Vicky Carr, Author at The Stray Ferret

Breathing new life into a historic building in south Harrogate

For Vic Smith-Dunn, life is all about connections.

She’s a sociable person who likes to make links between people with something in common – even if that thing is they don’t know anyone else in the room.

Vic’s own connections have been particularly significant in guiding her to where she is now.

Her grandparents were wardens at the former Oatlands Methodist Church in south Harrogate and she is one of the people tasked safeguarding the same building.

Now known as Oatlands Community Centre, it also housed a pre-school for many years, which Vic’s daughters attended. Vic became a trustee of the pre-school after it bought the building around a decade ago.

Last autumn, the pre-school closed under the growing weight of expectations and regulations, which the small charity’s trustees were unable to meet. However, Vic wanted to ensure the building remained in use and the mortgage could still be paid.

“We decided the way forward and to safeguard the community space was to focus on delivering on our constitution in different ways.

“It said it had to be a service for families with pre-school children. One of the main aims is to work with community groups and social enterprises.”

Coincidentally, Vic had set up a social enterprise a few years before, called MyLifePool. It aimed to bring the community together in a simple, affordable way, creating social groups and events as well as supporting businesses.

For £1 a week, members access discounts from dozens of local partner businesses, from coffee shops to hairdressers, and can get discounted rates to attend a programme of family activities, nights out and more.

There are weekly stay-and-play sessions for children, including dedicated times for neurodiverse children. Drinks and snacks are provided, including fresh fruit from local business and MyLifePool partners KD Fruiterers.

While the membership fee is low, the demand has been extremely high, allowing the trustees to keep paying the mortgage on the community centre. Hall hire for children’s parties and other events has also contributed significantly.

Vic grew up and still lives in the Oatlands area, part of her reason for wanting to build up community activities and networks. She also recognises that the support which used to be on offer elsewhere is no longer as readily available.

“When my eldest daughter was a baby, I saw my health visitor every week.

“She realised I had postnatal depression. If it hadn’t been for her and my GP, I don’t know what might have happened.

“I worry about people in the same position now who aren’t having that regular contact – who is supporting them?”

Social media

Even with the support she had, her depression and loneliness prompted Vic to set up Ready Steady Mums, a free walking group for parents of children up to one, which still meets every Friday at St Mark’s Church.

Her experience of the value it offered to attendees stimulated her interest in doing more in the community – leading her to set up MyLifePool some years later.

“I had seen how social media was becoming really damaging to social interaction.

“People were so busy putting up posts showing themselves living their best lives that they were terrified to actually meet anyone, because you can’t be at your best all the time.

“Then it becomes even more difficult to walk into a room full of strangers.”

In recent years, she has drawn on her own experiences once again to set up a new group dedicated to women going through the menopause. From social meet-ups to informative talks from experts, the group has hit the ground running and already has dozens of attendees at each event.

MeNoPause was launched as one of MyLifePool’s events, but is open to anyone in the community.

Vic Smith-Dunn is the welcoming face of MyLifePool and Oatlands Community Centre

Similarly, there is a working mums’ group, offering mums the chance to socialise over drinks but still get home at a sensible time to be up for the school run the next day. It’s organised by one of the ‘lifepoolers’ who, with support from Vic, set up the kind of group she wanted and discovered there were many others who felt the same.

Vic says her role is always to connect people and give them the confidence to get involved.

MyLifePool has become so successful that Vic has been approached to expand the model into York and, if that works, beyond.

Wherever it goes next, Vic is clear about its purpose.

“I’m all about funding community stuff. It’s about finding ways for communities to become self-sustaining.

“We have to find innovative ways for that to happen.”

Proclamations of King Charles III made in Harrogate and Ripon

Residents from across the Harrogate district have gathered to pay their respects to the late Queen today, and to welcome the new King.

Proclamations of the accession of King Charles III were made at the war memorial in Harrogate and at Ripon Town Hall at 4pm.

At the former, the Mayor of the Borough of Harrogate, Cllr Victoria Oldham, read the words of the proclamation to the gathered crowd. She said:

“In an age where modern methods of communication convey news around the globe in an instant, the proclamation is no longer how people learn for the first time that they have a new monarch.

“Today, however, is one of the first occasions when communities have an opportunity to come together and reflect on the moment in our nation’s history when the reign of our longest-serving monarch came to an end and our new sovereign succeeded.”

The ceremony included “inverting the mace” as a symbol that the crown had passed to a new sovereign.

Several hundred people stood in silence until she concluded by declaring “God save the King!”, echoed by the audience.

It was followed by three cheers for the new King.

Among the dignitaries taking part in the ceremony were the council chief executive Wallace Sampson and its leader, Cllr Richard Cooper. Those gathered included Andrew Jones, MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough, as well as many local councillors.

All were dressed in black and wearing black armbands.

Deputy Lord Lieutenant Richard Compton, centre, with other dignitaries outside Ripon Town Hall

The Bishop of Ripon, the Rt Rev Dr Helen-Ann Hartley, was present for the city’s proclamation of the new King, along with its Mayor and Mayoress, Cllr Sid Hawke and his wife Linda.

The proclamation was read out by Richard Compton, Deputy Lord Lieutenant of North Yorkshire, at Ripon Town Hall.

The crowd then sang the national anthem before giving three cheers for King Charles III.

Meanwhile, this morning, hundreds of people gathered at Ripon Cathedralfor a special Sung Eucharist Service, at which prayers were said to mark the death of Queen Elizabeth II and the accession of His Majesty King Charles III.

What was originally scheduled to be a civic service for the Mayor of Harrogate changed its focus following the Queen’s death on Thursday.

Cllr Oldham was in attendance along with the Mayor and Mayoress of Ripon, Councillor Sid Hawke and his wife Linda, as well as Ripon MP Julian Smith and the chair of North Yorkshire County Council, Cllr Margaret Atkinson.

The service was led by the Dean of Ripon, the Very Rev John Dobson. As chaplain to the Mayor of Harrogate, he was also in Harrogate this afternoon for the Proclamation of King Charles III.

Column: The Herculean responsibility of inheriting a role at a young age

This column is written for the Stray Ferret by Sir Thomas Ingilby, of Ripley Castle.

I was 18 when my father died and too young to appreciate how his unexpected passing would change my life forever.

I inherited a title (a Baronetcy – the most junior rank of knighthood), an ancient castle and an institution that was steeped in seven centuries of tradition. I inherited a privilege – and an imposition. The life and freedom that I had fondly dreamed of disappeared: I was metaphorically handcuffed to the castle radiators. Having been given a title by accident of birth I have spent 49 years trying to earn it.

But the pressures that I faced were a tiny microcosm of the huge challenge that the 25-year-old Princess Elizabeth inherited when her father died. She found herself catapulted into the global spotlight and suddenly had to deal with momentous matters of state every day while bringing up a family of four.

People expect their monarchs to be wise but not arrogant, dignified yet personable, firm but with a sparkle in the eye, to have a cheerful countenance all day, every day: there can be no such thing as ‘an off day’ or ‘a bad day at the office’ for a monarch. Mistakes at that level can have terrible consequences and when you are under that kind of pressure it is impossible to relax. Little wonder that she found so much contentment away from the spotlight at Balmoral, a place where she could just be herself.

We were fortunate to meet the Queen on several occasions and she was always the consummate professional, chatting to everyone, no matter who they were, putting them at their ease, captivating them with the sparkle in her eyes. She was genuinely interested in everyone that she met and it showed in the warmth of her approach. She had an agile mind and a great sense of humour: any nervousness that you had about being in her company was rapidly disarmed by her approachability.

Deep and genuine faith

At times of stress the pressure must have been almost unbearable – the strain showed in her face. Her deep and genuine faith and her determination to meet the challenge head on while listening to the counsel of her husband and other trusted advisers always saw her, and the nation, through.

Hers was a Herculean responsibility and she gave it her all for 70 years, a truly remarkable achievement given the enormous personal, national and international crises that arose during her reign. She inherited an institution that was steeped in over a thousand years of tradition and transformed it into something far more appropriate for the modern age – something that can and will continue to evolve to meet the nation’s needs.

The national sense of grief and thanksgiving is a verdict delivered: she overcame everything that fate through at her and set an exemplary standard through her leadership. In contemporary parlance she took on the job and absolutely smashed it. She has richly earned our respect and gratitude: she can finally rest in peace alongside her beloved husband.

King Charles III becomes the 33rd monarch to assume the throne during my family’s time at Ripley. In that time we have saved the life of one king (Edward III), fought for another (Charles I during the Civil War), been implicated in a conspiracy to blow up another one (James I in the Gunpowder Plot) and extended our warm hospitality to several others.

But all that is in the past and as we pledge our allegiance to the new monarch we wish Charles III a less testing reign than his predecessors as he seeks to help guide our nation forward through these precarious times. He has big footsteps to fill – but clearly shares his mother’s passion for the challenges ahead.

God save the King!

Nidderdale Show moved after date of Queen’s funeral announced

The Nidderdale Show will be moved from its traditional Monday after the Queen’s funeral was announced.

Having been set for Monday, September 19, the show’s organisers swiftly made plans to rearrange following the death of the monarch on Thursday.

When her funeral date was confirmed for the same day, the show committee announced it would be moved to the day before, Sunday, September 18.

It is the first time the show has been held since 2019, having been called off because of covid for the last two years.

Usually attracting crowds of around 15,000, organisers said they were looking forward to seeing the response from the public after the long break.

PR officer Alex Smith told the Stray Ferret:

“We were really looking forward to coming back so we knew we wanted to rearrange once the funeral date was confirmed.

“We’re so pleased we can go ahead, even though it’s a different day. Perhaps it will be a good thing, being on the Sunday for the first time – we just don’t know.

“We’re hoping as many people as possible will come along and join us on the new date.”

Nidderdale Show is seen by many as the close of the show season in the district. It features traditional agriculture classes, as well as those for handicrafts, home produce and more.

Tickets are £15 on the gate or £12.50 in advance from the website, and children under 16 go free. Entries for most classes have now closed, but are welcome for show jumping and dry stone walling on the day of the show.

Anyone who had booked to attend or entered the classes can attend on Sunday using the same tickets. The only change to the schedule is the dog show, which has had to be called off because the judges are not available.

Anyone who had booked and cannot attend on Sunday can either transfer their tickets or entry to next year’s show, or can have a refund. Organisers have asked that people do not apply for refunds until after the show when they will be able to process the requests.

King Charles III’s long links to the Harrogate district

King Charles has built strong links with the Harrogate district over many decades.

He is patron of the Royal Hall Restoration Trust, a position he took up when the group faced the mammoth challenge of raising £2.7m to save the historic building.

Opened in 1903, the hall was forced to close less than 100 years later when part of its ceiling collapsed, leaving it in need of more than £13m of repairs.

An urgent project was undertaken to carry out repairs, led by Harrogate Borough Council and the Royal Hall Restoration Trust, with funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund.

Once work was completed, King Charles officially opened the newly refurbished Royal Hall in 2008, welcomed by its chairman, the late Lilian Mina MBE.

In support of the trust, King Charles said:

“As Patron of the Royal Hall Restoration Trust, I am delighted to lend my support to the Trust’s efforts to raise the funds towards the restoration of this unique part of our national heritage.

“Over the past one-hundred years, this magnificent building has faithfully served the people of Harrogate and the surrounding district in many different roles.

“The inherent versatility of Frank Matcham’s brilliant concept for this theatre building has enabled the Royal Hall to be used for a range of purposes – from a cinema to a boxing arena, from an area for exhibition displays to a dance hall; from ballet to theatre performances, from school speech days to concert hall – the list is almost endless.

“It has truly justified the “act of faith in the future of the town” made by those far-sighted local leaders who were so inspirational in its creation and who saw it as a vital part of Harrogate’s future prosperity.

“I would urge you to support the appeal in any way that you can.”

King Charles has other long-standing links to the Harrogate district.

King Charles is a freeman of the city of Ripon, an honour conveyed to him in 2002 for his support to the community.

A plaque was unveiled near the front door of the town hall to mark the occasion and the future king visited the city for the occasion.

His interest in farming and the countryside saw him become patron of the Yorkshire Agricultural Society in 1998, taking the role from the Queen who had held it since 1952.

His first visit to the Great Yorkshire Show was the following year, 1999. He returned in 2006, 2011 and 2015, accompanied by the Queen Consort.

Their last visit was last summer, when the show was held over four days for the first time in order to enable more social distancing during the covid pandemic.

Read More:

‘Fondly’ remembering the Queen’s visits to the Harrogate district

Harrogate ceremony to mark proclamation of King Charles III on Sunday

The mayor of Harrogate will read the proclamation of the new King at the town’s war memorial on Sunday.

At the moment Queen Elizabeth II died yesterday as the UK’s longest-serving monarch, the throne passed immediately and without ceremony to her son Charles, the former Prince of Wales.

But there are a number of traditional steps which he must go through to be crowned King Charles III.

It is expected that Charles will be officially proclaimed King on Saturday at St James’s Palace in London. After this, the historic occasion will be marked up and down the country at smaller ceremonies.

In Harrogate, councillor Victoria Oldham, mayor of the district, will read the proclamation at the War Memorial opposite Bettys from 4pm on Sunday (September 11).

Paying tribute to the Queen’s “constant source of courage and inspiration” yesterday, Cllr Oldham said:

“Throughout her 70-year reign, she has touched so many of our lives and led us through many dark but also many positive times.

“On behalf of everyone across the Harrogate district, I would like to offer our deepest condolences and sympathy to the Royal Family during this time.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with you all.”

A book of condolence is available in the reception of Harrogate’s civic centre for people to pay their respects to the Queen.

This will be available between 8.30am and 5pm Monday to Thursday, and 8.30am and 4.30pm on Fridays.

An online book of condolence is also available on Buckingham Palace’s website.

Harrogate Borough Council has asked that any floral tributes for the Queen are left on the grassed area in front of the Cenotaph.

The authority – along with North Yorkshire County Council – has also cancelled all of next week’s public meetings as a mark of respect.

Council meetings postponed as book of condolence opens in Harrogate civic centre

All council meetings in Harrogate and North Yorkshire will be cancelled next week.

Following the death of the Queen, Harrogate Borough Council has decided to suspend its meetings calendar “as a mark of respect”.

Its audit and governance committee meeting on Monday and planning committee on Tuesday have been postponed.

Meetings for the leader and cabinet on Wednesday will also be held at a later date, along with the general purposes committee and a meeting of the cabinet member for housing and safer communities the following day.

Rescheduled dates are yet to be announced.

A book of condolence has been opened at the civic centre in St Luke’s Mount, Harrogate. It will be available to be signed until 4.30pm today, 8.30am to 5pm Monday to Thursday next week and 8.30am to 4.30pm next Friday.

The council has also said floral tributes can be left on the grass in front of the war memorial opposite Bettys. Some have already begun to appear this morning.

Meanwhile, North Yorkshire County Council has also cleared its calendar for the next 10 days.

Among the meetings to be postponed is the Harrogate and Knaresborough area constituency meeting next Thursday.

A period of national mourning is expected to be announced by the government later today, along with the date of the funeral.

Lord Lieutenant pays tribute to the Queen from North Yorkshire

A tribute has been paid by the Lord Lieutenant of North Yorkshire, Jo Ropner, following the announcement of the death of Her Majesty the Queen.

She said:

“It is with the most profound sadness that I have learnt of the death of Her Majesty the Queen.

“Her unfailing commitment to our country and to the wider Commonwealth throughout the past 70 years has been an inspiration to us all.

“On Her Majesty’s 21st birthday in 1947, the then Princess Elizabeth vowed that her ‘whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service’ in an address broadcast to the Commonwealth, a commitment which was reaffirmed during her Coronation in 1953.

“That her life was so blessedly long, and that her youthful vow was kept so carefully, is an accomplishment for which we, as a county and as a nation, will be forever grateful.”

The Queen’s death was confirmed by Buckingham Palace just after 6.30pm this evening.

She died at Balmoral this afternoon, after it was announced earlier today that doctors were concerned about her health. Her immediate family gathered at the Scottish estate through the day.

Visits to North Yorkshire

Ms Ropner highlighted the Queen’s links to the county over her long reign. She said:

“Her Majesty visited North Yorkshire on numerous occasions, including the Great Yorkshire Show in Harrogate to mark its 150th anniversary in 2008 and the Maundy Thursday service at York Minster in 2012, and the county’s residents always welcomed the Queen with warm enthusiasm.

“I had the privilege of meeting Her Majesty at Buckingham Palace when I was appointed as Lord Lieutenant in 2018, and I know from personal experience that every engagement was conducted with grace and genuine interest, that every person felt the spark from meeting not only their monarch, but a truly remarkable woman whose commitment to her role will be remembered for generations to come.

“On behalf of the people of North Yorkshire, York and Teesside, I shall be expressing my heartfelt condolences to Her Majesty’s family.”

Business group to help boost growth in Kirkby Malzeard

A new community business organisation is being launched in Kirkby Malzeard today with a high-profile speaker set to inspire its first meeting.

The Business Forward Forum will welcome David Kerfoot CBE, founder of North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Parnership, to talk about the value of local business.

The new organisation will be led by Kirkby Malzeard, Laverton and Dallowgill parish councillors Jane Aksut and Richard Hughes, and is designed to stimulate business growth and entrepreneurial spirit in the parish and surrounding area.

Cllr Hughes said:

“We are so much more than the sum of our parts, when we work together.

“The covid support hub here was outstanding, centred around a brilliant website and community co-ordination. This had already been demonstrated in our response to the international bike races and to communal events, recently culminating in the brilliant jubilee celebrations which blew us all away with a sense of pride at what we were seeing and achieving.

“We are a venue, a go-to place in which the growing population wants and deserves to work rest and play. Facilities, resources and opportunities for all are growing; we want to make sure that these exciting possibilities become reality for all of our brilliant community.”

Monday’s event is being held at St Andrew’s Church in Kirkby Malzeard and will also hear from Simon Middleton of North Yorkshire Growth Hub and consultant Steve Bolton, leading on the post-covid welcome back project for Harrogate Borough Council.

Topics under discussion will include the grants available to businesses for different projects. The forum has already begun exploring organising an agricultural show, developing a funding element to the revamped parish gala, and creating a community arts hub.

Cllr Aksut added:

“Post-covid, post-Brexit, post HBC – this is the time to reclaim our community; to aim for the skies. There’s major funding and support opportunities out there and we aim to have our share of the pie.”

All local businesses are invited to take part in the forum. To find out more, visit the village website or email the business forum.

Harrogate district business groups call for more support after new PM’s energy announcement

A business organisation in Harrogate has called for more certainty after the new Prime Minister announced support for them in the face of rising energy bills.

While a clear package has been put in place for households, limiting typical household bills to £2,500 per year for two years, Liz Truss has said “equivalent support” for business will last for six months.

But local businesses have called for further measures and more long-term reassurance that they will be protected from future energy price hikes.

David Simister, chief executive of Harrogate District Chamber of Commerce, said:

“I welcome the fact the Prime Minister has included businesses in her support package, but for some it will be too little too late, and unlike households it’s just for six months. She could also have reduced VAT on energy bills, but didn’t.

“Businesses have had it incredibly tough for more than two years, and it isn’t going to get any easier. Surging energy costs are just one of the pressures facing businesses.

“When Ms Truss recently came to Harrogate, members of Independent Harrogate challenged her about business rates. Her response was that she would review them. This she needs to do urgently, along with looking at VAT, fuel duty, National Insurance and Corporation Tax.”

Mr Simister’s views were echoed by Ripon BID, whose manager Lilla Bathurst said:

“Whilst any support for businesses is welcomed, we feel that a six month energy price cap does not go nearly far enough to support businesses that have weathered the last very difficult two years.

“The majority of businesses in the BID area simply do not have the reserves to ride out any further cost pressures. We very much urge the government to announce further meaningful and targeted business support in the next few days.”

Social media

Read more:

Deep and genuine faith

Read more:

Read more:

Read more:

Read more:

Visits to North Yorkshire

Read more:

Read more:

Read more: