Vicky Carr, Author at The Stray Ferret

Business Breakfast: ‘Bed bug dog’ proves a hit as pest event returns to Harrogate

It’s time to join the Stray Ferret Business Club. The fourth in our series of networking events, with Banyan Bar & Kitchen, is a breakfast event on April 27 from 8am.

Don’t miss out on this chance to network with businesses from across the Harrogate district. Get your tickets by clicking or tapping here.

More than 500 professionals have been in Harrogate for a pest control conference for the first time since early 2020.

PPC Live, hosted by the British Pest Control Association, shared the latest innovations in the industry with visitors from across the UK and Europe.

Held at the Yorkshire Event Centre, it included a demonstration by Brian Leith and Benji the dog, showing how they can identify a bed bug infestation.

Lauren Day, events manager at BPCA said:

“We were delighted to be back in Harrogate and networking with visitors, sponsors and exhibitors from across the industry.

“PPC Live gave visitors the chance to get hands-on with new pest kit, meet the people designing and distributing the latest in pest control technology and of course see interesting demos like Benji the bed bug detection dog in action.”

Harrogate firm secures first council wellbeing award

A council-run workplace wellbeing scheme has given the first level of accreditation to a Harrogate business.

Pemco, based in Starbeck’s Spa Lane, signed up to the Workplace Wellbeing Award through the public health team at North Yorkshire County Council.

The scheme gives businesses a framework to ensure staff welfare is made a high priority.

For Pemco, which offers management support and training services to other companies, this has meant hybrid working, modern office facilities, and team-building events. The company has also committed to not contacting staff by email outside working hours.

Holly Astbury, a partner at Pemco and the company’s wellbeing lead, said:

“The award process has been a fantastic opportunity for us to focus on our employees’ health and wellbeing.

“The support from the Workplace Wellbeing team at the council has been invaluable, especially the opportunity to carry out an in-depth health needs assessment, which gave us an insight into our employees’ needs and allowed us to tailor an action plan to suit them, rather than guessing in the dark about which interventions to implement.”

Design lead Andrew Liddle said:

“Flexible working has made a massive difference to mine and my family’s routine. It takes away a huge headache of having to pick the kids up from school before work finishes.

“The monthly team meals are great for us all to catch up together, as well as the social events outside of work like the picnic and quiz night.”

Established in 2010, Pemco currently has a team of seven, and is recruiting as part of its expansion plans.

NHS places to be lost as Ripon dental practice closure announced

A dental practice offering NHS care in Ripon is set to close in three months’ time.

Bupa’s practice on Finkle Street will shut its doors on June 30, with the national company citing a lack of dentists to provide care.

The Finkle Street branch has provided NHS and private dental care. The Bupa Clock Tower practice in North Parade is unaffected, as are Harrogate’s Raglan Suite and Bupa Dental Care in East Parade – but none of these is accepting new adult NHS patients.

Finkle Street is one of 85 across the country to be closed, sold or merged over the coming months. As well as problems with recruiting, Bupa said rising costs influenced its decision.

Bupa Dental Care general manager Mark Allen said:

“As a leading dental provider in the UK, our priority must be to enable patients to receive the care they need.

“For the majority of affected practices, this decision will allow commissioners to procure local providers for the NHS contract, tailoring services and investment to the needs of the local community, thereby providing a better opportunity for patients to continue access to NHS dental services.”

Bupa said it will hand back its dental contract in Ripon to the NHS, allowing commissioners to find a new provider for NHS dental services.

However, the issue of NHS provision has already raised concerns in the Harrogate district.

It was raised in the House of Commons last month when Daisy Cooper, MP for for St Albans, said only half of children in North Yorkshire had seen an NHS dentist last year.

Last month, the chairman of North Yorkshire County Council’s health scrutiny committee, Cllr Andrew Lee, said he had raised the issue of NHS dental access in the county with the government.

The NHS website does not list any practices in the Harrogate district as accepting new adult patients for NHS treatment. Only two – Bupa’s Clock Tower in Ripon and Boroughbridge Dental Centre – are shown as taking new patients aged under 18 on the NHS.

Previously known as Oasis Dental Care, the Finkle Street practice had five surgeries and employed six dentists, a hygienist, seven dental nurses, a practice manager and two receptionists when the Care Quality Commission last inspected in 2016.

Bupa has not confirmed how many jobs will be lost as a result of the closure, but said it would redeploy staff “where possible”.

Mr Allen added:

“We fully understand the impact today’s decision has on our patients and our people within these practices. This decision has not been taken lightly and closure is a last resort.

“Despite our continued efforts, the dental industry is facing a number of significant and systemic challenges that are placing additional pressure on providing patient care, in particular recruiting dentists to deliver NHS dental care.

“This decision enables us to focus our efforts on high-quality, continued sustainable care for patients across our wider portfolio.”

Andrew Jones to stand for election again in Harrogate and Knaresborough

Andrew Jones will stand to be MP for the Harrogate and Knaresborough constituency for a fifth time, the Conservative party has confirmed.

The announcement follows a meeting of the Harrogate and Knaresborough Conservative Association’s executive committee last night.

There, Mr Jones spoke to party activists and took questions, before a secret ballot selected him as the party’s candidate once again.

After the meeting, in a statement on his website, Community News, he said:

“It is a real privilege to represent the area where I have lived since the 1990s. I have never wanted to represent anywhere else and have never stood for any other parliamentary seat.

“My approach has always been to speak up for our area first, to be active for the community in which I live and to be positive in my campaigns.”

Mr Jones was first elected in 2010, beating the late Liberal Democrat Claire Kelley by just 1,039 votes, following the retirement of long-standing Lib Dem MP Phil Willis.

He increased his majority to more than 16,000 in 2015, and 18,000 two years later. At the last general election in late 2019, it fell to 9,675, though he still polled his second-highest number of votes, at more than 29,000.

The next election will have to be held by January 28, 2025.

Mr Jones will face Tom Gordon of the Liberal Democrats, and Paul Ko Ferrigno for the Green Party. Labour has yet to declare a candidate in the race.

When asked in January whether Mr Jones would be standing again, a spokesperson for the Harrogate and Knaresborough Conservative Association said:

“I think I must have missed something… is there a general election? I am able to confirm that the MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough is Andrew Jones.”

This week, reflecting on his 13 years in politics on his website, Mr Jones said:

“I’m really not interested in US-style attack politics where people drag one another down all the time. Where we have differences we should challenge one another respectfully and constructively. It saddens me that too often in local and national politics this doesn’t happen.

“I will keep campaigning for the things people here tell me our area needs building on the successes of the past 13 years. We have more trains to and from London, more services to Leeds and York, the pacers have gone, we have a largely electric bus fleet, our public buildings are being de-carbonised, we have new leisure facilities being built, more electric vehicle charging points are on the way, there is sustained low unemployment and over 10,000 new trees have been planted in the constituency.

“This is only a flavour of our progress locally. There is more to do and none of these things happen because of any one person. They happen because residents, community groups, councillors and the Member of Parliament work together to make them happen. Residents can be assured that my ongoing commitment to those community partnerships is genuine because this is my community too.

“It is an honour to be given the chance to serve our community again.”

Otley Road to be closed for cycle route improvements

Otley Road in Harrogate will be closed for five nights next month while remedial works are carried out to the cycle path.

The work follows a review of the project by North Yorkshire County Council and contractor WSP after its completion last February.

The company had been asked to carry out improvements, including carriageway resurfacing, but this was delayed until after CityFibre installed new fibre broadband infrastructure earlier this year.

Now, dates have been set for the remedial work.

Otley Road will be closed between Cold Bath Road and Harlow Moor Road every night from April 24 to 28, from 7pm to 3am.

The Stray Ferret asked the council for full details of the work to be carried out, but had not received a response by the time of publication.

The news of the planned works follows an announcement from the council that it was scrapping the second phase of the three-part cycle lane scheme.

The first phase, which saw shared and segregated cycle lanes installed on Otley Road between Cold Bath Road and Harlow Moor Road, has come under fire since its construction. As part of a joint project which also aimed to widen the junction between Otley Road and Harlow Moor Road, it cost more than £2.2m.

Pedestrians have said the shared paths do not feel safe, while cyclists said it did nothing to encourage more people to cycle.

As a result, the council said it is reviewing plans for schemes to encourage active travel and would not be extending the cycle route to Beech Grove, as originally planned.

Speaking last month, the council’s executive member for transport, Cllr Keane Duncan, said:

“Our proposal to consider an alternative package of sustainable transport measures demonstrates how we are listening to public feedback. Halting construction of phase two allows us the opportunity to prepare new measures with local input and support.

“The constraints of Otley Road meant it was always going to be difficult to meet government cycle infrastructure design standards without infringing on the Stray, widening the road or removing trees.

“We consulted on a number of options, but these were not fully compliant and attracted criticism. Cyclists have expressed concerns that the proposed cycle way would not encourage more cycling due to its design, while pedestrians said they were concerned about their safety.

“Given the concerns, it is right that we think again and explore alternative measures to promote walking, cycling and use of public transport.”

Police and fire crews rescue homeless man from Starbeck bin

Police and fire crews rescued a man from a commercial bin in Starbeck last night.

Firefighters from Harrogate were called to a premises in the High Street just after 6pm, where they used small tools to release the man.

A spokesperson for Harrogate Fire Station said:

“It was believed to be a homeless person who got himself trapped accidentally when the lid came down and locked.”

Police officers at the scene offered to take the man to a homeless shelter.

Fears for vulnerable families after changes to Harrogate district children’s centres

Concerns have been raised about vulnerable children and families missing out on vital support in the Harrogate district.

Parents and professionals have told the Stray Ferret changes to children’s centres, including the health visiting service, have led to a decline in the support available.

Mum Jen Earl said the support on offer after her son was born in April 2020 was a fraction of what it had been following the birth of her daughter in September 2018.

She said the difference is apparent when looking through her children’s record books, which showed regular checks at health visitor drop-in sessions for her daughter, but barely anything for her son. She said:

“I really missed that input. I didn’t have anywhere to go. You could ring the health visitor and leave a message and sometimes it would be two weeks before someone would phone back. Really, the type of questions you’re asking, you need a quick response.”

She used to attend a weekly breastfeeding support group in central Harrogate in 2019, where there was “always a friendly face and you could ask questions”. She also went to workshops about weaning and baby sleep.

She added:

“It’s so sad when I think of all the first-time mums who have missed out.

“It must be so frustrating for the health visitors because they went into their profession to support mums and babies in that initial phase. To not be able to do those basic things like weighing babies must be hard.”

Bilton Children’s Centre is based on the site of the former Woodfield Primary School

Mum Emily Clough, whose son was born in December 2020, said all her contact with the health visiting service was positive and useful, but she still suffered because of the lack of face-to-face opportunities.

“I felt supported by them directly, although there was no weigh-in, no face-to-face clinics – there was no social space. That’s what was missing for me.

“I’m glad I didn’t have any real long-standing challenges in breastfeeding or my son didn’t have any drops in weight. We didn’t have any concerns, but had those clinics been on, I would have taken him to be weighed.

“By default, that would have initiated other conversations.

“When I say I didn’t struggle, in hindsight I struggled in terms of being really isolated.”

One perinatal mental health professional, who asked not to be named, told the Stray Ferret local services were already seeing an impact from the reduction in face-to-face health visiting support.

She said she had worked across North Yorkshire for several years and the Harrogate district had previously had the best mental health support in the county, such as through the Mums in Mind support group.

Since covid, she said, there had been a rise in demand for perinatal mental health services. She believes this is because opportunities to spot problems at an early stage are no longer available.

She said:

“A lot of our referrals came from health visitors and midwives. That has significantly dropped. They’re just not out there seeing those women.

“We’re seeing people a lot more in crisis now than we ever did before.”

She added the impact of the changes had also affected health visitors, who she said were no longer able to carry out their roles as effectively as they wanted. She added:

“It’s just complete devastation and absolutely heartbreaking.”

‘Blended approach’

North Yorkshire County Council, which is responsible for support to families including the health visiting service, said children’s centres across the Harrogate district remain open.

Cllr Janet Sanderson, executive member for children and families, said:

“The majority of our children centres are now open and delivering targeted activities to children and their families where a need has been identified. The way we deliver activities has evolved as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Over the past two years, the Early Help service has redesigned the delivery of activities to support children and their families, moving to a blended approach of virtual and face-to-face activities.

“This has enabled the delivery of countywide virtual activities which families are able to access from their home, reducing the need for the number of premises.”

The council has already announced it will consult on the closure of five children’s centres across North Yorkshire, including Pateley Bridge, which have not been used since the pandemic. If that closure goes ahead, the facility is likely to be used by St Cuthbert’s Primary School, based in the same building.

Cllr Sanderson said the council was working alongside voluntary and community groups to develop activities in their areas. She said the Get Going Grant scheme had been used to support 93 groups in the last year.

Meanwhile, she said NYCC had invested in a programme to support parents with their mental health and it was also being used in schools and early years settings to increase access.

A Grow and Learn project was being run with libraries to deliver activities to support children’s early communication, she said, adding:

“As part of this work, we have developed a training programme which is accessible to all services working with children and families, including the voluntary and community sector.

“That enables agencies to access training to support them with their Early Help offer to children and their families.”

Ms Sanderson said virtual health visitor drop-in sessions had been available online since last summer instead of face-to-face sessions, while the new model of delivery also included sessions on topics including breastfeeding, weaning and other infant advice.

She also said any families with concerns can call the 0-19 service from Monday to Friday, 8am to 5pm, on 0300 303 0916.

Have you been affected by the changes to children’s centres and the health visiting service? Email us or call the newsdesk on 01423 276197.

Five homes planned for barn conversion near Knaresborough

Plans have been submitted to turn an agricultural building in Coneythorpe into five two-bedroom homes.

The proposals for Spring Bank Farm on Shortsill Lane would include creating a “physical buffer” between the barn and the surrounding agricultural land and buildings.

The barn, currently used for storage, is made from a steel frame and block work. The application said the conversion would have vertical cedar wood cladding and aluminium window frames.

The external block work base would be retained, the application said, “ensuring the building retains its utilitarian, agricultural aesthetic as constructed and does not introduce alien or inappropriate elements to its rural surroundings”.

The barn would be converted to a terrace of five homes. Each would have an open plan living, dining and kitchen space on the ground floor, along with a bedroom and bathroom.

Each first floor would include a bedroom with en suite and dressing area, as well as a mezzanine overlooking the living area below.

The application said:

“The site benefits from an established [public right of way] which crosses the farm before connecting to Coneythorpe, approximately [500 metres] to the north of the subject building.

“The footway provides future residents with pedestrian access to the local public transport network with connections from Coneythorpe to Knaresborough, Harrogate, Boroughbridge and the surrounding villages and smaller towns.”

The plans have been submitted to Harrogate Borough Council, but will be decided by North Yorkshire Council after it comes into effect next Saturday.

To view or comment on the application, visit the planning pages of the Harrogate Borough Council website and use reference 23/00859/PBR.

Pure Gym confirms May opening in Knaresborough

National chain Pure Gym has confirmed it will open its Knaresborough branch in May, after a delay from its planned opening this month.

The gym, on the site of the former Lidl supermarket on York Road in Knaresborough, is already inviting locals to sign up for membership.

It has an opening offer of £12.99 per month for the first six months, after which the price rises to £23.99.

Pure Gym first revealed it was planning to take on the Knaresborough site last March. In November, it said it planned to be open by March this year but this has been pushed back by two months.

The York Road site was previously a Lidl supermarket until 2018. During covid, it was used as a vaccination site by Homecare Pharmacy Services until it moved to larger premises on nearby Chain Lane in September.

A Pure Gym spokesperson said:

“Following some delays to building works, we can confirm that our contractors are now on site and doing all they can to get PureGym Knaresborough open as soon as possible.

“The brand-new gym, which is expected to open in mid-May, will provide members with an extensive range of first class fitness equipment including a functional zone, free weights area, cardio equipment, fixed resistance and fitness studio – all available with Pure Gym’s affordable and flexible memberships.

“We look forward to welcoming new members to Pure Gym Knaresborough in the coming months.”

Kirkgate to close for Easter street party in Ripon

Live music, al fresco dining and entertainment will draw residents and visitors into central Ripon on Easter Monday.

The day of entertainment will see Kirkgate closed to traffic on April 10 from 10am to 4pm, allowing people to enjoy the party atmosphere and businesses to see the impact of pedestrianisation.

The street party will feature live music from Hyde Family Jam, as well as pop-up entertainers and street food from Jaflong Indian and Manchega’s tapas.

The event will be part of the new Totally Locally scheme being adopted by traders and Ripon Business Improvement District, designed to encourage people to spend with independent businesses in the city.

Promoting the event, the BID said:

“Totally Locally have calculated that if every adult in the population were to spend just £5 per week in local shops and businesses, that would contribute £13.5 billion per year to the local UK economy.

“If every adult in Ripon spent just £5 per week in their local independent shops that would result in an extra £3.1 million per year going into our local Ripon economy.

“Kirkgate is the heart of independent business. The street party on Easter Monday is a celebration of the ‘buy local’ movement.”

Independent businesses interested in getting involved in the event can contact Manchega.

New plans submitted to create 12 flats in former Harrogate care home

A former care home in Harrogate that has been empty since 2016 could be converted to flats if new plans are approved.

The Pines, on Harlow Moor Drive, was closed after a Care Quality Commission inspection found it inadequate in all areas.

Now, plans have been submitted to Harrogate Borough Council to create 12 one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments in the property at 56-57 Harlow Moor Drive.

The lower ground floor would contain five one-bedroom apartments, with a sixth on the upper ground floor, while the third floor would offer living accommodation as part of a penthouse with three bedrooms on the second floor.

The remaining five apartments on the upper ground, first and second floors would each have two bedrooms.

Documents submitted with the plans said:

“The Pines comprises of a pair of semi-detached houses which had been linked and converted into a privately-owned care home. The care house is no longer in operation – the property is redundant.

“The proposed works is the de-conversion of the care home into the original semi-detached dwellings (retaining and utilising the existing front doors) and then converting each original house (above lower ground floor level) into self-contained apartments, retaining as much as possible the existing building and limiting any structural works to new door openings, removal of isolated walls, walling up of isolated doors and windows with thermal and sound proofing upgrading works to the retained structure as required to meet current building regulations requirements.”

In the seven years since the care home was closed, three applications have been put forward to convert it to a house of multiple occupation (HMO) and to 12 flats.

All were turned down by the council before the applicant appealed unsuccessfully against each decision. An enforcement notice was also served by the council in 2017 to prevent the house being used as an HMO without permission and an appeal against that notice also failed.

The previous proposal to turn the building into 12 flats in 2020 was refused on the grounds it was not in line with the council’s policy of retaining buildings for community use, including care homes.

Justifying the decision at the time, the council said the owner had not made sufficient efforts to sell the building to someone who would retain it as a care home or other community facility.

It has since been marketed by FSS and Healthcare Property Consultants without a guide price, but with “offers invited”.

The current plans have been put forward by Mr R Doyle of Flatcap Properties LLP, through agent Marcus Whitmore of nineteen47 Ltd. Supporting statements with the plans said:

“The application follows a number of refusals of planning permission and dismissals on appeal of previous proposals for changes of use of the property. Those refusals related to separate applications for change of use to a 24-person house in multiple occupation and 12 self-contained apartments.

“In these cases, the main issue for refusal related to the lack of marketing of the property for sale as a community use. In addition, the issue of the impact of a house in multiple occupation on the amenity of nearby residents through disturbance due to the intensity of the use was a reason for refusal.

“In relation to the 12-apartment scheme additional reasons for refusal were based on the unacceptable living conditions for future occupiers and likely disturbance to neighbours and a lack of appropriate contributions towards affordable housing or open space.

“This application is based on amended proposals for the conversion of the property to self-contained apartments and is supported by evidence of the marketing of the property for a community use for a period of 12 months in advance of its submission.

“This has been informed by pre-application discussions that were undertaken with Harrogate Borough Council and subsequent correspondence with the pre-application case officer to refine the terms of marketing.”

To view or comment on the plans, visit the planning pages of Harrogate Borough Council’s website and use reference 23/00620/FULMAJ.

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