Ripon City Council has vowed to do everything within its power to keep Ripon Spa Baths as a community asset for public use.
Councillors agreed unanimously last night on the need for urgent action to prevent the Grade II listed building from being sold for residential development.
They rallied to a call from council leader Andrew Williams, who said:
“We cannot let Harrogate Borough Council sell the spa baths from under our noses.”
Councillor Mike Chambers, who sits on both Ripon City Council and Harrogate Borough Council, representing Ripon Spa, said:
“We need to get this sorted now.”
Cllr Chambers, who is Harrogate Borough Council’s Cabinet Member for Housing and Safer Communities, added:
“It is clear that Harrogate Borough Council wants a capital receipt for this building and we must approach them and find out exactly what they have planned.”
On the market – Ripon Spa Baths.
Councillor Pauline McHardy said:
“Harrogate is trying to rush a sale through. We need to have detailed consultation and time to consider the future use of this asset that belongs to the city.”
A motion put forward by Cllr Williams, calling on Harrogate Borough Council to ensure the spa complex remains in public use as a community facility, was supported by all members.
It was also agreed to arrange a meeting with Ripon Civic Society and all other interested parties to investigate options.
If deemed necessary, after that meeting, the city council will look to appoint specialist consultants to advise on the development of heritage assets for community use.
Cllr Williams said:
“This is important in a growing city, which will see more than 1,700 new homes being built in future years.
“We can’t afford to see the loss of community facilities, with developments such as Clotherholme coming on stream.”
Ripon Civic Society has already stated that it favours development Spa complex for the NHS – in line with the neighbourhood plan for the city.
Councillor Stephen Craggs believes that the building should be developed as a facility for young people in Ripon. He said:
“This is a once in a generation opportunity and we must get it right.”
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For sale signs are already in place at the spa baths.
A statement issued by Harrogate Borough Council said the building is being replaced with a new six-lane swimming pool as part of an extended and refurbished Ripon Leisure Centre.
A Harrogate Borough Council spokesperson said:
“Ripon Spa Baths has served the community well over the years.
“The future sale, and redevelopment of the listed building, would allow this local asset to be redeveloped (subject to planning approval), retain key features and remain as a city landmark.”
For sale sign on Ripon’s Spa Baths
The ‘for sale’ sign has been put in place outside Ripon’s Spa Baths.
The move comes despite calls from councillors and Ripon Civic Society for detailed consultation to decide the future of the Grade II listed building.
Sanderson Weatherall, the property agents appointed by Harrogate Borough Council (HBC) is marketing the property under the heading ‘residential’.
But under a separate heading of ‘development proposals’ says:
“The property could potentially be suitable for a variety of alternative uses subject to planning.”
It then adds that HBC’s planning department has provided the following statement:
Ripon hairdressers prepare for the long road back“Subject to planning permission and listed building consent, the re-development could include low density residential use, community uses and other uses appropriate to town centre locations having regard to the amenity considerations and constraints of the locality.”
A long road back from lockdown and lost trade lies ahead for Ripon hairdressers Deborah Chalmers and Sharon Bielby.
The friends own and run hair and beauty businesses less than 100 yards apart on North Street, Ripon.
Deborah’s Love Hair & Beauty Boutique depends heavily on the wedding market.
Sharon, whose shop bears her name, is a barber who cuts men’s and boys’ hair.
For both, the priority following the stop-start year of 2020 and the closed-down first quarter of 2021, has been to keep their heads above water.
Now they are buoyant at the prospect of reopening in six weeks time on 12 April and finally earning some money again.
Their loyal and now long-haired customers have kept in touch and they are looking forward to a busy post-lockdown period.
Deborah, who ensures brides and their bridesmaids look beautiful for the big day, told the Stray Ferret:
“It has been a very difficult time.
“The shop was shut for long periods and just about every wedding booking I had for last summer was cancelled because of the pandemic.”
She used a government small business grant to pay for overheads while living off the crumbs that came from the dramatically scaled-down wedding table.
Sharon Bielby reflects on a difficult year, as she gets ready for the many customers in desperate need of a hair cut.
The same applies for Sharon, who said:
“It has been a case of surviving on the barest minimum, while staying positive and thinking about the many customers who just can’t wait to get their hair cut again.”
Her shop will have an appointment-only policy in place from reopening day. She joked:
“I will probably have to allow extra time for each customer, because they will have a lot more hair to cut!”
Deborah, who has created her own brand of lip balm as a reopening thank-you gift for her customers, is looking forward to a very busy summer.
She said:
“From mid-June, the government is easing the restrictions on the size of gatherings and that’s good news.
“Couples who postponed their plans, still want to get married and share their celebration with family and friends.”
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An additional factor gives Deborah hope that she can make up for some of the lost business she has experienced over the last year.
She said:
Alert resident averts Ripon travel chaos again“With Saturdays like gold-dust in the wedding calendar, people are now arranging their weddings for other days of the week.
“That means I will be handling hair and beauty for up to four events a week, compared with a maximum of two Saturday weddings a week in a normal year.”
North Yorkshire County Council has performed another u-turn to avoid travel problems for people going for vaccinations in Ripon.
For the second time in seven weeks, the council’s highways department has had to hit the brakes on plans to close a bridge on a key diversion route.
The bridge over the River Ure on Boroughbridge Road was due to close for inspection all day tomorrow.
But alert resident Paul Stockburn pointed out that such a move would have caused problems because Boroughbridge Road is already serving as a diversion for a section of the nearby Dishforth Road that is closed for road works.
Had the closure gone ahead, it would have created difficulties for people driving along Boroughbridge Road in and out of Ripon.
The bridge, which is half a mile from Ripon racecourse vaccination centre, was first due to close for inspection on 19 January.
But six days earlier part of Dishforth Road closed for eight weeks for work by Yorkshire Water. It remains closed.
Conflicting closure signs on the Dishforth and Boroughbridge roads. But the bridge over the River Ure will be open tomorrow
When Mr Stockburn pointed this out, the highways department said it would re-schedule the bridge closure when Yorkshire Water’s pipe renewal work was complete.
So Mr Stockburn, who lives in Copt Hewick, was surprised to see road closure signs appear again this week. He told the Stray Ferret:
“I couldn’t believe my eyes because I know that the Dishforth Road is still going to be closed tomorrow.
“The county council appear incapable of working out that eight weeks from 13 January gives a finish date of 10 March.
“Unbelievably, they were about to make exactly the same mistake.
“You wonder, did they ask Yorkshire Water first, before deciding they were going to close the bridge on 5 March?”
After receiving a call from Mr Stockburn, the Stray Ferret contacted NYCC to let it know the Dishforth Road closure was ongoing.
Melisa Burnham, highways area manager at the council, apologised and said:
“Yorkshire Water has been undertaking an eight-week programme of works on Dishforth Road therefore our contractors scheduled the one-day bridge inspection for this Friday when the work was due to be complete.
“Unfortunately Yorkshire Water need to extend their works until March 14 so we are in the process of rearranging the bridge inspection and have removed the advance notice signs.”
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Prior to the start of its work, Yorkshire Water sent a letter to all households in Copt Hewick. It said:
“We understand that these works will be inconvenient, which is why we’ve liaised closely with North Yorkshire County Council highways department regarding every aspect of this essential scheme.’”
The importance of the Boroughbridge Road diversion route, increased on February 2 when the covid vaccination centre opened at Ripon racecourse.
Starlings leave their mark in RiponBird spotting has taken on a whole new meaning recently for some Ripon residents.
During early evenings, local people with their eyes on the skies can currently witness thousands of starlings swoop and switch in stunning synchronised movements.
The murmuration provides a delightful display for those looking on in amazement.
But for people living beneath the flight path, it’s a different story as the starlings leave their mark.
Following each performance, residents of Newby Street, Vyner Street and the adjacent roads, face a clean-up operation.
The aerial bombardment of the Bondgate area sees cars, rooves, pavements, gardens and back yards coated.
A murmuration of starlings in acrobatic flight over Ripon.
One resident, who lives in the Bondgate area but asked not to be named, told the Stray Ferret:
“There is no doubting that it is a magnificent spectacle, but they do leave a deposit.
“Some people who live around here are having to wash their cars every day.
“The worst hit have to scrape the stuff off windscreens or they wouldn’t be able to see where they are going.”
Spectators can also find themselves in a spot of bother if they don’t have an umbrella as they watch the winged wonders in full flow.
According to the wildlife charity RSPB, flocks of starlings – some native to the UK and others from Europe – come together to roost through the winter months.
Their beating of wings in flight is said to sound like a murmur, which gives the mass gathering its murmuration description.
The starlings stay safe from predators by sticking together in large numbers, making sure they are not easy prey.
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In colder months, by acting in unison, they generate collective body heat.
With thousands in close flight, this gives them the essential extra warmth they need to survive bitterly cold days.
For people engaged in car washing, window scraping, roof, path, garden and yard cleaning, who are not necessarily as thrilled as others by the natural phenomenon, there is good news.
Spring has sprung and later this month, with warmer weather on its way, the murmuration will be grounded until the autumn.
One of Ripon’s favourite play areas is to be refurbished in time for summer.
New equipment will be installed in Quarry Moor park, funded by the 2021-2022 parish precept.
The park, just off the A61 on the southern approach to Ripon, was donated to the city in 1945 by Alderman Thomas Fowler Spence.
It currently includes an activities centre for children as well as outdoor play equipment.
Ripon City Council leader, councillor Andrew Williams, told the Stray Ferret:
“The play equipment, that adds to the park’s attraction for families with young children, has been in need of replacement for some time.
“With the prospect of the covid lockdown being lifted later this year, we want to ensure that the work is completed in readiness for the summer months.”
The land, which includes woodland walks, was left in trust by the former mayor on the understanding that it would be:
“Kept for Ripon children for all time.”
The 24-acre site was a limestone quarry for hundreds of years until the 1950s. It was also used for military training during the Second World War.
In 1986, after extensive conservation work by volunteers, it was designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).
Quarry Moor Activities Centre
The area includes species-rich calcareous grassland and a protected wildflower meadow.
A woodland path was added in 2019.
Ripon prides itself on being child-friendly and for many years the city council has supported free family events.
These include the St Wilfrid’s Day procession in August, the switch-on of Christmas lights and New Year’s Eve entertainment on Market Square.
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The coronavirus crisis and social distancing requirements, in place since last March, caused the cancellation of mass participation activities.
For the upcoming financial year, £100,000 is being allocated for public events from summer onwards.
It is hoped that covid will be under sufficient control to allow them to go ahead.
Ripon’s parish precept for 2021-2022 will generate £400,000. Council taxpayers in the city will pay £70 towards it, in addition to council tax paid to North Yorkshire County Council and Harrogate Borough Council.
Ripon Grammar launches furry fundraiser for Prince’s Trust
A virtual pet show is enabling Ripon Grammar School students to help young people affected by the pandemic.
The imaginative idea ensures the show can go on, using Instagram as the platform to show off dogs, cats and other pets.
The school’s Prince’s Trust charity team is asking for photographs showcasing the best and cutest pets, for a suggested donation of £2. Cash and pet hamper prizes will be awarded in three categories for dogs, cats and other animals.
More than 50 favourite photographs have already been entered. The closing date is March 10 and winners will be announced later in the month.
All money raised will go towards the Prince’s Trust, which helps young people all over the UK. The charity helps them to build confidence and skills, while supporting them into education, jobs and training.
Organiser Alice Simmerson, who has entered her own dog, Flo, into the show, said:
“I feel confident that, despite lockdown, we can achieve our aims to raise a large sum of money for such a good cause.”
Will this cat win one of the Ripon Grammar School Pet Show prizes?
Student Molly Acton said she and the other members of the 13-strong RGS Prince’s Trust team feel strongly about helping young people adversely affected by the pandemic.
She added:
“I feel proud to be raising money for this charity, despite being confined to home. Even though we may be struggling to control our own lives, we can still help others.
“With education interrupted, the loss of apprenticeships and increasing youth unemployment, young people especially have suffered at the hands of the pandemic. If we can help in any way to make their lives easier and more sustainable, we must.”
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Previously, a team led by Marcus Bartlem raised £200 for the Prince’s Trust with a cake sale at school before the recent lockdown. It also sold candy canes before Christmas and aims to raise around £1,000 in total by the end of this academic year.
Marcus said:
“I’m happy the money is going to such a good cause, helping young people to stay on their feet when the coronavirus has derailed so many lives.”
Future fundraising plans include completing the Three Peaks walk, within guidelines, in 24 hours, and a funky tie or socks day once school re-opens.
Ripon councillors request 14 speed sign sitesRipon City Council has asked North Yorkshire County Council to approve its request for 14 vehicle activated speed signs.
The county council, which is the highways authority, has the ultimate say over where the signs can be placed.
It has indicated it will approve use of the signs, which are intended to encourage drivers to obey speed restrictions rather than punish them, on no more than eight Ripon streets.
But Ripon councillors have identified 14 hotspots for the traffic-calming measure and hope they will all be approved.
The signs show drivers their speed and whether they are going too fast. The cost of adapting each lamp post to include a sign is £500 plus VAT.
Paula Benson, clerk to Ripon City Council, told February’s full council meeting the county council had said it was prepared to approve the use of the signs on no more than eight Ripon streets.
Councillors voted unanimously to call on the county council to approve more locations.
They also said that if additional money was required for signs and installation it should come from the city council.
City, Harrogate district and county councillor, Stuart Martin, said:
“Members of the public have told us where these signs are needed.
“We should stick with the locations that have been identified and requested.”
Council leader Andrew Williams added:
“Ripon is not a small village, it’s a growing city with more traffic and therefore increased risk to pedestrians.”
Whitcliffe Lane – one of 14 locations on the city council list for a speed awareness sign.
Because the signs are mobile, they can be moved around the city and put in selected traffic hotspots for a few weeks at a time.
Councillor Pauline McHardy, said:
“It’s a way of educating motorists driving in different parts of Ripon, by making them aware of their speed.”
Among the locations on the city council list is Kirkby Road, where residents have likened a 300-metre stretch with no white lines to a ‘race track’.
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Across the city, Whitcliffe Lane has also been put forward as a street in need of a speed sign.
The lane is alongside a new housing development at the former Ripon Cathedral Choir School site, which has increased traffic.
This situation is being repeated in other parts of Ripon, where new housing schemes are coming on stream.
Ripon sinkhole site set for makeoverA central Ripon site where the emergence of a sinkhole prevented new homes being built is to be given a makeover.
Harrogate Borough Council was set to build 17 homes to replace a block of flats in poor condition on Allhallowgate.
However, serious ground stability issues came to light during demolition of the existing properties.
The potential for sinkholes to open up led to the development, which was backed by funding from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, being scrapped.
Harrogate Borough Council decided the project was no longer economically viable in 2019.
Hoardings were erected around the site and an entry gateway was chained and locked to protect public safety.
Now Mike Chambers, the cabinet member for housing and safer communities at Harrogate Borough Council, has positive news.
He told the Stray Ferret:
“The area is going to be tidied up, levelled, re-seeded and greened to improve its appearance.
“It has become overgrown and the hoardings are a bit the worse for wear.”
There is funding to refurbish the remaining Allhallowgate flats.
Covid social distancing requirements have limited progress so far.
Cllr Chambers said:
“As the lockdown eventually lifts, we can start to progress projects.
“Our initial aim is to make the site safe and look more presentable.
“In the longer-term we will need to decide whether it is going to be a new public open space, or an area for use by the residents of the remaining Allhallogate block.”
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The residents of the demolished block were all permanently re-housed. Cllr Chambers said:
“We moved quickly and managed to purchase 18 replacement properties in the Ripon area through the housing revenue account.
“This means that there has been no net loss in the stock of properties available for social housing.”
Funding has also been allocated for extensive refurbishment and improvement of the remaining Allhallowgate block.
Ground instability problems caused by the soluble nature of gypsum have been seen in many parts of Ripon.
The Stray Ferret reported in October about the evacuation of a residential block at Bedern Court, caused by subsidence in the area.
In February 2018, a sinkhole opened up on the car park of Ripon Leisure Centre, off Dallamires Lane.
In 2016, a dozen homes in Magdalens Road were evacuated after a 66-ft wide sinkhole opened up.
The Workhouse Museum in Ripon is providing another illuminating experience.
The Allhallowgate building is being lit up shortly after dark each evening with displays celebrating the city’s past.
The images are being projected onto the museum, which is currently closed due to lockdown.
Organised by Ripon Museum Trust, the idea follows the successful Christmas lighting display, which used the building as a backdrop.
Ripon’s proud history of community service is captured in a photographic display projected onto the Workhouse Museum shortly after dark.
Called Serving Our Community – Images from Ripon’s Past, the light show features historic photographs from the Ripon Re-Viewed collection.
It includes images of civic leaders, emergency services, voluntary groups and others who have provided community service in the city.
The message taken from the past applies to current times, making the point that ‘together we are stronger’.
Helen Thornton, director of Ripon Museum Trust said:
“We had some fantastic feedback from the community on our Christmas lighting display and we wanted to keep it running.
“After talking with Ripon Re-Viewed, we came up with the idea to display some brilliant historic photos of Ripon in days gone by,
“It’s a way to bring the community together through our shared past, at what is a difficult time for many. Hopefully the display will intrigue and inspire anyone passing by the museum.”
Designed and created by locally-based audio-visual and lighting specialists Fusion LX, the light show runs for two hours each evening.
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Mandy Whitehead, project lead at Ripon Re-Viewed, said:
“A big thank you to the Workhouse Museum and Fusion LX for the opportunity at this time to share some of the fabulous images from Ripon’s past, of local people serving our community.
“We hope it will give the local community an insight into life in Ripon across the years.”
The display can be viewed for two hours just after dark.
Ripon’s three museums are currently closed due to the national lockdown.
Full details of the museums’ reopening will be published online at riponmuseums.co.uk as soon as they are available.