Parents volunteer to help Ripon school with covid tests

Schools across the Harrogate district are preparing to begin a major covid testing programme as they plan to reopen their doors to all pupils next week.

At Ripon Grammar School, testing begins next Monday, with small groups of students brought in to carry out their tests before going home again.

They will continue with home learning for the first two days until everyone has had one test, before returning to classrooms on Wednesday.

Each pupil will receive a second test in school that week, followed by a third the following week. They will then carry out their own tests at home twice a week.

Deputy headteacher Helen Keelan-Edwards said:

“The staff tests will be delivered before they come back and they’ll be able to do those at home. Students are doing them in school to begin with so they know how to do it properly at home.”

In-school testing has been recommended by the government for all secondary age pupils, followed by home testing. It has also advised students and staff to wear masks in all areas of buildings where social distancing is not possible.

Primary school pupils will not be tested routinely, but staff will be given two tests to take at home each week. Routine testing is being introduced after significant outbreaks of coronavirus in schools when they were open before Christmas.

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To get through enough tests to enable students to return, Ripon Grammar School will have 30 volunteers on site each day to help deliver the programme. While they do not have to be medically trained, they will work throughout the school day and are asked to commit to as many days as possible.

Mrs Keelan-Edwards said the number of volunteers had been higher than expected, adding:

“We have been overwhelmed by parental support. It has been absolutely amazing. – we can’t believe it.

“We’re really lucky with the parents we have and the support they give the school.”

Other secondary schools in the Harrogate district told the Stray Ferret they are still preparing the final details of their testing programmes, which will be announced this week.

Call for public to engage with Harrogate Station Gateway plans

Residents are being urged to engage with a consultation to help shape the future of Harrogate town centre.

The Station Gateway project could see funding of £7.8m spent transforming the bus and rail interchange and the public space around them.

Proposals also include reducing Station Parade to just one lane for cars, allowing more space for cycling lanes, to encourage more people to use public transport or to walk or cycle.

The plans have been put forward by North Yorkshire County and Harrogate Borough Councils, in partnership with West Yorkshire Combined Authority and Craven and Selby district councils, as part of a £31m grant awarded through the Transforming Cities Fund (TCF). As well as the Harrogate proposals, the project includes changes for Selby and Skipton’s stations.

North Yorkshire County Councillor Don Mackenzie, executive member for access, said:

“Improving the gateways to these towns will not only make them more attractive, but will also provide infrastructure for sustainable travel. We have looked at barriers to people accessing public transport, cycling and walking and devised schemes to address these.

“I hope people will have their say through the consultation and take advantage of the online events to learn more and to ask questions.”

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Public events are being held online for residents to hear more about the plans and to ask questions about them. The Harrogate events take place on Wednesday, March 3 and Wednesday, March 10, both at 6pm.

The consultation runs until Wednesday, March 24, and anyone planning to take part is encouraged to engage with one of the online sessions beforehand. To find out more, click here.

Councillor Phil Ireland, Harrogate Borough Council’s cabinet member for carbon reduction and sustainability, said:

“Through the Harrogate Congestion Study, it was clear the community wanted to see improvements to walking, cycling and public transport prioritised. The TCF project is the first step to delivering this and I’m pleased that the hard work and determination of council officers has paid off, and helped secure around £8million for the Harrogate bid.”

The authorities involved have promised that public feedback will be used to help shape the next stage of the plans.

They have already come under fire from business groups, including Harrogate BID, Harrogate District Chamber of Commerce and Independent Harrogate, who said they money could be better spent improving other areas such as Cambridge Street. However, the TCF can only be used for projects relating to transport.

Retailers on Albert Row, which runs along Station Parade, have also raised concerns about how the proposals will affect the area nearest their businesses, saying they could not fairly comment without more information.

What’s your view of the Station Gateway proposal? Email letters@thestrayferret.co.uk with your thoughts and we may include it on our letters page, Stray Views, published each Sunday.

‘Use your conscience’ warning as sun brings visitors to Nidderdale

Locals are bracing themselves for an influx of visitors in Nidderdale as a weekend of sunny weather is forecast.

There have already been reports of large numbers of walkers, cyclists and bikers in Pateley Bridge and surrounding villages today.

Now, with the easing of lockdown restrictions in sight, fears have been raised that even more people will breach lockdown rules and descend on local communities this weekend.

Cllr Mike Holt, Mayor of Pateley Bridge, said:

“I am aware of [the number of visitors in the area today] and I am concerned about it. I have asked people to stay away if at all possible, because we aren’t out of the woods yet.”

Cllr Holt said Pateley Bridge Town Council had spoken to local police, but they had limited powers to enforce government guidance. A request for additional signage, similar to that put up along Nidderdale Greenway, had also been unsuccessful.

Even in his home village of Glasshouses, Cllr Holt said there had been a rise in the number of people visiting. He said the numbers across the area could rise further over the first weekend since the Prime Minister outlined cautious plans for easing restrictions.

Cllr Hold added:

“Why can’t we wait just a few more weeks? It’s a bit frustrating.

“Speaking personally, I’ve done all I felt I could and people are just going to have to do what feels right for their own conscience.”

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The area’s busiest walking areas, including Fewston, Swinsty and Thruscross reservoirs, are also preparing for a busy weekend. A spokesperson for Yorkshire Water said:

“Getting out in the open and enjoying some exercise is really important for everyone at the moment. We know that our reservoirs have provided a great recreational space for lots of people during lockdown and with warmer weather on the way, our sites may start to get even busier.

“We’d ask that, as always, any visitors to our sites respect covid guidelines and social distancing wherever possible. Our carparks can get very busy during popular periods, so please make sure you park in a dedicated spot, as parking elsewhere may cause obstruction for local residents, the emergency services and our reservoir engineers.”

North Yorkshire Police said it continues to issue fixed penalty notices to people found to be outside without good reason, and having travelled away from their local area.

Chief Inspector Charlotte Bloxham, deputy lead for North Yorkshire Police’s covid-19 response, said:

“It’s really important that we don’t get too far ahead of ourselves and through irresponsible actions, jeopardise the progress we have made and need to keep making, to enable us all to move forward.

“Until the Government indicates that it is safe to move to the next stage of the road map on March 29, the current lockdown rules and regulations will stay in place and North Yorkshire Police will continue to police them. We will take the necessary enforcement action required to protect the green shoots of recovery we are starting to see and to protect all our chances of getting out of lockdown.

“So I would ask the public to keep going. We are on the right path and we are doing the right things, but we must remain vigilant to the threat of the virus. Covid-19 has not gone away, please carry on sticking to the rules, so we can continue to move towards better times ahead.”

Harrogate Christmas Market set to go ahead this year

Plans are being made to ensure Harrogate Christmas Market can return to the town centre in 2021.

The market, which first took place in 2012, had to be cancelled last year as changing covid restrictions made it impossible for organisers to plan a safe event without risk of last-minute cancellation.

However, following the government’s ‘road map’ out of lockdown which could see all restrictions lifted in June, the committee of organisers is preparing to meet for the first time to put firm plans in place for this year.

Organiser Brian Dunsby said:

“The aim is to review the market plans and agree changes needed – depending on the precautions required during November – if any!

“In the meantime we hope to start inviting applications from our established market traders based on the same layout and prices that were agreed for 2020 before it got cancelled.”

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The market has been held at the bottom of Montpellier Hill in Harrogate since it was founded. After growing rapidly, for the last few years it has reached what organisers say is capacity, with around 200 traders and a focus on Yorkshire produce and products.

In previous year, the market has drawn crowds of up to 60,000 people across its four days. As well as their own traders, organisers say one of the key aims of the market is to drive footfall into the town centre to support local businesses in the run-up to Christmas.

This year’s event will be held from Thursday, November 18 to Sunday, November 21.

It is the latest event in the Harrogate calendar to confirm plans to proceed this year. This week, Harrogate International Festivals announced its crime writing festival would open in July, while Birstwith Show is also planning to go ahead.

Nidderdale Greenway blocked by huge fallen tree near Ripley

A huge tree has fallen on the Nidderdale Greenway, blocking the route to the east of Ripley.

Local resident Megan Hatfield spotted the blockage when she was cycling on the route today and was forced to turn back.

She said the section of the Greenway was “passable by scrambling on foot, but not by bike”.

The tree is thought to have fallen within the last 24 hours. The Greenway is popular with walkers and cyclists, especially at weekends when it is often busy.

North Yorkshire County Council has been alerted to the blockage, which lies less than a kilometre east of where the path meets the A61 at Ripley. However, a spokesperson said trees adjacent to a right of way are the responsibility of the landowner, and NYCC is working to find and make contact with the relevant person.

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Nidderdale Greenway follows the route of an old railway line from Harrogate to Ripley. It was opened in 2013 and is maintained by Sustrans as part of its national network of cycle routes.

Harrogate Nightingale closure expected to be announced next month

Expectations are growing that the NHS will decommission the Nightingale hospital at Harrogate Convention Centre next month.

Following the Prime Minister’s announcement of cautious reopening over the coming months, and news that the vaccination programme is already having an impact on covid infection and illness rates, speculation is mounting that the Nightingale hospital will be dismantled when its contract ends on March 31.

It has never been used to treat covid patients, even through the peaks of the crisis when hospital admissions were at their height. With increasing evidence that the chances of severe illness requiring hospitalisation are lower among those who have been vaccinated, it looks likely that the Nightingale will not be needed in future.

Liberal Democrat peer Lord Newby, who lives in Ripon and has long argued for the convention centre to be returned to Harrogate Borough Council (HBC) use, told the Stray Ferret:

“I suspect that the contract won’t be renewed. It certainly should not be.

“There is no immediate or foreseeable use of the convention centre as a hospital – even in the very unlikely event that there were a further major spike in the disease. It has been a costly white elephant from the start and should be returned to the council without delay.”

NHS paying Nightingale bills

The NHS has been paying bills of between £125,000 and £160,000 per month for utilities at the convention centre. While local hospitality businesses are keen to have the centre back up and running to deliver trade for the town, some argue it makes more sense for it to have a steady income which at least covers its costs while major events are not possible.

Kimberley Wilson, chair of guesthouse association Accommodation Harrogate, said:

“The NHS are paying to have the Nightingale in there, so it keeps the bills paid. If they pull out and we can’t use it, it’s haemorrhaging money. If the NHS are happy to pay those bills, it keeps it from being a strain on council resources.

“What’s more important is when can we have events. We want it there until we can get big events in and then we want it out. Let’s just make sure it’s all ready to go when we can.”

Ms Wilson said guesthouses are taking bookings for events from the summer, including the Home and Gift Fair and the Bridal Show, and were hopeful that restrictions would be lifted in plenty of time to allow them to go ahead.

However, she was also keen to hear what the new destination management organisation (DMO) has planned to encourage people to come to the Harrogate district once travel and overnight stays are allowed again, to enable businesses to begin planning.

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The new DMO appointed a manager, Gemma Rio, who began work in October. She was not available for interview with the Stray Ferret, but a spokesman for HBC, which set up the DMO, said:

“Work is underway to establish a new Destination Management Organisation and position the Harrogate district as an exceptional place to live, visit and invest.

“An integral part of this work is the development of a destination management plan that will ultimately guide the activities of the DMO and its partners. In the short term, we have a plan to capitalise on the ‘staycation’ opportunity and attract visitors to the district when it is it safe to do so.”

Announcement expected soon

The NHS has not commented on its intentions for the site, or the other Nightingale hospitals around the country, other than to say it remains on stand-by to be brought into use if needed. However, it is expected that an announcement will be made soon by the government about its future.

Last summer, an initial three-month contract for the Nightingale in Harrogate from April to June was extended by a month to the end of July. Negotiations then continued before it was finally confirmed in mid-August that the hospital would remain in situ until the end of March.

It has since been used to offer CT scans to non-covid patients, helping Harrogate and District NHS Trust to catch up with patient referrals delayed during the early months of the pandemic.

The Stray Ferret asked Harrogate Borough Council and Harrogate Convention Centre about when the convention centre might re-open.

A Harrogate Borough Council spokeswoman said this week’s government route out of lockdown meant the earliest visitors could return to the district was April 12.

A spokeswoman for Harrogate Convention Centre said:

“We cautiously welcome the fact that all lockdown restrictions could be lifted in June.

“As ever, the devil is in the detail and we don’t yet have clear guidance on what these mean for our industry.

“We will continue to monitor the situation over the coming months as we develop our plans for reopening.”

Call for inquiry into Harrogate’s Nightingale hospital

A health scrutiny board could investigate the building and use of the Nightingale hospital in Harrogate.

The West Yorkshire Joint Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee will consider next month whether to accept calls for it to hold an inquiry into decisions made about the facility.

Cllr Jim Clark, who represents Harrogate Harlow division, spent 10 years as chair of North Yorkshire’s scrutiny of health committee and now sits on the West Yorkshire equivalent, ensuring a voice for people in the Harrogate district who are treated at its hospitals.

Speaking to the committee yesterday, he said:

“This was a tremendous success, building the Nightingale hospitals, and the one in Harrogate was built in about four weeks after 10 years of bed closures in North Yorkshire…

“This has always been a campaigning committee and I have been proud to be a member of it… But I think we need a public inquiry into why did we never use the Nightingale hospital? They say now that it was an insurance policy, but if we had needed to use it, could we have used it?

“I wrote to the secretary of state in 2018 saying that we were so short of staff in the Harrogate CCG (Clinical Commissioning Group) at that time that it was affecting performance. So if we had needed the Nightingale hospital there wouldn’t have been people there to man it.”

The health scrutiny committee wrote to the NHS twice last August calling for the Nightingale hospital to be kept open, and again in November suggesting it be used for vaccinations. Cllr Clark praised the work of those running the Great Yorkshire Showground site, but said the awarding of contracts and the ability to make any use of the Nightingale hospital needed to be scrutinised.

He said the example of trouble at Welcome to Yorkshire which was only revealed years after the 2014 Tour de France served as a warning about the need for close scrutiny at the right time.

“We need to get this done now. I would welcome any help you can give me to get a proper public inquiry and it shouldn’t affect the on-going work of the pandemic.”

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Scrutiny committee chair Cllr Helen Hayden told Cllr Clark that a working group meeting in March would decide whether to take his call for an inquiry forward.

Responding to Cllr Clark, Anthony Kealy, NHS England director in West Yorkshire, said the Nightingale was still being used for diagnostic scans and its future beyond the end of March was yet to be announced by the government. He added:

“We have regarded it largely as a success that we have never had to use the Nightingale for in-patient care. It was, as Cllr Clark suggested, developed as a bit of an insurance policy agains the NHS being overwhelmed.

“The Nightingale programme was rolled out very rapidly at the point where we were looking at northern Italy and its health services being overwhelmed. If the NHS had got to that point in April, the Nightingale would have certainly opened, but we managed to avoid that.”

He said while it was true to say it would have had to bring staff in from existing hospitals from the system, that was to be expected. Staff were busy in their daily roles, as would be expected, and would have been redeployed from routine care to run the Nightingale.

However, committee member Cllr Betty Rhodes said “robbing Peter to pay Paul” with staff moving from hospitals to the Nightingale would not have been a workable solution. At the time, she said, the hospital trusts were looking at cutting routine services and could not have spared staff.

She also supported calls for an inquiry, including into the procurement processes used during the pandemic to ensure they represented value for money.

Cllr Hayden added:

“This discussion will go on about procurement, about the Nightingale hospital… We will discuss as a board, looking back at the pandemic and assessing what went right, what went wrong, what do we need to learn from it. It’s going to be an on-going process.”

‘Road map’ to reopening raises hopes of district revival

Retailers are hoping a new way of life could be on the horizon as they await the Prime Minister’s plans for easing lockdown.

Independent business owners in the Harrogate district say support for them over the last year has been heartwarming – and they hope it will lead to a revival in their fortunes after covid.

Among those eagerly waiting for Boris Johnson to reveal his plans this evening are traders on Harrogate’s Commercial Street. Sue Kramer, who runs Crown Jewellers with her husband, said:

“We want to get back to business so people can come to real shops and deal with real people.

“I hope people will fall back in love with going to little streets like ours and that sense of community and knowing the people in the shops they use.

“I hope it will go back to how it used to be, years ago.”

Though the last year has been tough for retail, the businesses on Commercial Street have come closer together than ever before and are working on plans to increase footfall over the coming months.

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Similarly, Knaresborough had been enjoying a rise in its fortunes before the coronavirus crisis hit: it currently has just six empty shops, compared to 16 two years ago.

Steve Teggin, president of the town’s chamber of trade, said he hoped businesses would be able to reopen in time to allow the newest to find their feet properly after months of uncertainty.

“The government has helped to keep them limping along, but we really need to be able to open again now.

“We don’t want another lockdown after this, so it has to be right, but in this area particularly the vaccine system has gone as smooth as silk, so hopefully Boris will safely get us back open.”

Retailers in Knaresborough hope reopening will run smoothly

While a sector-specific reopening plan could be announced, Mr Teggin said he hoped there would not be too much delay between different businesses being allowed to return to trading. A barber himself, he said many customers come into town for haircuts and go on to use other shops, so having as much open as possible will deliver the most trade for all businesses.

His view was backed up by Kala Timson, who runs children’s shoe shop Stomp in the market place. She said the business’s third lockdown had been quieter, as customers awaited warmer weather and shops reopening, but she was hopeful of a boost in trade when the doors are opened again.

“Last time, the kids wanted to come back in and see us, and the parents were saying ‘we haven’t spoken to anyone for so long!’. It’s almost a novelty to be out and browsing, so we’ll have to have appointments again to limit the number of people in the shop.

“We’ve got things set up well for click and collect at the moment, and we can get the shop open again when we’re allowed. What we don’t want to do is come out of lockdown too early and find we have to close again.”

Mrs Kramer agreed, adding:

“I just hope it’s a well thought-out plan that takes into account businesses’ needs, but also the fact that we don’t want to end up in lockdown again.

“You wouldn’t have thought a year ago that we’d still be here, being locked down again. We don’t want to keep having this situation.”

‘Give us a clear plan’, say Harrogate hospitality businesses

Hospitality businesses in the Harrogate district have called for a clear plan as they await the Prime Minister’s “road map” out of lockdown.

Boris Johnson is expected to announce the next steps to ease lockdown in his public broadcast later today.

For local hospitality, the most important thing is for there to be sufficient detail to allow them to plan the next steps in reopening – and that enough businesses can be opened to make the whole sector viable.

Kimberley Wilson, chair of guesthouse association Accommodation Harrogate, said reopening hotels would only be viable if other facilities were also able to open:

“Visitors want to know everything else is open before they book. One guy said to me, ‘I don’t want to come and sit in my hotel room with nothing to do – I want to know the shops are open and I can eat out’. It has to be a package.”

Dan Siddle, general manager of the Crown Hotel, said he doesn’t want to see restrictions eased and then reintroduced, and would rather wait longer until the country is “clear of the woods” before welcoming guests back. He added:

“Hospitality has suffered from March last year, and while there has been some positive support throughout, it’s important that we as an industry are not forgotten about and that that support continues. The VAT reduction, business rates cut, [and] furlough pay to support teams, could all be continued to help us through the recovery period.”

Harrogate BID said it was working on supportive measures for businesses which had been forced to close repeatedly, and will be carrying out projects including street cleaning and floral displays to make the town centre attractive again.

Harrogate BID carried out extra street cleaning at the end of the first lockdown

Chair Sara Ferguson said:

“Ideally, we would like to see all non-essential shops and the hospitality industry back open in time for Easter. This traditionally marks the start of the tourism season, and with hopefully warmer weather and lighter nights, those in the hospitality sector will again be able to make use of the pavements and other open spaces.

“However, I have a feeling the hospitality sector will be lockdown until after the holiday as the Government won’t want to face the issues it did at Christmas.

“Any rules and guidelines, national or local, must be clear and not leave room for any ambiguity which has occurred in the past. They also need to be strictly and consistently enforced.”

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While it is likely indoor events on the scale which Harrogate is used to seeing will be some way off, outdoor events are being planned from March onwards.

Harrogate International Festivals is working with other organisations on projects to encourage people back into the town centre from next month, if restrictions allow. Chief executive Sharon Canavar said:

“We must have made 50 plans and torn them up last year. What we’ve done this year is look at how we could put on events if rules are relaxed but there is still social distancing in place.”

Plans are also being made to stage the organisation’s larger festivals later in the year. The first of these is likely to be the Theakston’s Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival in July – though it could be under canvas with reduced numbers compared to previous years.

All the changes needed will impact on events’ viability, but HIF – which has already cut its staff numbers down to just three – is looking at the long-term picture, both for its own events and as part of the town’s overall attraction to visitors. Sharon added:

“Do we want to just survive or do we want to make sure there’s a recovery there? What will the diary in Harrogate look like after this, for the arts and for business events? It’s not just about this year, but about what we’re creating for the future.”

Twelve more weeks of road closures for Harlow Hill

Residents on Harlow Hill in Harrogate face another 12 weeks of roadworks as water supplies are connected to new housing developments on Whinney Lane.

Yorkshire Water began the work last week and, on Monday, wrote to residents telling them the rolling project will last into May.

Beginning from Otley Road, crews will install new pipes along roads through to Whinney Lane, expecting to complete the project around May 7.

Work on Whinney Lane itself is set to last for nine weeks from March 1. It follows news that the existing seven-month closure, being carried out as part of construction work for homes at Castle Hill Farm, will likely over-run beyond its predicted February 28 end because of recent bad weather.

David Siddans, of Harrogate and Pannal Ash Residents’ Association (HAPARA), said:

“A major concern is that extremely short notice of this work was given to residents with a letter received a day or so after work began in the Pannal Ash roundabout area.

“The residents of Whinney Lane in particular have had to suffer ongoing disruption and roadworks since the Mulgrave development of 40 houses began over a year ago.”

The Yorkshire Water work is set to be completed in phases. Harlow Crescent, Beckwith Avenue, Beckwith Walk, Beckwith Crescent and Beckwith Road will all be affected for between two and four weeks, in short stretches along each road.

A Yorkshire Water spokesperson said:

“The work taking place from Otley Road to Whinney Lane is essential to support new housing developments in the area and also to increase resilience on our clean water network during periods of peak demand.

“We know that road closures can be inconvenient and our teams may occasionally need to work during evenings and weekends – but we’ll do everything we can to keep disruption to a minimum and complete the work as quickly as possible.

“In order to carry out this work safely, we’ll need to close short sections of road whilst we’re working in the highway. These closures will move as our work progresses and access will be available for residents either side of our works – however, there’ll be no vehicular access through the working area.”

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With a second construction site by Stonebridge already in progress and around 700 more homes and business premises set to be built on a neighbouring site under the local plan, along with more homes already constructed along nearby Otley Road, Mr Siddans said HAPARA was “extremely concerned” about the inevitable further disruption.

“We are well aware of the huge infrastructure implications of this planned massive urban expansion which involves not only utilities services but also, critically, transport infrastructure.

“HAPARA is part of the Western Arc Coordination Group which is lobbying the county and district councils for a comprehensive set of measures to accompany housing developments.”