g4zhe The fee is £15 for affiliated and £17 for unaffiliated runners.
The event, covering an undulating multi-terrain route that passes through the Lightwater estate and into the surrounding countryside, will raise much-needed funds for the village school.
North Stainley Primary School opened in 1871 and is still based in its original building, close to the village church of St Mary’s.
The FONSS are the fundraising arm and use funds to contribute towards school trips, technology for pupils, music lessons and sporting activities.
Headteacher Louise Wallen, said:
“We are delighted to have the race up and running after what has been a challenging couple of years when we have been largely unable to fundraise.”
“It’s a fabulous community project, and a great day out for all the family.”
Organisers would like to hear from anyone willing to help on the day by offering their services as marshals. Contact can be made via admin@northstainley.n-yorks.sch.uk
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Ripon students learn how to save a lifeStudents at Ripon Grammar School are being taught vital skills that could help them save a life one day.
Nine sixth formers and five Year 11 students are working towards National Pool Lifeguard Qualification (NPLQ), the most widely recognised lifeguard qualification in the UK & Ireland and a requirement for most lifeguarding jobs.
Trainee lifeguard Neive Zenner encourages others to consider the course:
She said:
“My advice would be, don’t be scared of throwing yourself into everything. You may feel embarrassed to shout across a pool, however the confidence you gain is worth it.”
Course tutor Myles Strudwick, who has been involved in lifeguarding and lifesaving for 20 years, both nationally and internationally, agrees:
He said:
“I am passionate about the development of skills in this area for anyone at any age, and nobody is too young or too old to start taking part.
“Even if it’s not something you use every day, the skills covered might just be enough to save a life one day. And it’s a strange – but thankful – feeling when that happens.”
Henry Grice-Holt, plans to work at Camp America during his gap year, where he hopes the qualification will help him get a lifeguard role.
The 17-year-old, who aims to study medicine after RGS, inspired him to apply.
Henry, who plans a career in medicine after RGS, pointed out that the most important thing he had learnt was how to perform CPR with the use of a defibrillator:
“I have also been taught how to safely get someone who is unconscious out of the water and get them in the recovery position.”
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Neive, 17, said she was taking the course to help her get an interesting part-time job while at university. The accomplished swimmer added:
“Practical lessons allow you to have hands-on experience and basic first aid training, while theory provides you with the information you need to apply to lessons and even life situations.
“The most important skill I have learnt is communication, I found myself speaking out and answering questions in theory lessons, this then transferred to our pool sessions where we worked in teams relying on verbal skills.”
Henry and Neive use their Wednesday afternoon enrichment period – when sixth formers can take a break from studies to enjoy a range of other activities – to gain their qualification, which involves lessons for two hours a week at the school’s swimming pool, with additional home study.
Year 11 pupils have been taking their lifeguarding classes after school.
As well as being qualified in pool lifeguarding and supervision, with integrated defibrillation and anaphylaxis training, there is the option for the students to gain a First Aid at Work qualification and students, who began the course in November, will gain their qualifications at the beginning of April.
Ripon car park could be resurfaced by Friday — and has bigger baysRipon contractors are on target to complete the resurfacing of the city’s cathedral car park a week ahead of schedule.
The work by A E Duffield & Sons as part of a £106,000 contract is due for completion on February 11, but progress suggests it could be finished by this Friday.
In an additional boost to motorists, a city council request for bays to be increased in size, to make parking easier, has been taken on-board.
A contractor told the Stray Ferret:
“The bays are now a minimum of 2.4 metres wide, compared with the previous ones that were 2.2 metres.”
The parking bays have been widened to 2.4 metres
To accommodate the enlargement of the spaces, it is estimated that a dozen of the car park’s 193 bays will be lost.
Ripon City and Harrogate district independent councillor Pauline McHardy, who led the call for the bays to be increased in size, welcomed the progress made this week.
She said:
“I’m pleased with the positive response from Harrogate Borough Council to our request and thank them for that.
“I’m also delighted that the resurfacing work has gone smoothly and with it likely to be completed early, that will mean a week’s less disruption for people coming into the city who need somewhere to park.”
A E Duffield & Sons has recently been awarded another contract by Harrogate Borough Council to resurface the Fisher Street Car Park in Knaresborough, at a cost of £30,000.
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Ripon’s platinum jubilee plans take shapeA new horn for Ripon will blast out for the Queen’s platinum jubilee, as part of the city’s celebrations.
The instrument will be used for the first time in the hornblower ceremony on Market Square at 9pm on Saturday 4 June and will be in regular use thereafter.
The event will be one of the highlights of the extended Bank Holiday weekend extravaganza, which also includes a special tea party at Ripon Cathedral for people with a June birthday, born between 1952 and 2021.
The aim is to create a ‘human timeline’ dating back to 1952, with one person from each of the 70 years of the Queen’s reign invited to attend, with a guest.
Ripon Cathedral will host a ‘timeline’ tea party with guests from each year of the Queen’s reign
City council leader Andrew Williams, told the Stray Ferret:
“In partnership with the cathedral, Ripon Business Improvement District, Ripon Together and the Ripon Community Poppy Project, we will provide an inclusive four-day programme of activities, that can be enjoyed by people of all ages.
“There will be something for everybody as we and the entire nation join in the celebrations and after the bunting has gone from the streets, the platinum jubilee horn will provide a constant reminder of the Queen’s remarkable service to this country.”
On June 2, the cathedral, which celebrates its 1,350th anniversary this year, will be the focus of attention, when it hosts the civic service for North Yorkshire and later on that day, on Market Square, Ripon will join in a nation-wide beacon lighting ceremony.
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Free live music will be played from 11am until 11.30pm on Market Square between June 2 and 4 and fairground rides for children of all ages and adults will be in place.
On Sunday June 5, Spa Park will be the venue for music from Ripon City Band and children’s entertainers will also be performing.
The event is being arranged by the Ripon Community Poppy Project and attendees will be invited to take their own picnic.
Your chance to shape free summer activities for Ripon childrenSchools, organisations and individuals in Ripon are being urged to help develop plans for a second summer of free sports and activities for children.
Ripon Together, which organised last year’s Summer of Play to support families during the summer holidays, has launched a city-wide survey to build on that experience.
Last year’s events ranged from formal team sports such as cricket and football to karate and croquet, dance, yoga, mindfulness and orienteering, as well as nature hunts at Fountains Abbey.
There were also activities for disabled people, including wheelchair bowls at Hugh Ripley Hall.
Ripon Together, a not-for-profit partnership organisation, has circulated a letter about this year’s activities. It says:
“We want to offer things that are relevant, useful and fun for children, young people and families, connecting organisations and showing what is available for them around Ripon.
“We are now formulating plans for 2022 and if there is anyone in your organisation who could give us their ideas, then please ask them to complete the survey. The more information we have the better that we can prepare.”
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The Summer of Play 2021 was designed to help children and their families after the lifting of the covid lockdown restrictions ln July, which had seen sporting, cultural and other group activities put on hold.
Any questions or queries can be emailed to info@ripontogether.com or you can call David Ingham on 07775 731276.
‘Shocking state’ of Sharow roads prevents motorists from going greenThe ‘shocking state’ of roads in Sharow is preventing motorists from going green, according to villager James Thornborough.
Mr Thornborough is so upset about the state of the roads that he has raised the matter with Skipton and Ripon Conservative MP Julian Smith and North Yorkshire County Council chief executive Richard Flinton.
He told the Stray Ferret:
“The road surfaces are in such a shocking state, that it is not safe to drive on them in smaller vehicles that use less fuel and produce fewer emissions.”
In email correspondence with Mr Smith and Mr Flinton, Mr Thornborough said:
“Given the national government wishes us at our expense to go green ASAP, how can that be achieved If you force village owners like myself to abandon my small commute car in favour of a mid-size SUV to traverse Sharow roads?
“Please note that I did not say navigate our roads because that is now impossible. Every journey stresses suspension parts, grazes tyre side walls, and forces one to meander from one side to another attempting to choose the path of least damage.”
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New Lane, in need of attention
Mr Thornborough’s email, which was copied to the Stray Ferret, added:
“The local Sharow roads consist of pot holes, fissures, and bald tarmac top interrupted by the occasional neat tarmac patch and useless NYCC highways tarmac toothpaste repairs. The tarmac toothpaste repairs started disintegrating the day after application.
“We still have large pot holes marked for repair but not filled.”
The uneven surface on Sharow Lane
In an emailed reply to Mr Thornborough, Mr Flinton, said:
“I have copied in Nigel Smith who is head of highway operations for the council, Mr Smith will look into the issues that you have raised and respond directly with you.”
At the time of publication, no response had been received from Julian Smith.
Kirkby Malzeard’s bells could ring again for Queen’s jubileeThe bells of St Andrew’s in Kirkby Malzeard, which have been silent for several years, could ring again this year to celebrate the Queen’s platinum jubilee.
Jonathan Couchman of Two Dales Bell Ringers, which is an informal group that encourages and promotes bell ringing in Wensleydale and Swaledale, said:
“St Andrew’s church has six beautiful bells but nobody to ring them so in liaison with the church, we would like to mark the jubilee by establishing a bell band there.”
Last year, the Wensleydale ringers held a course of short, interactive online presentations on bell ringing, which resulted in nine new recruits.
The activity does not require great strength and children as young as 10 are able to participate.
This spring, a second course is planned, with hands-on training in local towers, including St Andrew’s, and other church towers in Askrigg, Aysgarth, Grinton and Richmond.
Training will be interspersed with online presentations. Times and dates of sessions will be arranged in agreement with participants and the aim is to hold the first session in late February.
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“We invite everyone to join us, from those who have simply wondered about how the bells are rung through to those interested in whether bell ringing is for them.
“It is a team activity that keeps your brain active and your body agile. Some do it for the community of friends, some do it to contribute to church life, some to keep the glorious sound of bells alive, and some do it for the pure pleasure and feeling of wellbeing it brings.”
For more than 500 years church bells have resounded across Wensleydale and Swaledale, but for the first time since World War II, they fell silent because of social distancing requirements and covid lockdowns, which put bell ringing on hold.
Anybody wanting to find out more and how to participate, can email David Scrutton at wensleydaleringers@gmail.com.
Children’s poetry focuses on poverty at Ripon WorkhouseFifty-two year 6 pupils from Holy Trinity Junior School in Ripon have used their lockdown experiences to empathise with how Victorian children might have felt as inmates at Ripon Workhouse.
The children have been working towards their Bronze Arts Awards with staff at Ripon Museums, poet and Ripon Poetry Festival founder Andy Croft and animator Dawn Feather.
They encouraged the pupils to imagine themselves in the shoes of poor and desperate Victorian children entering the workhouse.
They wrote poems under the titles Dread, Fear, Grief and Nothing. They recorded the poems as spoken word with sound effects and made their own chalk drawing animations that were presented as powerful audio-visual pieces.
Carrie Philip, Ripon Museum’s learning and outreach manager, said:
“It became clear that the fear and uncertainty the children had experienced during the past two years of covid helped them to identify with child inmates in the Victorian workhouse.
“They produced beautiful and compelling pieces of creative writing as an emotional response to experiencing the workhouse. They should be immensely proud of their achievements.”
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Pupils were awarded their Bronze Arts Award with feedback praising their excellent animated spoken poetry. The experience went beyond the immediate task at hand and will hopefully inspire the group to explore other creative endeavours.
Holy Trinity headteacher Paul Bowlas said:
“We were thrilled to work in conjunction with Ripon Museums to provide a broad and creative experience for the children of our school.
“Working together on the arts award provided a much-needed experience which not only helped children educationally but was also very good for their health and wellbeing.”
The animated poems can be accessed through Ripon Museums website www.riponmuseums.co.uk