North Yorkshire Police faces additional costs of £8 million due to inflation this year.

At a meeting of North Yorkshire’s Police Fire and Crime Panel today, the commissioner’s office outlined how the force faced pressures due to rising utility bills, salaries and rising costs of supplies.

Michael Porter, the commissioner’s finance director, warned that even the maximum permitted council tax precept increase of £15 would not be enough to cover the figure.

He said:

“All of the options in front of us at this point in time leave us with a deficit or required savings target.

“Whether or not we go for a 1.99% increase, a £10 increase or a £15 increase.”

Mr Porter told the meeting that once investment in the force’s control room and extra recruitment was factored in on top of inflation, the police faced costs of £13.6 million.

The government has given police commissioners the power to increase the force’s share of council tax by £15 before a referendum has to be held.

A £15 hike in the police precept would be the equivalent of a 5.34% increase and see the force’s share of council tax rise to £296 for a band D property.

Read more:

• Police commissioner given power to hike council tax by £15
• North Yorkshire Police needs £12m to meet rising costs, says commissioner
• Impartiality concerns over crime commissioner’s plan to share office with Harrogate police

But the commissioner’s office has estimated that the maximum precept increase would still leave around £4.7 million in savings required.

However, Mr Porter said that he was confident that the commissioner’s office had enough reserves to cover inflationary pressures next year.

He said:

“We do have an element of a reserve which is going to be specifically set aside next year for pay and inflationary pressures.

“I think it’s very important for us to have that so we don’t have to make any knee-jerk, in-year decisions and reductions.”

Conservative crime commissioner, Zoe Metcalfe, is expected to outline her budget plans for fire and police services in February.

The consultation into police and fire precepts closes on January 16, 2023. You can take part in the survey here.

A trial has opened into allegations of sexual offences by an instructor at Harrogate’s Army Foundation College.

Cpl S Bartram is charged with a number of offences including sexual assault, harassment, perverting the course of justice and disgraceful conduct of an indecent kind.

The trial began at Catterick Court Martial Centre on Monday.

The Army Foundation College, on Penny Pot Lane, provides 23-week and 49-week basic training courses to junior soldiers aged 16 to 18.

The trial is scheduled to last for two weeks.

Read more:

• Abuse allegations at Harrogate Army Foundation College raised in House of Lords
• Junior soldiers graduate at Harrogate’s Army Foundation College

A Harrogate school is celebrating being selected for refurbishment after winning a place on a government scheme.

St Peter’s C of E Primary School, in the town centre, is one of 239 schools in the country to be chosen to be part of the School Rebuild or Refurbishment Programme.

St Peter’s is the only school in the Harrogate district to have been chosen under the scheme. Wetherby High School, which is in the City of Leeds district, will also receive funding.

School business manager Amanda Foster said:

“This is a beautiful Victorian building, but it’s never really had enough money to keep it in good condition. There’s water ingress, single-glazed windows, the roof has never been looked at, and the boiler is 51 years old.

“If they can make us watertight, replace our windows and get us a new boiler, we’ll be delighted, but we’ll have to wait and see.”

No figure has yet been put on the amount of funding that will be allocated to the school. The Department for Education will assess later this year what works need to be done and how much money will be awarded.

Headteacher Mr Paul Griffiths said:

‘We are delighted with this news. A huge amount of time and work goes into preparing these applications and we are delighted to have been successful.

“Since joining the school in September 2021, a number of improvements including new outdoor play facilities, a new nurture room and a new classroom have been successfully completed. We are thrilled that we will be able to continue to invest significantly in the building for the benefit of staff, children their families and the wider community.

“We look forward to keeping everyone updated with news of the scope and timing of the works as the year progresses.”

Built in 1883, St Peter’s was Harrogate’s first purpose-built hospital. The hospital was closed in 1932 and then bought a few years later and turned into a school.

Last year, the school, which has 267 pupils and is part of the Yorkshire Causeway Schools Trust, spent £280,000 on a major refurbishment project, which included removing external fire escapes, creating additional classrooms and a new outside play area.

Read more:

• Victorian primary school in Harrogate undergoes major revamp
• Ofsted paves way for new Harrogate school offering additional support
• Eligibility for free school meals in Harrogate district rises by 50% since pandemic

Now is your time to shine with the Stray Ferret Business Awards. We are encouraging businesses of all sizes from right across the Harrogate district to enter for our awards and get recognition from our top panel of judges. Entries close on January 16.

A Harrogate opticians has donated high visibility vests to a local school.

Specsavers on Beulah Street donated the jackets to St Robert’s Catholic Primary School to help children stay safe on school trips during winter.

Fraz Khan, store director, said:

“The winter weather, fog, rain and darkness that closes in early in the afternoons make it more difficult for drivers to see pedestrians, and especially children.

“By providing the high visibility jackets to our neighbouring school, we can help to tackle concerns around road safety and make it easier for children to be seen. As part of the initiative, we are also hoping to raise awareness of regular eye test for children, as untreated sight problems can lead to more serious issues in the long term, if not addressed.”

Miss Collins, headteacher at St Robert’s, added: 

“We’re really grateful to have received this donation, the vests will be so helpful in making sure the children are clearly visible when we take them on trips and visits and means that adventures outside of the classroom don’t have to be put on hold until the spring.”

Housing developer hosts energy saving event at Harrogate scheme

A housing developer is set to host an energy saving event at its Harrogate scheme to help new homeowners.

Redrow will host a series of events at its Granby Meadows development between Saturday (January 14) and Sunday (January 22).

Prospective homebuyers will also be able to use Redrow’s energy performance certificate calculator tool, which is designed to help people compare the energy savings to their current properties and highlight the benefits of a newbuild.

James Holmear, director of Redrow, said:

“Our research shows people are more eco conscious than ever before and are looking at ways to be even more energy efficient, especially in relation to their homes.”

For more information, visit the Redrow website here.

NHS managers have objected to plans for 49 homes at Kingsley Farm in Harrogate and warned that the town’s health infrastructure has “very limited capacity”.

The homes, which have been proposed by Quarterly Kingsley Ltd, are earmarked for the north and north east of the site off Kingsley Road.

The developer said in a planning statement submitted to Harrogate Borough Council the scheme would help to offer a “sense of place”.

However, Nick Brown, of the NHS Humber and North Yorkshire Integrated Care Board, has objected to the plan.

In a letter to the council, he warned GPs were “extremely concerned” about further development within Harrogate.

He said:

“As primary care providers, the GPs and primary care networks are extremely concerned regarding any proposals for further residential development within Harrogate.

“The existing health infrastructure in Harrogate already operates above optimum capacity and has very limited capacity to absorb additional pressures.

“Primary care and community services within the area are already running at, or far beyond their existing capacity.”

Read more:

• Developer reduces planned Kinglsey Drive scheme to 162 homes
• Starbeck residents pledge to fight 181-home Kingsley Drive plans ‘tooth and nail’

The Kingsley area has seen multiple planning applications lodged to build houses on Kingsley Farm, including a revised proposal for 162 homes by Persimmon Homes.

Residents in the area have long held concerns about the amount of housebuilding in the area and its affect on traffic, noise and loss of green space.

Harrogate Borough Council will make a decision on the Kingsley Farm proposal at a later date.

An Ouseburn councillor has said a new North Yorkshire County Council strategy to tackle carbon emissions and climate change should focus more on agriculture.

Senior councillors are expected next week to approve opening a public consultation on a draft climate change strategy.

The strategy aims to make North Yorkshire the first carbon negative region in the country, meaning more carbon dioxide emissions would be removed from the atmosphere than emitted.

The document sets out how the new North Yorkshire Council, which will launch on April 1, will develop work already underway to reduce carbon emissions.

Initiatives include producing more renewable energy, reducing the use of fossil fuels, improving insulation in homes, encouraging the use of low-emission vehicles and promoting more active travel such as cycling and walking.

However, Cllr Arnold Warneken, a Green Party member who represents Ouseburn on the council, said the strategy proposed little on how to tackle emissions from the agriculture sector.

Figures show North Yorkshire produced 5,829 kilotonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents (kt co2e) in 2020, with agriculture equating to a third of the total, transport responsible for 28% and 19% coming from homes.

Cllr Warneken said:

“While the plan is claimed to be ambitious we seem unwilling to address the issue of agriculture and cite what other organisations are doing as opposed to what we propose to do, as at the moment that is nothing.

“We could at least start by looking at the farms we own and then move on to working with likes of the National Farmers Union who have their own targets and strategy which we could work with. For example being more supportive of applications for renewables on farms that wish to produce energy for their own use and that of the local communities.”

Read more:

• Calls for council to go ‘further and faster’ on climate change in North Yorkshire
• Rain highlights concerns about state of Harrogate district drains and gullies

Work already undertaken in the county to tackle carbon emissions includes the installation of energy-saving LED street lighting, energy efficient improvements to buildings and trialling the use of electric vehicles.

The route map for the region to become carbon negative by 2040 has been spearheaded by the York and North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership and has seen a plan drawn up to involve the public sector, businesses and communities.

Conservative Cllr Greg White, executive councillor for climate change on the council, said: 

“Climate change is without question the greatest threat that the world faces, and is already impacting on communities across the globe.

“We have seen an increasing frequency of extreme weather conditions here in North Yorkshire and across the UK as a whole, which scientists tell us is clear evidence of significant changes in our climate.

“Without clear and decisive action, the situation will only get worse. However, we are committed to ensuring that we have a comprehensive strategy in North Yorkshire, especially as we look towards the launch of the new authority this spring.”

The Stray Ferret Business Awards 2023 are for businesses across all sectors in the Harrogate district.

In this final week before entries close, we are revealing the last of what our judging panel is looking for when it comes to each of the 10 categories.

Next up is the Best Employee Development Award, which is sponsored by Jones Myers, Family Law Solicitors.

This award is designed to highlight businesses that develop their employees, giving them the best start for a new career.

Those looking to enter this award need to give details of the business values and culture that lead to the creation of the training programme and highlight employee successes that came as a result.

Do you know a person that deserves to win the Best Employee Development Award at the Stray Ferret Business Awards? Entries close on January 16. It’s simple and quick, so enter today!

Click here or the banner below to enter for the Stray Ferret Business Awards, sponsored by Prosperis.

Read more:

• Harrogate businessman spared jail for sexually assaulting woman in street
• Race to be Lib Dem candidate in Harrogate and Knaresborough down to final two

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service has this afternoon urged motorists to heed road closure signs after receiving reports of stranded vehicles.

The amount of water on roads is causing problems throughout the county. But some drivers are ignoring signs telling them to turn back due to flooding.

It has prompted the fire service to tweet:

“We have received reports of stranded cars due to standing water following heavy rain – even when signs are in place.

“Please remember the signs are there for a reason. Information about driving in these conditions can be found on our website.”

Three Environment Agency flood alerts are currently in place in the Harrogate district.

The government department says flooding is ‘possible’ in the Lower River Nidd catchment area and around the Lower River Ure and is ‘expected’ at the caravan park alongside the Ure at Roecliffe, near Boroughbridge.

Details of the alerts can be found here.

The River Ure has burst its banks around Ripon, which prompted one concerned passer-by to dial 999 when he mistakenly thought a statue of a horse was an animal in distress.

A flood alert for the Upper River Nidd catchment area, issued yesterday, has been removed.

Read more:

• Rain highlights concerns about state of Harrogate district drains and gullies
• Firefighters called to rescue horse in Ripon which turned out to be a sculpture

Striking ambulance workers are operating a picket line in Harrogate today.

Members of the GMB union began their 24-hour action at Harrogate Ambulance Station, which is on Lancaster Park Road close to the hospital, at midnight.

They were joined by members of Unison at noon.

It is the second time staff at Yorkshire Ambulance Service have gone on strike in the last month, although they continue to respond to the most serious category one calls.

GMB rep and paramedic Neil Summers told the Stray Ferret the state of the NHS was the main reason for the industrial action. He said:

“We are literally sitting outside hospitals with patients in our ambulances for hours and hours because they have nowhere to go.

“The hospitals are full and it means we are not able to do our jobs. We hear calls for cardiac arrests and can’t do anything.”

Todays picket line

Mr Summers said York Hospital was particularly bad but paramedics could still be waiting at Harrogate District Hospital for “up to three or four hours”.

He said there needed to be greater investment in the NHS as well as social care to ease problems caused by bed-blocking.

He said pay was also a concern, as many staff had not had an increase in wages for years.

“My pay isn’t terrible but some people’s is appalling.”

Picket line Jan 2023

The pickets have been joined today by local campaigner Lindis Percy, a former nurse, midwife and health visitor. She said:

“What’s going on in the the health service is shocking and this government has caused it.”

Health Secretary Steve Barclay said this morning the NHS is under “very severe pressure”.

He added the government has announced further investment for emergency departments, as well as looking into ways of targeting how to get patients who are fit to leave into social care.

Read more:

• Ambulance workers in Harrogate district begin strike
• Picket line at Harrogate station as latest RMT strikes near end