Local Harrogate News & Views around the district - Page 294 of 1077

Celebrity TV chef to speak at Harrogate literature festival

A celebrity TV chef has been announced as a speaker at this year’s Raworths Harrogate Literature Festival.

Rosemary Shrager, whose career has spanned four decades, has featured on programmes such as ITV series Ladette to Lady and I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here.

She has also authored several cookbooks.

Ms Shrager will feature as lunchtime speaker at this year’s festival.

Sharon Canavar, chief executive of Harrogate International Festivals, said:

“We can’t wait to introduce Harrogate audiences to our exciting line-up for this year’s literature festival and we are certain that Rosemary will deliver an insightful and entertaining segment which is not to be missed.”

Rachel Tunnicliffe, senior partner at Raworths Solicitors, said:

“We are proud to be sponsoring the festival in 2023, our eleventh year of sponsorship for this event.

“It is a remarkable occasion with a fantastic line-up each year, a true celebration of great books and writing.”

Raworths Harrogate Literature Festival will return to the Crown Hotel in Harrogate, from Thursday, October 19 to Sunday, October 22.

For more information on the festival and to book tickets, visit the website here.

Business Breakfast: Harrogate marketing agency appoints new director

A Harrogate marketing and communications agency has appointed a new director.

The Big Bamboo, which is based at Windsor House, has hired Lynsey Holley-Matthews as its new marketing and communications director.

Ms Holley-Matthews, who has 20 years experience in the industry, will join the firm’s senior leadership team.

Nicola Stamford, the company’s owner and founding director, said:

“I am delighted that we have attracted someone of Lynsey’s calibre to join the business.

“Her primary focus will be on ensuring we continue to look after, add value to and nurture our existing client base, whilst also supporting me with a very targeted business development approach to bringing in new clients that fit within our portfolio.”

Ms Holley-Matthews said:

“Nicola and I ‘met’ on LinkedIn. I had already accepted another role, but hearing Nicola’s passion as she talked about the agency, the team and the future aspirations for the company, I was excited about the opportunity put in front of me.”

Harrogate sweets company acquires Mr Stanley’s brand

A Harrogate sweets company has acquired a former confectionary brand which was based in the town.

Serious Sweets Company, which is based at Hornbeam Park, has taken on the Mr Stanley’s brand, which specialises in handcrafted fudge with flavours such as ‘Fudge Ahoy’ a creamy caramel & sea salted fudge and ‘Mighty Malted’.

Mr Stanley’s specialises in fudge.

The brand was first introduced in Harrogate 15 years ago and has been owned by a London confectionery wholesaler for a number of years.

Mr Stanleys has recently secured listings with Selfridges & Co, Liberty of London as well as a number of premium independent retailers across the UK.

The Serious Sweets Company now plans to “bring it home to the foodie county of Yorkshire”.

Stray Views: Time to ban dogs from Valley Gardens?

Stray Views is a weekly column giving you the chance to have your say on issues affecting the Harrogate district. It is an opinion column and does not reflect the views of the Stray Ferret. Send your views to letters@thestrayferret.co.uk.

People who do not keep their dogs on leads despite signage are spoiling other people’s enjoyment of Valley Gardens.

The rules need to be strictly enforced or ban dogs to a separate area that is perhaps not so popular with other members of the public.

I like dogs but I believe that some people do not consider others when they just let them off the lead.

Susan Lovatt, Harrogate

‘Poor service’ at Harrogate station

I met my daughter off the London train today. She’s pregnant and has a toddler and travelled from King’s Cross. I was not allowed on the platform to help her off the train despite the fact that the train terminated there and so I wouldn’t be going anywhere.

When I questioned the staff I was told that she should have booked assistance. All I wanted to do was help her off the train, but they were not interested.

Very poor service and a taste of worse to come I suspect.

Julie Boothman, Harrogate

Do you have an opinion on the Harrogate district? Email us at letters@thestrayferret.co.uk. Please include your name and approximate location details. Limit your letters to 350 words. We reserve the right to edit letters.

Harrogate Town Council: Key questions answered

Harrogate residents will soon again be asked for their views on creating a Harrogate Town Council.

They’d be forgiven for feeling a sense of deja-vu as it will be third time documents have been dropped in letterboxes with information and questions about how it should be formed.

For some, creating another layer of local democracy so soon after the demise of Harrogate Borough Council is an unpalatable thought.

But Harrogate, along with Scarborough, are the only two areas in the county without a town or parish council and proponents say the council will give the town a voice and help hold North Yorkshire Council to account.

How much will it cost?

Perhaps the most pertinent question for residents during a cost-of-living crisis is how much the new council will cost them.

If it’s created then an annual sum, called a precept, will be added to every council tax bill to help pay for services.

The council has said that households would initially be asked to pay between £40 and £60 to allow for an annual budget in the range of £1m to £1.6m.

The areas in Harrogate which would fall under the new town council.

The budget would be spent on accommodation, employment costs, office and IT equipment, insurance, professional fees, the mayor and delivering services.

The precept would be lower than Ripon City Council, which charges £70.77 for band D properties, but higher than Knaresborough Town Council, which charges £25.27.

However, another cost that has alarmed councillors is the combined cost of the three public consultations. It was revealed at a recent meeting that the bill for these is likely to come to £140,000.

What powers will it have?

The council would be a statutory consultee on planning applications in Harrogate, which would give it a voice if it felt strongly about a particular application.

But it would not have power to make decisions as applications would still in the hands of North Yorkshire Council.

When the new unitary council was formed, it pledged to hand back some powers to parish or town councils through a project it has called double-devolution.

It could mean Harrogate Town Council is much more powerful than it would have been without this pledge.

It could bid to run services in the town such as looking after its parks or the Stray, operating car parks or managing the Royal Hall.

But this will only be decided once the council has formed and councillors have been elected.

How many councillors will there be?

There are set to be 19 councillors on the council and they will represent wards based around the former Harrogate Borough Council boundaries.

These are not used by North Yorkshire Council, which decided to use larger divisions.

Councillors considered having two councillors per ward after it was backed in the previous consultation but the Conservatives said accountability to residents would be better served with single councillor wards.

Councillors who already sit on North Yorkshire Council are able to stand in town council elections.

In most parish councils, councillors sit as independent members, however, they can also stand for political parties.

When will elections take place?

If residents approve the proposals laid out in the next consultation, the council would likely form in April 2025 with elections taking place in May, although this has not been confirmed yet.

This is a year later than originally planned but it’s been put back in order for the third consultation to take place.

Harrogate’s Archie Gray could be in line for Leeds United debut

Harrogate’s Archie Gray could be in line for his senior Leeds United debut.

Leeds are set to take on Cardiff City in their EFL Championship opening match at Elland Road at 2.30pm today.

Gray has been involved in all of the club’s pre-season fixtures in preparation for the new season.

The 17-year-old could feature in central midfield alongside Ethan Ampadu, who he partnered with in Leeds’ final friendly against Hearts last Sunday.

Speaking in a press conference ahead of the opening game, Leeds manager Daniel Farke sought to relieve pressure on the youngster amid his first team prospects.

He said:

“I don’t like to praise young lads too early. I’ve spoken about his development.

“I’m happy with him. But before he has played the proper amount of games I’m not willing to sing the high praise of Archie Gray because I don’t think it’s healthy.”

Gray completed his GCSEs at St John Fisher Catholic High School in Harrogate last year.

He signed his first professional contract with Leeds United in March this year.

He is also great-nephew of Leeds legend, and Kirkby Overblow resident, Eddie Gray.

Reform UK announces local parliamentary candidates

Reform UK has announced its prospective parliamentary candidates for Harrogate and Knaresborough and Ripon and Skipton.

The right-wing party was founded as the Brexit Party with support from Nigel Farage in 2018.

It was renamed in 2021 and is now led by Richard Tice.

Reform UK has said it will field candidates in every constituency at the next general election, which must take place within the next 18 months.

It has selected Richard Brown to contest Harrogate and Knaresborough and Simon Garvey to stand in Ripon and Skipton. The seats are currently held by Conservatives Andrew Jones and Julian Smith respectively.

We spoke to both candidates, neither of whom has stood for political office before.

Harrogate Station Gateway ‘ridiculous’

Mr Brown (pictured), an accountant from Harrogate, said he believed local authorities should be more open and accountable.

He described the £11.9 million Harrogate Station Gateway initiative as “ridiculous” and accused the council of wasting public money on schemes most people didn’t want. He cited the £10,000 spent on a fountain in Valley Gardens as another example.

Being an accountant, he said he’d “like to see the figures” before forming a view on what should happen to Harrogate Convention Centre, which has unsuccessfully sought funds for a £49 million upgrade.

Mr Brown said he decided to put his name forward after attending some Reform UK meetings and being “impressed by the quality of people”.

Many Reform UK members had Conservative or UKIP backgrounds, he said, but he hadn’t voted consistently for any party since the days of Margaret Thatcher. He said he voted for the Conservatives at the last election to achieve Brexit.

He said:

“My clients have always told me I should stand as an MP. I thought maybe that’s an itch I ought to scratch.”

Mr Brown said he wasn’t campaigning to make up the numbers. He said people were disillusioned with the Tories and not impressed by Labour or the Liberal Democrats and there was an opportunity to appeal to disaffected Tories.

He said he hoped Reform UK would have a “Berlin Wall moment” by shocking the established political parties and winning in places such as Harrogate and Knaresborough.

‘I backed Boris to get Brexit done”

Simon Garvey (pictured) said he was a mainstream Conservative with no political ambitions who decided to stand because of recent political developments.

Mr Garvey, who lives with his wife and children in Ripon, said:

“I backed Boris to get Brexit done and feel disenfranchised now after Boris was ousted. If Liz Truss was given a chance I would have backed her too as she was chosen by the membership but from a democracy standpoint I don’t feel I can support Rishi Sunak as I don’t think you can have un-elected leaders.”

Mr Garvey has a background in education. Besides teaching in Ripon, he set up Inclusive Learning Systems to develop software for schools.

He cites education, and “good teachers being forced out of the system”, as one of his main concerns, along with the drive to carbon net zero, which he said had affected many people financially.

Mr Garvey said:

“We had an open goal with Brexit. Boris could have led us to a great place financially. But forces outside the political sphere are influencing where the country is heading.”

He predicted if the opinion polls were correct and Labour won the next election, many voters would turn to Reform UK at the following election out of disillusionment with both Labour and the Tories.

Destination Harrogate future unclear as council set to bid for tourism body

The future of a Harrogate tourism body remains unclear as North Yorkshire Council reveals plans to create a new organisation to attract visitors to the county.

Destination Harrogate, which is the destination management organisation for the region, was set up by Harrogate Borough Council.

However, North Yorkshire Council is set to table a bid to government in September for a local visitor economy partnership — which will replace destination management organisations following a review by ministers.

The new body would be responsible for promoting tourism in North Yorkshire and attracting events.

The council has also published a 88-page tourism strategy for the county, which includes aims to grow the tourist economy.

The Stray Ferret asked North Yorkshire Council whether the move would mean that Destination Harrogate is scrapped as a result of the single tourism strategy.

In response, David Caulfield, the council’s assistant director for tourism, said:

“The new destination management plan will bring together all areas of North Yorkshire to provide a single strategy for the council and key partners to support the strong tourism offer within the county to flourish further and offer even greater value to the local economy.

“This will put North Yorkshire in an excellent position in its application to become a local visitor economy partnership.

“All the tourism teams previously within the former district and borough areas, including Destination Harrogate staff, have been brought together as one North Yorkshire tourism team to support the development of the strategy and ensure the strong local brands are represented.

“Given Harrogate’s well-defined tourist offer, we expect the area to be an integral part of the overall framework.

“Harrogate has been identified as among the strongest brands within North Yorkshire along with the North York Moors, the Yorkshire Dales and the coast.”

Questions over future

Questions were raised over Destination Harrogate’s future ahead of the establishment of North Yorkshire Council in April.

At a Harrogate Borough Council meeting in February, Paula Lorimer, director of Harrogate Convention Centre, said a government review into destination management organisations would likely mean only such bodies from cities or large regions will be able to receive funding from central government.

She suggested Harrogate would have to amalgamate into a wider, yet-to-be created North Yorkshire destination management organisation to qualify for the funding.

Meanwhile, borough council chief executive Wallace Sampson told councillors the new authority could look to “identify savings” with Destination Harrogate after it is handed control of the organisation.

He added:

“[Destination Harrogate] is a discretionary service and against the background of a challenging financial environment for the new council, every discretionary service will be subject to financial scrutiny.”

Mr Sampson warned of the possible pitfalls of Destination Harrogate being merged into a county-wide tourism body, which he suggested could dilute the focus on individual places.

Yorkshire Tea blender, Warren Ford, dies aged 90

The man behind the blend of Yorkshire Tea, Warren Ford, has died aged 90.

Born in Lewisham, South London, on May 16, 1933, Warren went to school in London before leaving aged 16.

He worked at Tetley’s tea as a senior buyer, before being sought at by Victor Wild, who built up Betty’s tea room in Harrogate, in the 1970s.

By 1976 Warren had been appointed as a director of Taylors and the following year, along with Victor, Jonathan Wild and Eddie Hardie, was one of the original ‘gang of four’ responsible for the creation, launch and early success of Yorkshire Tea.

Warren became fundamental in establishing the foundations for the future growth of Yorkshire Tea. He even suggested the colour orange for the packaging, recognising that it was the most unused colour on the tea shelf.

Jonathan Wild remembers that Warren’s ability gave him confidence in the product.

He said:

“Yorkshire Tea took over our lives and compelled us to stretch ourselves beyond the limits of our experience – and inexperience.

“What gave me confidence was belief in ‘The Tea’ and in Warren’s ability. We rode our luck well and tempered our ambition with stealthy patience, but I’m not sure that at any other moment in time – before or since – we could have created something so unique and ultimately so successful as Yorkshire Tea.”

The brand, Taylors Yorkshire Tea, was launched in 1977 and became popular. It received royal warrant in 2009.

Reflecting on the gang of four and the creation of the brand, Warren recalled:

“it was a team effort from the start: Victor’s creativity and prudent financial control, Eddie Hardy’s relationship with supermarkets and determination that we invest in packaging technology, Jonathan’s youthful energy and ambition, and, of course, all the advantages that I brought: an experienced, integrated approach to buying and blending in which we competed to our advantage by selecting rather than collecting our teas.

“It required all these elements to create success.”

Warren Ford died on June 21, 2023.

Ladies’ Day to boost Harrogate footballer’s cancer treatment fund

Two back-to-back football matches will be played at Harrogate Railway this weekend as part of a day of fundraising.

Ladies’ Day will see the women’s reserves play at noon on Sunday, followed by the first team facing Farsley Celtic at 2pm.

Entry will be free for spectators, with a barbecue, raffle and refreshments all on offer as part of the entertainment.

First team coach Rich Burns told the Stray Ferret:

“it’s a celebration of ladies’ football in the club and the region. We’ve gone from one football team to four in the space of two years.

“I’ve been there for 15 years and we’ve only had one senior ladies’ team and various girls’ teams. Since the Euros, where the Lionesses were successful, now the World Cup and the WSL, there’s a real growth and demand for women’s football in the region.”

As well as first and reserve teams, Railway now has an under 18s ladies’ side, offering teenagers the chance to learn, or continue learning a sport they have enjoyed at school.

Rich said it offers a natural pathway into the adult teams too.

And it is for one of the first team players that the day has been organised.

Dee Swales played for the club for around five years, before moving to Farsley Celtic. She returned two years ago, but last year was diagnosed with breast cancer.

Rich said:

“She has been undergoing significant treatment and dealt with the first part really well, but she has unfortunately developed a secondary cancer.

“The NHS doesn’t fund the treatment she needs when it’s for secondary cancer, so you have to raise funds yourself.

“She has been dong loads of stuff and fundraising, but the club really wanted to show our support for this as well.”

Setting a target of £1,000, the club said any money raised that exceeds the amount Dee needs will be split between Macmillan and Cancer Research UK.

Harrogate Railway Football Club on Station View, Starbeck, will host the event

Dee is also planning to join in the fun on the day – though will have more reason than most to play it safe. Rich said:

“She’s a week away from being married. I think the biggest challenge is keeping her off the pitch, because [fiancee] Abi would absolutely kill us if she gets injured for the wedding!”

With women’s football much more popular than ever before, Harrogate Railway are hoping for a big crowd at the event on Sunday.

Rich added:

“Everyone’s aware of Rachel Daly and her ties to the region. She spent a small amount of time with Railway and when she came back from the US during the summers, she used to come to our training sessions.

“It has been really fantastic that the Lionesses have been offering discounted tickets to grassroots clubs.

“We’ve been able to support them a few times and we went to see them at Wembley.

“You don’t get the same level of animosity you can get at the men’s game and it does seem very family-friendly.

“Seeing 87,000 people in Wembley for a ladies’ game was fantastic – it was a celebration of football.”

Volunteers begin testing River Nidd water quality

Volunteers lined the banks of the River Nidd and its tributaries this week to test water quality as part of a major clean-up campaign.

Nidd Action Group coordinated the activity as part of a bid to achieve bathing water status, which would require organisations to take measures to improve water quality.

It follows concerns about the state of the river and reports of bathers falling ill at Knaresborough Lido.

Nidd Action Group includes conservationists, anglers, academics and residents. Harrogate and Knaresborough MP Andrew Jones is also supporting the initiative by gathering data on the number of people using the river at the Lido.

On Thursday afternoon, 40 volunteers dipped test kits into the Nidd at various points from the upper reaches at Scar House, north of Pateley Bridge, right down to Moor Monkton, close to where the Nidd joins the River Ouse.

Volunteers learning to take samples last month.

A second round of sampling will take place late next month before a bid for bathing water status is submitted to the government.

David Clayden, chairman of Nidd Action Group, said this week’s sampling appeared to go well.

He added:

“The weather was kind to us, unlike the previous very wet day. The river was running quite high, but I’ve had no reports of any incidents.

“All the samples in their sterilised bottles have been assembled, along with the documentation and the data collected at the river.

“Samples are being analysed in the accredited laboratory in Lichfield, and further samples will be sent to another laboratory on Monday for less urgent analysis.

A second round of sampling will take place late next month in the same locations but in different weather and river conditions.

Bilton Conservation Group volunteers sampling at Oak Beck on Thursday.

Shirley Hare and Warren Considine with a sample from Oak Beck.

Mr Clayden said the results would then be shared and “we will identify any inferences that can be drawn, and discuss any actions, beneficial to the river, that might be taken”.

Sampling took place ar Scar House Reservoir, Lofthouse, How Stean Gorge, Low Sikes, Ramsgill, Wath, Pateley Bridge, Glasshouses, Summerbridge, Birstwith, Crag Hill Farm, Ripley Beck, Killinghall, along Oak beck in Bilton, Nidd Viaduct, Knaresborough, Crimple Beck, Little Ribston, Hunsingore and Moor Monkton

Mr Clayden commended the volunteers for their commitment and thanked Yorkshire Dales River Trust, a charity based in Pateley Bridge. for assembling the sampling kits and the Environment Agency staff who also undertook sampling.

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