Police warning after increase in burglaries in Harrogate

Police have issued a warning after an increase in burglaries in the Harrogate district.

Officers said there had been an rise in burglaries in the Pannal, Rossett and the Stray areas.

The force said people should ensure their windows, doors and cars were locked and to report any suspicious activity to police.

A warning has also been issued to residents in the Duchy Road area after thieves stole property from cars. Police said vehicles had been left “insecure” and urged people not to leave items on display.

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A post on North Yorkshire Police’s Facebook said:

“Last night a number of insecure vehicles were entered in the Duchy Road area of Harrogate and property was stolen. 

“This is reminder to motorists to ensure that your cars/vans are locked, even if parked on your driveway and ensure that no items of value are left on display.”

Police added:

“There has been an increase of burglaries in Pannal, Rossett and the Stray areas of Harrogate.

“Please ensure that you lock your doors, windows and cars. If you witness any suspicious activity, please contact the police immediately.”

Creatives called for Harrogate’s role in Royal Albert Hall anniversary

Harrogate will have its name linked to the 150th anniversary of the Royal Albert Hall in London – and aspiring artists are also being invited to get involved.

To mark the venue’s milestone, Harrogate Spring Water is planning to create limited-edition anniversary labels for its bottles, to be sold at the Royal Albert Hall and selected other outlets.

To come up with the perfect design to showcase the diverse culture of the venue, Harrogate Spring Water (HSW) is calling for creatives to help. An expert panel, including representatives from HSW and the Royal Albert Hall, will nominate a shortlist and choose the winning design, with a prize of a £4,000 creative bursary. Two finalists will receive a £1,000 bursary.

James Cain OBE, CEO of Harrogate Spring Water, said:

“We are so pleased to be able to offer talented creatives across the UK the opportunity to feature on our bottle; we understand just how important it is to support the Arts and Creative industry during this time.”

“The 150th anniversary of the Royal Albert Hall is such a special milestone and its fantastic to be able to celebrate our valued partnership with such an iconic and historic institution. We cannot wait to see the designs!”

During 2021 and 2022, the Royal Albert Hall celebrates its 150th birthday, with a special programme of events including major commissions from British artists, headline performances from musical legends, and a series of showcases promoting the next generation of talent.

In its long history, the Royal Albert Hall has hosted great works of art and design including an 800-feet-long mosaic frieze encircling the building, a Picasso-designed programme cover in 1937 and a 2014 mural by Sir Peter Blake celebrating the venue’s diverse history.

In 2021 and 2022, as it marks its 150th birthday, its programme of events will include major commissions from British artists, headline performances from musical legends and a series of showcases promoting the next generation of talent.

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Harrogate Spring Water is an official partner of the celebrations and its 500ml still and sparkling bottles will feature the commemorative labels this year and next. Artists are encouraged to use colour to reflect the diversity of culture at the Royal Albert Hall.

Craig Hassall, chief executive of the Royal Albert Hall, said:

“We’re delighted to launch this one-of-a-kind design competition as part of our 150th anniversary celebrations.

“The Hall has been a meeting place – and an inspiration – for artists of all kinds since we opened in 1871, and we can’t wait to see how contemporary creatives interpret our diverse history. We’d like to thank our friends at Harrogate Spring Water for helping us mark this milestone in such an inventive and unusual way.”

For more information about the competition, click here.

Live: Harrogate district traffic and travel

Good morning everyone and welcome to our traffic and travel live blog, the last one before the weekend.

Whether you travel by car, bus or train we will keep an eye out for any possible disruption to your journey. All brought to you by The HACS Group.

It’s Connor again back on the travel desk from 6.30am. Spotted an accident or a road closure? Send your updates to contact@thestrayferret.co.uk.

If traffic is moving well or it’s at a standstill then we will let you know with our updates every 15 minutes.

Full update – 9am

Thanks for reading our traffic and travel blog. There have been a few police incidents this morning as well as increasing numbers of construction sites around the Harrogate district. That’s all from me for this week. I am heading over to the newsdesk now. My colleague Suzannah will be back on Monday morning.

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1,000 sign petition calling for Oatlands cycling plans to be scrapped

More than a thousand people have signed a petition in just four days calling for the cycling scheme for Oatlands Drive to be scrapped.

North Yorkshire County Council has proposed to make the road one-way southbound and 20mph to widen the footpath and create a segregated cycleway.

The public consultation for that £215,000 scheme closed at the end of February. But the petition organiser hopes that it will be considered if it gains more traction.

Anna McIntee started the petition.

Anna McIntee, who lives in the Saints area of Harrogate, started the online petition which has at the time of writing attracted 1,041 signatures.

She told the Stray Ferret:

“I started the petition on Monday and more than a thousand people have already signed it. That is amazing, I am so pleased with it.

“So many people have already signed it but I hope that we can reach 10,000 signatures by the end of the month, when I will send it to the county council.

“I do like cycling and I have my own bike which I use, I think we should encourage cycling but in a diffent way which does not have an adverse effect on the town.”

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The Harrogate and District Cycle Action (HDCA) which consults with local councils believes that it is time for cars to start sharing the road with cyclists more.

Chair of the group, Kevin Douglas, when asked about demand for all these new cycling routes, pointed to North Yorkshire County Council’s congestion survey in 2019.

That survey, answered by 14,000 people, found that 77% would use improved cycling and walking infrastructure if it was built.

Mental health a priority as Harrogate Grammar students return

Harrogate Grammar School‘s deputy headteacher has said he hopes his new masters degree in mental health and wellbeing can be used to support pupils when they return to school next week.

Recent data from NHS England shows one in six children aged 5 to 16 has a mental health disorder.

The school said data like this and the impact of the pandemic explained why it had made mental health and wellbeing a key focus.

The Leadership of School Mental Health and Wellbeing course at Leeds Beckett University, which deputy headteacher Tim Milburn has just completed, is the first of its kind in the country.

Mr Milburn hopes the skills he has acquired will help students after the latest lockdown ends. He said;

“This has been a great experience and it has given me the understanding and confidence to effectively lead whole mental health within school using the latest research.

“The content of the course has also enabled me to adopt best practice so that the mental health and wellbeing of both staff and students is supported and strengthened.”

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Mr Milburn was writing his dissertation last year when schools were closed when he changed his focus to look at how technology can be utilised to support young people with their mental health.

The school is part of the Red Kite Learning Trust, which serves over 8,000 students in Harrogate and Leeds, and Mr Milburn plans to share his knowledge with other schools in the trust to help support thousands of young people locally. He said:

“I have been very fortunate that Harrogate Grammar School and Red Kite Learning Trust have supported me to complete this course and I am really looking forward to paying back that investment by working with colleagues across the trust to continue the important work on mental health and wellbeing.”

Graveley’s fish and chip restaurant to be renamed Catch Harrogate

One of Harrogate’s most famous brands, Graveley’s, is to be renamed Catch Harrogate.

The fish and chips restaurant on Cheltenham Parade is currently being refurbished. It is still open for takeaways.

The restaurant is expected to reopen in May under its new name.

Graveley’s was sold to Catch, which is based in Harrogate and has four other seafood restaurants in Yorkshire, in 2019.

A spokeswoman for Catch confirmed it would reopen as Catch Harrogate, bringing it into line with the ‘Catch’ name used at the company’s other seafood restaurants in Leeds, Holmfirth and Halifax. She added:

“Graveley’s is an institution in Harrogate so we appreciate it is going to be a big thing to change the name.”

She added the new building will have more fresh seafood on the menu, an oyster bar, a licensed bar and more modern decor.

For decades, people have made the pilgrimage to Graveley’s to enjoy fish and chips.

Chat show host Michael Parkinson once said his favourite restaurant was a toss-up between Bettys and Graveley’s in Harrogate.

He described his perfect day as watching Joe Root score a century in an Ashes Test at Headingley followed by a big plate of fish and chips at Graveley’s.

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Sainsbury’s to open store in Harrogate town centre

Sainsbury’s is planning to open a new store in the centre of Harrogate by the end of the summer.

The Sainsbury’s Local store will open in the former Topshop unit at 33-37 Cambridge Street, which has been empty for more than two years.

Sainsbury’s expects to employ about 25 people in a mixture of full-time and part-time roles.

Sainsbury’s already has four stores in Harrogate: a large store on Wetherby Road and smaller Local stores on Leeds Road, King’s Road and Cold Bath Road.

The new store will be just a minute’s walk from the Tesco Express on Cambridge Road.

The investment comes at a difficult time for the town centre, with many businesses closed or struggling to survive as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

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It comes at a time when Sainsbury’s is to cut 500 head office jobs. Another 650 jobs at the company are also said to be at risk.

An artist's impression of the new Sainsbury's Local in Harrogate.

An artist’s impression of the new Sainsbury’s Local in Harrogate.

Patrick Dunne, Sainsbury’s property director, said:

“We’re excited to open our doors to a new convenience store in Harrogate by late summer this year.

“Our investment in Harrogate will give the local community a new and modern store and support jobs during the fit out and beyond.

“This Local will offer everyday essentials and give residents, workers and tourists the chance to get what they need as they go about their busy daily lives.”

Live: Harrogate district traffic and travel

Good morning everyone and welcome to our live traffic and travel service for the Harrogate district, designed to keep you moving.

Whether you travel by car, bus or train we will keep an eye out for any possible disruption to your journey. All brought to you by The HACS Group.

It’s Connor again back on the travel desk from 6.30am. Spotted an accident or a road closure? Send your updates to contact@thestrayferret.co.uk.

If traffic is moving well or it’s at a standstill then we will let you know with our updates every 15 minutes.

Full update 9am

Thanks to everyone who has gotten involved in the traffic and travel today. I am heading over to the news desk now but will be back tomorrow from 6.30am to keep the Harrogate district moving.

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Full update 8.45am

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Cycling and crime concerns raised at Station Gateway consultation

The first consultation event into Harrogate’s Station Gateway project last night saw  concerns raised about the need for more cycling lanes as well as an increase in anti-social behaviour.

The online event enabled people to ask questions about the £7.8 million town centre project, which is being funded from the government’s £317 million Transforming Cities Fund.

Representatives from Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire County Council, as well as engineering consultants, discussed the plans and answered questions.

If the current proposals are approved, the area around the town’s bus and train stations on Station Parade will look vastly different.

Traffic would be reduced a single lane to create more space for cycling, walking and public transport.

How Station Parade might look under the new Station Gateway proposals.

One member of the public asked if the design and reduced amount of traffic would increase anti-social behaviour.

Aidan Rayner, Transforming Cities Fund delivery project manager at North Yorkshire County Council, said:

“One of the main parts of this proposal is to improve public experience. We don’t believe that these plans would impact public safety”.

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Another member of the public asked what evidence there was to support the increased demand for cycling. In response, Matthew Roberts an economy and transport officer at Harrogate Borough Council, said:

“Increasing recognition of the climate emergency and the need to make healthier choices is generating more demand. Faster cycling routes, I think, will mean more will choose to cycle.

“We have 79,000 people living within a 20-minute cycle ride to the town centre.”

Mr Roberts said high streets were changing and Harrogate needed to adapt to continue attracting visitors.

Those behind the proposals said the suggestions at the event would be taken forward in further discussions.

A second public consultation is due to take place next week on March 10.

The plans will then be considered in detail before work begins. Mr Rayner said he hoped construction could begin in spring next year.

He added disruption would be limited as much as possible.

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.

Can Great Yorkshire Show and vaccine site take place together?

Health leaders revealed today they are in discussions with the organisers of the Great Yorkshire Show about whether the event and the vaccination programme on the site can take place together.

The Yorkshire Agricultural Society announced this week it planned to stage the three-day show from July 13 to 15, adding the decision would be ‘reviewed regularly’.

This raised questions about the impact on the mass vaccination programme that is being run at the Great Yorkshire Showground.

The showground, which can carry out up to 1,800 vaccinations a day, has been the Harrogate district’s main vaccine centre since December.

The NHS is due to be giving jabs to under-50s at the time of the show.

The vaccines are administered in the Yorkshire Event Centre building at the showground. The event centre is usually a key part of the Great Yorkshire Show, hosting many food stalls.

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Amanda Bloor, accountable officer for North Yorkshire Clinical Commissioning Group, told a coronavirus press briefing today:

“It’s great that we can see the light at the end of the tunnel and that venues which would have been standing empty have been serving such a great purpose.

“There are a number of sites we will be having conversations with over the next few weeks and there are also sites we are already in discussions with.

“We are talking about how we can run vaccination sites concurrently with public-facing events or whether we need to think about providing it in a different way.

“So we are working with individual sites to understand what the different options are for us.”

The Stray Ferret also asked the Yorkshire Agricultural Society about the situation.

Heather Parry, Managing Director of Yorkshire Event Centre said:

“We are discussing our plans with the NHS vaccination centre and together we expect to come up with workable solutions.”