Second Black Lives Matter demo in Harrogate hopes to gather momentum

Organisers are expecting a big crowd to turn up to a Black Lives Matter demonstration in Harrogate this weekend.

The demonstration starts on Saturday at 2pm on Montpellier Hill. They will advise people to keep their distance and speakers will talk about their experiences of racism.

Josephine Mary decided to set up the event in response to the death of George Floyd and because she felt like she had not done enough to stand up to racism.

It will be the second Black Lives Matter protest after people gathered to take a knee by the war memorial at the start of the month.

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Since setting up the demonstration Josephine has been subject to a backlash. She said people are worried that there will be clashes with the far-right.

That’s something she does not see happening in Harrogate. North Yorkshire Police are aware of the demonstration and will be attending.

Ahead of the demonstration, Josephine Mary told The Stray Ferret:

“I still see some racist comments from people in Harrogate, they struggle to understand institutional racism and that’s part of why we are doing this. We have ignored for too long the violence and abuse BAME people suffer. We can’t be quiet anymore, this isn’t going away until racism stops.”

No further coronavirus deaths at Harrogate hospital

Harrogate District Hospital has reported no further deaths from patients who tested positive for coronavirus, according to NHS figures today.

It means that the covid-19 death toll remains at 78 for people who have died in hospital in the district.

Meanwhile, a further 77 patients who tested positive for coronavirus have died in hospitals across England. Eight of those were in North East and Yorkshire.

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NHS England said the patients were aged between 29 and 98 years old. Two patients, aged 62 and 98, had no known underlying health conditions.

It brings the death toll nationally in the country’s hospitals to 28,138.

Yesterday, it was revealed that care homes in Harrogate had reported 83 coronavirus deaths.

Harrogate Stonefall recycling centre to open after traffic review

Harrogate Stonefall household waste recycling centre will reopen tomorrow after a council review into traffic and safety around the site.

North Yorkshire County Council closed all of its centres as part of the national lockdown back in March but did not open Stonefall along with others in May.

Stonefall will reopen tomorrow from 8.30am to 5pm and will be operating the usual six days a week – every day except for Wednesdays.

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Staff will be unable to help unload so only take items you can handle yourself and make sure you keep two metres apart.

They will not accept any hardcore, rubble, plasterboard, tyres and wastes from charities along with the other recycling centres.

Cllr Andrew Lee, North Yorkshire County Council’s Executive Member for Waste Management, said:

“We are really pleased to be able to re-open this very popular site. It is one of the busiest sites in the county, so it has taken a little bit longer to be able to open it safely. We have worked hard with our contractors, Yorwaste, to be able to reopen this site to ensure the safety of staff and the public.”

Hand sanitising facilities at sites are limited, so people are advised to wear gloves on-site and are reminded to wash their hands before and after attending.

Family feels ‘let down’ by Henshaws senior management

The family of a person with disabilities living in a Henshaws’ home said they felt let down and upset when they found out that the service will stop – four months after the original decision was made.

Henshaws announced publicly yesterday that it’s to close supported living services in October – affecting about 21 residents. The charity had told North Yorkshire County Council back in March that it was unable to continue the service.

The Stray Ferret spoke to two families today – one who currently has a family member in assisted living at Henshaws, the other whose child was previously a resident.

Both were deeply critical of the charity’s management of finances. They also said that upper management rarely met with the people who used the service.

The family member whose loved one is currently in care said they were kept in the dark about the decision to close the service and they are now very worried about what happens next.

“The impact of this is on vulnerable adults who don’t have a voice. I feel sorry for the service users and for the staff who work hard and they have been working even harder during coronavirus. We don’t know what will happen next but if there are big changes then it will be hugely traumatic for the disabled people living in Henshaws. The management should be ashamed for letting the finances get to this point.”

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The latest financial account for Henshaws details how in the year up to August 2018, the charity spent £12.3 million – a £1 million more than its income.

Another person who had their child in one of Henshaws’ homes for several years echoed those frustrations:

“I am not surprised that Henshaws has decided to stop its support living service. The staff in charge had tried their best to run a good service but they had not been supported adequately by the head office.”

The charity is also closing its Arts and Crafts service in Knaresborough, which caters to about 160 people.

Henshaws had previously been running a fundraising appeal ‘Art is the Start’ to update the centre to suit the people who use it. But has now concluded the centre is no longer economically viable.

The comments from family members follows a statement yesterday from the charity’s CEO Nick Marr:

“Henshaws Home Support service was on a knife edge financially and the pressure on local authorities funding these and other places has increased. We are not able to sustain these services so we intend to transition out of providing them, at the latest, in October, to ensure the best continuity can be arranged for the service users. We will be consulting with staff in the service about the future of their roles.”

Nearly half disagree with council’s leisure service shake-up

As senior Harrogate councillors decide on setting up a new leisure company to run services across the district, the responses from the public have not all been positive.

Nearly half of the 433 respondents to the council’s consultation on the future of leisure and sport said they either strongly disagreed or disagreed with the plan to set up an arms length company.

The authority is to vote tonight on whether or not to set up the company owned by the council, called Brimham’s Active, to run services such as the Harrogate Hydro and Ripon Leisure Centre.

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Within the consultation document there are a number of reasons why people don’t agree with the proposal.

One person said they were concerned that the move was the first step toward higher prices.

“Although it will be a Local Authority Controlled Company, I see this as the first step to handing over the company to a private company for profit and this would lead to higher charges in the long run.”

Another said the authority should retain control of the service.

“Given the anticipated savings are not proportionally huge, I would rather the council stayed in full control.”

Others said it should serve the interest of the wider public.

Giving over control of our wonderful leisure services to a private company (even a LACC), whose primary aim will be to generate a profit rather than serve the best interests of the society, seems a very bad idea.

Around 27% neither agreed or disagreed with the proposal, 19% agreed and 8% strongly agreed.

If given the go-ahead, the company would run services in Harrogate, Ripon, Knaresborough and Nidderdale.

The council said the company and future investment would help to save money on leisure services which currently operate at a £3.5 million loss.

But the plans have been met by opposition from both residents in Starbeck, where the local baths future would be considered by the council, and unions which expressed concern at the consultation process.

Harrogate Council to borrow £26 million to fund leisure overhaul projects

Harrogate Borough Council is expected to borrow money to fund two projects worth an estimated £26 million as part of its overhaul of leisure services in the district.

The council has linked the investment plan and the part privatisation of the service saying to two come “hand in hand” in order to save money.  However, the reality is that the two don’t necessarily have to be connected and the investment in leisure could happen without the partial privatisation if councillors chose to do this.

Two projects are lined up as part of the proposal, including refurbishing the Harrogate Hydro at a cost of £13.5 million and building a new leisure centre at Conyngham Hall in Knaresborough to replace the current site which is estimated to be £13 million.

The schemes would see an investment in current and new leisure facilities which the council said will help to reduce maintenance costs of the Hydro.

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According to a council report due before cabinet, the authority said borrowing for the projects would help to free up funds for its coronavirus financial recovery plan.

It said: “Given the unfunded nature of the capital strategy, beyond the existing five year programme (2020 to 2025), it would be prudent to fund the two schemes by external borrowing (given the council’s heavily under-borrowed position), though there may be potential to finance the design development from internal borrowing.”

When asked whether the council could invest in its facilities without a company, Councillor Stan Lumley, cabinet member for culture, tourism and sport at the authority, said the two go “hand in hand”.

He said: “The two decisions are separate but they go hand in hand.

“We need to invest in our stock to give us the best chance to save on the service. We looked at every option, compared them with each other and decided that this was the best option not just for the council but for the public.

“In order to free up our ability to provide a service, it has to be a commercial service.”

It comes as the authority’s cabinet will vote on handing over services to an arms-length company called Brimham’s Active on Wednesday in order to save money.

If given the go-ahead, it would mean facilities such as Harrogate Hydro, the Turkish Baths and Ripon Leisure Centre would be run by the new company.

The Turkish Baths, Harrogate, is among the facilities earmarked to be handed over to the council-owned company

The council’s services are currently running at a loss of £3.5 million and some centres and swimming pools in the district have increased in cost year on year.

But the leisure plan has been met with opposition from the community in Starbeck over the future of the 150-year-old swimming pool in the area and union’s raised concern over the authority’s consultation process.

Pat Marsh, leader of the Liberal Democrats group, said the authority needed to arrive at the right decision over the plan.

She said: “We have not been properly briefed on the proposal, so we have questions about it.

“Whatever decision the council makes it has to be right, because this is not a statutory service and the council does not have to run it.”

The Stray Ferret asked Andrew Jones, MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough, for a comment on the proposal but has not received a response at the time of publication.

Harrogate care homes deaths rise to 83 as hospital reports more deaths

Harrogate’s care homes have now reported 83 coronavirus deaths after recording another five fatalities in a week. It comes as Harrogate District Hospital adds another two deaths to its total.

The care home data is from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and only accounts for deaths up until June 5.

As well as care homes, the data also revealed that seven Harrogate people have also died in their homes, at a hospice, or in other communal establishments.

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Up to June 16, the hospital has reported 78 deaths. So, even with the lag in data of ten days, care homes have reported more deaths.

The two new hospital deaths happened yesterday and the day before. They were recorded with a total of 79 deaths across England’s hospitals today.

As of last Thursday, Harrogate District Hospital has also discharged 125 patients after treating them for coronavirus.

Unemployment rises in Harrogate district by 186%

There were 3,990 people in the Harrogate district claiming out-of-work benefits in May, up 186% on the previous month.

The figures were published today by the Office for National Statistics and are accurate as of May 14. They reveal that 4.5% of the district’s population is now claiming out-of-work benefits, which rose from 1.5% before the lockdown.

The figures show how the coronavirus lockdown has hit the workforce in the district, in spite of the furlough scheme, which was brought in by the government to protect employees from redundancy.

2,290 of the claimants were men and 1700 were women.

Harrogate is below the UK figure of 6.4% for people claiming the benefits, which includes Job Seekers Allowance and Universal Credit.

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The ONS said that changes to Universal Credit as part of the UK government’s response to coronavirus meant more people became eligible for unemployment-related benefit support, even if they were still employed.

Sandra Doherty, Chief Executive of Harrogate Chamber of Trade and Commerce, told the Stray Ferret that she fears there will be further job losses when the furlough scheme winds down.

She said:

“Given the devasting effect of COVID-19 on the economy, the rise in unemployment, whilst always regrettable, was only expected.

“For the time being the Government’s furlough scheme, taken up by a significant number of businesses, has enabled many people to retain their jobs, However, when this cash-lifeline is withdrawn, I fear the figure will rise again.

“There is also the chance that many young people, working part-time on zero-hour contracts within the town’s yet to open hospitality sector, could well be missing from the statistics.”

Ms Doherty also said the Harrogate Convention Centre should return to running events as soon as possible to protect further job losses.

She added:

“Although the conversion into a Nightingale Hospital was something we were incredibly proud of, it’s vital this facility is handed back to the town, sooner rather than later. Any delay will only add to an already high level of uncertainty, and could lead to businesses closing and more job losses, something we want to avoid at all costs.”

The Harrogate Jobcentre was closed on March 19 when the government suspended all in-person Jobcentre appointments for three months.

The ONS told the Stray Ferret that out-of-work claims have been centralised, meaning that a small number of claims processed at Harrogate’s Jobcentre were from people living outside of the district.

Brothers complete virtual marathon for Harrogate hospital

Luke and Aaron Grant, from Harrogate, have successfully completed a virtual marathon to raise funds for Harrogate District Hospital.

The pair of brothers are both patients at the hospital, but didn’t want to give any further details. They signed up for the 26.2 mile challenge and completed the distance over a number of days.

Several fundraising opportunities have been suspended during the coronavirus pandemic, but the virtual marathon is one initiative that can go ahead.

The boys used their at home treadmill or walked along pavements to complete the 26 miles. The boys said:

“Running makes us feel happy, and it was good to do it together”.

Staff from the boys’ school encouraged their efforts to support the NHS.

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Luke and Aaron are both pupils at Ashville College, in years seven and five, the acting Deputy Head of Enrichment said:

“We congratulate Luke and Aaron for completing the virtual marathon, which has not only benefitted Harrogate Hospital and community charity, but the boys, too.”

Harrogate student runs 465 miles for charity

Morgan Glazier, 18, is aiming to run an incredible 465 miles over 30 days this month.

The student from Rossett School, in Harrogate, is running in aid of the mental health charity MIND, after suffering with OCD for a number of years. He is hoping to improve his mental health during lockdown, through running, whilst raising money for a charity close to his heart.

To meet his 465 mile target, he will add an extra mile to the distance to correspond with the date. For example, on June 1 he ran one mile and then on June 2 he ran two miles, this will continue until June 30 when he will run 30 miles in a day.

His efforts will see him run the equivalent of a marathon or longer on each of the final days. Morgan hopes his run will highlight the positive effects that running can have on mental health. He said:

“Lockdown has been a bit tough and I haven’t been feeling great. I’ve always enjoyed long-distance running and I often use it to get away from everything. It’s a way for me to disconnect myself from negative thoughts and improve my mental wellbeing.”

The mental health charity, MIND, is close to Morgan’s heart. He hopes his running will bring awareness to positive mental wellbeing.

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The mental health charity means a lot to Morgan and his family, who said:

“I am doing it in memory of my uncle, who died as a result of his mental health problems, and for everyone who suffers or has suffered with a mental illness.”

To sponsor Morgan, click here.