Harrogate road to close to traffic for week

A Harrogate town centre road is to close to traffic for a week from Thursday morning.

Northern Gas Networks announced the closure of Montpellier Gardens today as part of its ongoing seven-week programme of work in the area.

The street, which links The Ginnel and Montpellier Road, was not due to close.

But Northern Gas Networks, which is responsible for distributing gas, blamed “incorrect information on plans and the location of the gas main” as the reason for the decision.

However, the four-way lights at the end of Parliament Street will be removed the following day.

Mark Mawhood operations manager at gas distributor Northern Gas Networks, said:

“I can confirm that the works on the four-way lights at Crescent Road/Parliament Street/Ripon Road/King’s Road will be completed and all traffic management removed by Friday.

“We are now moving onto Montpellier Road and the roundabout. A road closure will need to be in place on Montpellier Gardens from Thursday morning (October 19) for one week.

“There will be a diversion in place via Montpellier Street, we will also need to reverse the one-way system.

“Please note that Montpellier Car Park and businesses can be accessed using the diversion route.”

Read more:

 

A Northern Gas Networks map showing the traffic arrangements.

Mr Mawhood said all businesses and residents in and around the diversion and road closure have been informed with a hand delivered letter and a diversion plan.

He added:

“The closure was not originally planned; this is due to incorrect information on plans and the location of the gas main.

“We apologise for any inconvenience caused; however, it is essential that we carry out these works to ensure the to ensure the continued safe and reliable supply of gas to customers in the area.”

How Harrogate became home to ‘skin tightening specialist of the North’

This story is sponsored by HIFU Clinics UK.

A Harrogate clinic has taken the title of “skin-tightening specialist of the North” after launching a brand-new treatment not offered anywhere else in the UK. 

HIFU Clinics UK, which opened on Westmoreland Street this summer, is five-star rated on Google and has invested tens of thousands of pounds in state-of-the-art clinical equipment imported from the United States. It specialises in high intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU), and all its treatments are non-surgical. 

Its new HIFU Ultra Dual® therapy combines HIFU Ultra Med with radio frequency (RF) microneedling – sometimes known as Morpheus 8 – to produce what it says is the “ultimate skin-tightening treatment”. 

Michelle Clarke, director of HIFU Clinics UK.

Founder and director Michelle Clarke said: 

“HIFU is the latest and deepest-penetrating skin-tightening technology on the market. It’s particularly popular with women going through menopause, as that’s when a woman’s body starts to show its age at a faster rate, especially around the jawline, jowl and neck. 

“Most of our clients are between the ages of 40 and 70, and they prefer a more natural, rejuvenated look.

“Going under the knife can be painful, invasive, and it doesn’t even address skin quality. My approach is far more natural, and gives a fresher, brighter look.” 

Michelle has been in practice since 2011 and opened her first clinic in Wakefield in 2016. She is also a tutor and trains practioners from across the UK on how to deliver HIFU treatments. 

Before and after photos showing the effect of HIFU treatment on a client's neck following treatment at HIFU Clinics UK.

A Harrogate client who was delighted with the treatment and her experience.

Over the last 12 years, her reputation has grown and clients – some of them celebrities – now come to see her from as far afield as London and Scotland. 

A Harrogate resident (pictured above) who recently had HIFU treatment said she had a “wonderful experience” on her first visit, adding:

“One of the standout aspects of my visit was the exceptional customer service delivered by Michelle. She went above and beyond in explaining the procedure to me, ensuring I understood everything clearly.

“Her expertise and friendly manner put me at ease throughout the entire process.

“The results of the HIFU treatment were beyond my expectations, and I couldn’t be happier.

“I am truly grateful to Michelle for her professionalism and outstanding care. Thank you for making my HIFU treatment experience exceptional!”

Michelle said: 

“They make the journey because they trust us. This is new technology, so the equipment is improving rapidly, but we always make sure we keep up with ongoing clinical developments. My clients know we will always have the latest state-of-the-art clinical equipment, because we specialise in this. 

“This isn’t just another clinic – we’re the skin-tightening specialist of the North, and we offer something you just can’t get anywhere else.” 

Find out more: 

HIFU Clinics UK offers a personalised full skin assessment by appointment only.  

To book your FREE consultation, call 01423 648949 or email admin@hifuclinicsuk.com.

Historic deal will see Ripon end years of neglect from Harrogate, says councillor

A “historic” deal is set to unshackle Ripon from years of neglect by councillors in Harrogate, it was claimed today.

North Yorkshire Council‘s ruling executive agreed to set up a project team to oversee Ripon people taking control of Ripon Town Hall, the market place and car park, public toilets and the Wakeman’s House.

The assets were controlled by Harrogate Borough Council until it was abolished in April.

North Yorkshire Council agreed to trial local management as part of its commitment to what its Conservative leadership calls “double devolution”.

Councillor Andrew Williams, a member of the Conservative and Independents group who represents Ripon Minster and Moorside, praised the move at today’s meeting and launched an eviscerating attack on Harrogate Borough Council.

He said:

“This is for Ripon potentially a historic day in the building of a more constructive relationship with the unitary authority than it had previously with a rather fractured relationship that existed with Harrogate Borough Council.”

‘More grass on market than centre court at Wimbledon’

Cllr Williams said Ripon’s poor relationship with Harrogate led the city council to formulate “ambitious and complex” plans to take control of assets. He added:

“They all interlink to develop the central area of Ripon, which has sadly been neglected for some time.

“If you look at the Wakeman’s House that we are hoping to take ownership of, no work has been undertaken on that for over 10 years. The lease income from the business in there has been spent elsewhere.

“Ripon Town Hall last had maintenance carried out on it in 2004 when the queen visited.”

The Wakeman’s House 

Laughter was heard when Cllr Williams added:

“The market place will soon have more grass growing on it than the centre court at Wimbledon.”

He then criticised the decision to close public toilets at 9pm when the city encouraged visitors to watch the nightly hornblower ceremony. He added:

“We firmly believe Ripon people know Ripon better than anybody else and know best how to make it a success rather than it currently is, which is underachieving its potential.

“The people of Ripon and the council are firmly behind the principle of double devolution.”

Cllr Barbara Brodigan, a Liberal Democrat who represents Ripon Ure Bank and Spa, told the meeting she endorsed Cllr Williams’ comments.

The executive agreed unanimously to proceed with the proposals.

Knaresborough also set for more local control

North Yorkshire Council invited town and parish councils to submit expressions of interest to run local assets in November last year.

Harrogate was excluded from the process because it doesn’t have a town council and moves to set one up have been delayed by local Conservatives.

Twelve parish councils submitted expressions of interest.

Knaresborough Town Council and Ripon City Council were among those selected to advance their proposals, with a view to formally taking over on April 1 next year.

Knaresborough bid to manage the markets and assets associated with managing the market, such as road closure signs and tables.

But Little Ouseburn’s proposal to take charge of grass cutting of the green area outside Broomfield Cottages.was rejected because it “did not evidence legal competence”.

Read more:

 

Harrogate’s rare historic items set to remain with local organisations

Councillors are set to approve new loan agreements for some of Harrogate’s rare civic items which include objects that date back to the town’s Victorian heyday.

Following local government reorganisation, the Harrogate Borough Council civic collection was transferred to the town’s charter trustees, which are 10 councillors who represent divisions in Harrogate.

The charter trustees now have responsibility for the collection of civic regalia, silverware, trophies and plaques, glass and crystal, books and scrolls and other historic items.

Currently the Royal Hall Restoration Trust, the Harrogate Club and Masham Town Hall have some items from the collection on loan which they hope to retain.

North Yorkshire Council said loaning the items out has provided more opportunities for the public to view the civic collection and has increased awareness of the town’s heritage and history.

Items held by the the Royal Hall Restoration Trust include the foundation stone trowel for Harrogate Library, a pump room cigarette box and a framed Tour de France yellow jersey signed by Marcel Kittel — winner of the first stage in Harrogate 2014.

The organisation also holds a scroll that was produced to mark a royal visit in 1894, the spade that cut the first section of the Bilton gas works railway in 1907 and a framed proclamation of King Edward’s accession from 1936.

Read more:

The charter trustees will meet next Monday at the Civic Centre when they are expected to renew the loan agreements.

They will also consider a finance report that notes how much the charter trustees have cost the public so far.

For the financial year 2023/24, there was a budget of £12,500 and a report says £5,000 has been spent on officer support from North Yorkshire Council.

A Harrogate Town Council was expected to take over the running of the town’s civic traditions next year but its likely creation has been put back until 2025.

This is to allow for another consultation that will ask the public about proposed ward boundaries and the number of councillors the new council will have.

New footbridge over River Wharfe proposed

Plans have been submitted to build a new footbridge over the River Wharfe to connect West Yorkshire with North Yorkshire.

Currently, there is a public right of way connecting the two banks of the river between Burley-in-Wharfedale and Askwith on the edge of the Harrogate district and walkers have to navigate a series of stepping stones.

But due to rising river levels and heavy rainfall the stones frequently become submerged, making the crossing impassable.

The plans have been submitted by volunteer group Burley Bridge Association, which says there have been hopes of building a bridge over this section of the Wharfe for 120 years.

A public meeting in 1896 voted overwhelmingly in favour of a bridge near Burley Weir to celebrate Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee — but it is still yet to materialise.

The nearest road bridges are at Ben Rhydding and Otley although these are two and three miles away from the proposed new bridge.

Last year, Burley Bridge Association devised a new 42-mile walking trail trail called the Yorkshire Heritage Way to link Bradford with Ripon.

Read more:

It passes through the two UNESCO World Heritage sites of Saltaire and Fountains Abbey and also crosses the Wharfe using the stepping stones. The group hopes the new bridge will guarantee an all-year round crossing for people following the trail.

The Nidderdale AONB is also a supporter of the bridge as it would like to encourage more foot traffic into the area.

Burley Bridge Association estimates the bridge will cost £400,000 and it will be paid for through donations and voluntary sources.

The group said: 

“A reliable, safe, and weather-proof crossing will be of benefit to the entire local community who regularly use the stepping-stones to access walking and running routes, and to those who travel into the area to enjoy all that the Yorkshire Dales National Park and the adjacent Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty have to offer.”

Plans have been submitted to both North Yorkshire Council and Bradford Metropolitan Council and will be decided at a later date.

New playground for Hampsthwaite school

Pupils at Hampsthwaite Church of England Primary School near Harrogate have been celebrating the opening of a new playground.

A wooden trim trail has been installed along with colourful playground markings to make playtimes more exciting.

The playground project started in March when pupils, teachers and parents took part in a fundraiser to collectively cycle the 1,000-mile distance of Land’s End to John O’Groats on four stationary bikes in the school hall in 24 hours.

The original aim was to raise £2,000 to make some improvements to the playground, but the final total was £6,500.

Headteacher Amy Ross said:

“We were overwhelmed by the sponsorship support that we received from parents, extended family, local businesses and members of the community.

“The new playground will be beneficial to children of all ages at the school, and we were keen to choose equipment that was eco-friendly and long lasting to provide enjoyment for pupils for many years to come.

“It was a pleasure to see the smiles on the children’s faces this morning when they saw the new playground for the first time.”

On Friday, October 27, the school will be holding its first open morning of this academic year.

Read more:

 

14 Harrogate town centre flats to go on market

Fourteen newly built flats in the centre of Harrogate are set to go on the market in the next few days.

The Trinity House development, which was built on the site of the former River Island shop on Cambridge Street, consists of one and two-bedroom properties.

Prices for one-bedroom flats start at £300,000.

It is one of several schemes recently approved by planners to convert town centre retail units in Harrogate to residential homes.

The former main post office on Cambridge Road, the former Orvis shop on West Park and the former Kings Club strip club on Oxford Street, are all due to be transformed to homes.

Trinity Court features a central landscaped courtyard. Eight parking spaces are also available by separate negotiation to the flats.

Cathy Evans, head of Preston Baker land and new homes, which is the sales agent for Trinity House, said the flats “epitomise luxury living” and were “sure to be extremely popular”. She added:

“They are exquisitely crafted to provide an unrivalled living experience with an emphasis on space and style.”

Trinity House spans three floors and includes a lift, entry video intercom, private balconies in some apartments, CCTV in communal areas, underfloor heating throughout and hardwood floors.

The scheme is being delivered by Doncaster-based developer Swan Homes, part of the Vigo Group.

Nathan Brough, managing director of Swan Homes, said:

“We are thrilled to have completed the development of Trinity House. The 14 apartments will make beautiful homes for people who wish to live or work in Harrogate.”

Read more:

 

Call for answers over North Yorkshire fire service rising response times

Harrogate and Knaresborough Liberal Democrats have called for answers over rising response times at North Yorkshire’s fire service.

A meeting of North Yorkshire’s police, fire and crime panel last week was told that people had to wait for an average of 13 minutes and nine seconds for firefighters to respond to incidents.

This compared with 11 minutes and 37 seconds the year before.

Tom Gordon, Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate for Harrogate and Knaresborough, described the figures as “worrying”.

He called on Zoe Metcalfe, Conservative North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, to explain the rise in the service’s response times.

Mr Gordon said:

“Local residents I speak to are deeply worried. According to the latest figures, people in the areas covered by the North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service had to wait an average of 13 minutes and nine seconds for firefighters to respond to incidents. This is an increase from 11 minutes and 37 seconds the previous year. It’s clear that something is amiss, and the people of North Yorkshire deserve to know why their safety is being put at risk.

“One cannot help but wonder if these rising response times are a direct result of budget cuts or resource allocation decisions. It’s essential that Commissioner Metcalfe provides a transparent and comprehensive explanation for these delays.

“If budget constraints or ill-advised resource changes are indeed contributing to slower response times, it is imperative that corrective actions are taken immediately to ensure the safety of our community.”

Read more:

The move comes as Ms Metcalfe said North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue was “improving” despite the rising response times.

The Conservative commissioner said the service had been working “at pace to make considerable progress” over the eight recommendations linked to concerns highlighted by government inspectors.

Inspectors rated the fire service as “inadequate” and “requires improvement” last year.

Rural locations

A spokesperson for the commissioner’s office said the increase in response times was a national trend and North Yorkshire’s rural nature “significantly impacts our average response times, due to the travel time required to reach them from their nearest fire station”. They added many station are crewed by on-call firefighters who travel from work or home to attend incidents.

The spokesperson added:

“Last year, due to extremely hot weather, the service attended a large number of fires involving farms and farm vehicles, often located in the more rural areas of the county, meaning longer travel times on slower country roads. These will naturally have impacted on our average response times for last year.”

Ms Metcalfe said the fire service “rigorously analyses and interrogates its response times to all incidents”. She added:

“The service has provided a comprehensive explanation for the change in average response times, and assurances that the increase is not attributable to resource decisions, but to the increase in primary fires taking place in rural locations which require longer travel times.

“The time it takes the service to respond to fires in dwellings is particularly important since these incidents can pose a greater risk to life. The average response time to these types of emergency incidents has continued to be far quicker at 9 minutes 29 seconds, just three seconds slower than other ‘predominantly rural’ services.”

Area manager Damian Henderson, director of service improvement and assurance said:

“I would like to offer reassurance that we always attend incidents as quickly as possible and as part of our response principles we look at primary fires we attend where the average response times are above the average for predominantly rural services.

“This allows us to make proposals for improvement, where we can. We are also increasing our prevention and protection work in our more rural areas. Following the large number of farm related fires we have already undertaken work with the farming community including the production of a farm safety leaflet.”

Business Breakfast: Harrogate environmental firm appoints director

The Stray Ferret Business Club’s next meeting is a breakfast event on Thursday, October 26 at Banyan in Harrogate from 8am to 10 am. 

The Business Club provides monthly opportunities to network, make new connections and hear local success stories. Get your tickets by clicking or tapping here.

A Harrogate environmental company has appointed a new director.

Adler and Allan, which is based on Victoria Avenue, has hired David Jarvis as operations and commercial director.

Mr Jarvis will take up the role in the company’s newly formed water division and will be tasked with overseeing the firm’s growth strategy.

He said:

“I am impressed by Adler and Allan’s purpose, vision, and plans for growth within the water sector.

“There is nothing I enjoy more than getting my PPE on and spending time out on site with teams delivering essential services, keeping taps wet and manholes dry.”

Harrogate estate agents backs food bank challenge

A Harrogate estate agents is backing a campaign to donate one tonne of food to local food banks.

Verity Frearson is supporting Harrogate’s Supplies Web Ltd, which is aiming to complete the challenge.

It would see one tonne of food delivered to food banks in Harrogate and High Wycombe, where Supplies Web Ltd has its southern branch.

Matthew Stamford (Director VF), Paul Graves (Director SW) & Mark Hague (Business Development Manager SW).

Matthew Stamford (director VF), Paul Graves (director SW) and Mark Hague (business development manager SW).

Matthew Stamford, a director at Verity Frearson, said the firm took on the challenge after being contacted by Paul Graves, a director at Supplies Web Ltd.

He said:

“When Paul contacted us to see if we’d be interested in getting involved in their food bank challenge we jumped at the chance.

“As a business, we have made ongoing commitment to give back to the local community and to help the people who need the most support.”

Read more: 

 

Police investigate car crashing into fence on Harrogate street

North Yorkshire Police has launched an investigation after a car crashed into parked vehicles and a fence on a Harrogate street.

The incident happened on Tuesday, October 10, on Birstwith Road.

Officers said a white Vauxhall Insignia collided with parked vehicles and a fence at around 9.20pm. The occupants of the car had left the scene upon police arrival.

The force has appealed for anyone with information on the incident to come forward.

A police statement said:

“Police enquiries are ongoing.

“Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact North Yorkshire Police on 101, quoting reference 12230192818.”

Read more: