Interview with Maisie Adam: The Harrogate-born comedian talks Frank’s Fund and more

Lauren Crisp is a book editor, writer and keen follower of arts and culture. Born and raised in Harrogate, Lauren recently moved back to North Yorkshire after a stint in London, where she regularly reviewed theatre – everything from big West End shows to small fringe productions. She is now eager to explore the culture on offer in and around her home town.  You can contact Lauren on laurencrispwriter@gmail.com 

 

“It’s been a mad old time!” says Maisie, as we settle in for a chinwag. Harrogate-born Maisie most certainly has been busy, taking the comedy world by storm with appearances on everything from 8 Out of 10 Cats, to QI, Richard Osman’s House of Games, and the iconic Live at the Apollo. I’ve been following Maisie’s career since her first gigs, and it’s a delight to catch up with her in advance of her hosting the Frank’s Fund Comedy Gala at Harrogate Theatre on Monday 9 October.

It’s been a whopper of a year for Maisie and as well as completing her debut solo tour, she’s been focusing a lot of energy on a major passion of hers: football. She trotted across the globe to Australia to cover the Women’s World Cup and has launched a hugely successful podcast, Big Kick Energy, recently nominated for a Sports Broadcast Award.

Over the summer, she played in Soccer Aid for UNICEF:  “I’d grown up watching it and suddenly you find yourself playing football with a load of your childhood heroes.” As if that wasn’t enough, Maisie also got hitched… the day before the match. “I didn’t ever envision it happening the day after my wedding. That was a tricky visit up to Old Trafford. I was very hungover.” I ask Maisie if she gets recognised on the street these days.

“Yeah, it does happen a fair bit now! I guess it’s the haircut. I dyed it for the World Cup. I thought I’d do a Gazza and go blonde… but some people thought it was for the Barbie movie.”

We have a giggle reminiscing about school days at St. Aidan’s, where we both went.

“I was definitely a bit of a loudmouth at school,” Maisie says. “I just liked making people laugh – it gave me quite a buzz. I never translated that into thinking I’d be a comedian.”

Maisie went on to drama school, returning to Harrogate after graduating, not sure what was next. It was at this point that comedy came to the fore.

“During school, I had a weekend job at Fat Face. I used to get so bored and end up daydreaming, and I’d write all these ideas out on till rolls. I put them all into a tin, in my bedroom. When I’d graduated from uni, I was living back home and didn’t really know what I wanted to do. Then I thought, ‘What about comedy? You’ve always been able to make people laugh.’ I found the tin, applied for a gig, and moved all my till roll about into a routine.”

Maisie went on to win the nationwide competition, So You Think You’re Funny? in 2017, and the rest is history. Maisie lives in Brighton these days but is still very much a proud northerner, often returning to visit family, or for work. I ask her what it’s like gigging on home turf.

“It’s really nice. It feels like you’ve got an in-joke with everybody in the audience. And you know what a small town is like – half the time you’re speaking to somebody in the audience and then you clock you know them. You’ll be like, ‘Oh, you gave me my first job!’ That genuinely happened – it was the guy who gave me a job at the village pub.”

I ask Maisie what it’s like being a northerner on the comedy circuit in general.

“People often see you as grounded and relatable and warm. I’ve been doing some voiceover work recently, and I’ll be in the booth with London-based directors who’ll say things like, ‘If you could just add a bit of warmth to it…’, and what they mean is: ham up your northern accent! But there’s also a bit of a snobbery; some people still assume that you live in a house with an outside toilet or that you rear cattle. But I don’t shy away from it. The worst thing is when I go back up north, to see my gran, and she tells me that I’m losing my accent. That’s when I start to panic.”

Maisie is back up in Harrogate very soon to host the annual Frank’s Frank Comedy Gala; 2023 will be the event’s fourth year, and it’s set to be bigger and better than ever. Maisie is a patron of Frank’s Fund, a charity set up by the Ashton family in 2019 following the death of their 14-year-old son, Frank, to Ewing sarcoma, a form of bone cancer. The fund raises money for vital research through the Bone Cancer Research Trust.  Like Maisie, Frank attended St. Aidan’s, and when she was approached about putting on a comedy gig to raise money (Frank was a big comedy fan), Maisie jumped at the opportunity. She tells me a bit more about why she got involved.

“Frank and I went to the same school, but I never knew him, and I’ve never been directly affected by bone cancer, but I think it’s really important. Frank’s chances were the same as somebody who’d got that cancer 40 years ago, which just doesn’t make any sense to me. Frank was in the middle of high school when he passed away, and it could really easily have been my little brother; it could really easily have been anybody. I think it’s important that you don’t just wait to be directly affected by something. The funding for research into Ewing sarcoma is so woefully low that unless we have events that focus purely on raising money, the next little lad, or anyone, who gets it, isn’t going to stand much of a better chance.”

Held in St. Aidan’s’ hall for its first two years and online during the pandemic, the gala is moving to Harrogate Theatre this year, a move which Maisie says has helped abundantly:

“It’s a far more attractive gig for comedians. Harrogate Theatre is a favourite for loads of comedians. And it’s good to have an event which isn’t mostly aimed at St. Aidan’s families – it’s now an open Harrogate event and I think that’s the direction to aim for. “A really good indication of how this charity is growing is the fact we sold out this event before even announcing the line-up.”

And what a line-up it is. Maisie will be joined by Jon Richardson, Ivo Graham and Lindsey Santoro; it’s set to be an evening full of belly laughs.

“I’m chuffed to bits. Jon, of course – he’s a big name. Ivo is going to do brilliantly with a Harrogate crowd, and Lindsey just absolutely obliterated the Edinburgh Fringe, where she was on the tip of everyone’s tongues.”

The goal, Maisie explains, is to get to the point where

“everybody in Harrogate knows that every October, there is a comedy gala; we always get a good line up, it’s always a good night, and people want to go. You just buy a ticket because you love comedy.”

Maisie adds,

“Something that is really important for Frank’s family is to keep Frank’s name going and keep him in people’s minds. I think the way you do that is to make an event that people want to go to, regardless of whether they knew Frank.”

Frank’s Fund Comedy Gala is on at Harrogate Theatre on Monday 9 October, as part of the Harrogate Comedy Festival.  You can donate to Frank’s Fund  here. 

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Yemi’s Food Stories: Three’s a Crowd pleaser in Harrogate

Yemi Adelekan is a food writer and blogger who was a semi-finalist in last year’s BBC TV’s Masterchef  competition. Every Saturday Yemi will be writing on the Stray Ferret about her love of the district’s food  and sharing cooking tips– please get in touch with her if you want her to review a restaurant, visit your farm, taste the produce you sell or even share a recipe.

 

I finally got a chance to visit Three’s A Crowd in Harrogate and for a weekday evening, the venue was buzzing with diners having a great time. People popped in for quick meals with friends and family; it was obvious the venue is popular with locals.

I started with Bonne Maman cocktail which had sea buckthorn – a new flavour for me – apple juice, lemon juice and strawberry jam. This was a delicious surprise with the slight bitter edge perfectly balancing the sweetness of the strawberry jam. This is definitely a mocktail to check out.

With two menus to choose from and the daily special which included beef wellington, crispy pork tonkatsu and Ramsden house made sausages with pomme puree, red onion gravy and bacon jam cabbage, there were enough options for all.

My starter was braised pork cheeks which was tender as can be, Bury black pudding, pearl barley stew and confit egg yolk with pickled shallots to cut through the dish.

This is a welcome autumn dish that is generously portioned with a good balance of richness, umami and sharpness from the rich dark sauce and pickled shallots which had some sweetness. The vegetables in the stew still had the right bite to them.

My main was the wild stone bass, chargrilled courgette, pickled mussels, fennel, and roast shellfish espuma. This dish had great smokiness to it that was reminiscent of cooking on open fire which I love. The char from the fish skin and courgette was beautiful; on the fish, you had the slightest bitterness and from the courgettes, you got the juices bursting with sweetness. The shellfish espuma was light and had the sweetness you would expect from it.

Wild stone bass, chargrilled courgette, pickled mussels, fennel, and roast shellfish espuma

This was a dish with character and imagination with the slow roasted caramelised tomatoes bringing in sweetness and tartness.

The lamb Henry would be right up the street of those who love classical cuisine with delicately sweet and juicy hispi cabbage, goats cheese croquettes with tang and crunchiness, rich dark sauce, smoky piquillo peppers and a sweet red pepper puree.

The lamb was tender with the fat well rendered and the exterior was crispy in a good way. The whole experience was reminiscent of eating a barbecue dish paired with classical flavours and techniques.

Dessert is meant to be the highlight of a meal as it is often the final and lingering memory the diner has and the saffron and wildflower honey crème brulee with malt crumble and Raspberry sorbet was a true highlight.

The sorbet was refreshing with malty notes that reminded me of the malt drinks of my childhood. I couldn’t resist sniffing the aroma of saffron coming from the crème brûlée and the taste of the wild flower honey could only be matched by the vibrant yellow colour. With a hint of bitterness, this is a dessert I can’t wait to eat again and attempt to recreate.

Saffron and wild honey creme brûlée

The restaurant features crowd pleasing menus such as fish and chips which was popular with diners and desserts including choux bun, sticky toffee puddings, panna cotta, chocolate mousse and cheese boards.

Three’s a Crowd was welcoming and I had a great time there. The manager on duty, Karol and his team offered prompt and friendly service and all hands were on deck as they made sure everyone was looked after.

Want a good value meal out? Restaurants across the Harrogate district will be offering discount deals this coming week, when Visit Harrogate Restaurant Week returns.   The deals run from Monday, October 9, to Sunday, October 15. 

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Nine rapes reported at Harrogate Army Foundation College in 13 months

Nine allegations of rape at Harrogate’s Army Foundation College have been reported to police in the last 13 months.

The figures were revealed in a Freedom of Information response from North Yorkshire Police.

According to the data, nine rapes, two incidents of voyeurism and two sexual assaults were reported to civilian police between July 2022 and August 2023.

No details have been given as to whether the incidents involved recruits or staff at the college.

It comes after the college on Penny Pot Lane, which trains junior soldiers aged 16 and 17, was hit by allegations of abuse and bullying in 2021.

However, ministers defended the organisation and said it had a “much improved climate”.

Baroness Goldie, a Ministry of Defence minister, told the House of Lords in May this year that the college had taken steps to improve and that this was reflected by an Ofsted report in 2021.

However, the new figures raise questions over further allegations of sexual assault and abuse.

Jim Wyke, of the Child Rights International Network, which campaigns for the raising of the military age, said the government should look again at the recruitment age.

He said:

“Ministers must look seriously at making the transition to an all-adult armed forces, recruiting for the armed forces at 18 is the settled consensus in most of the world.”

In response to the figure, a British Army spokesperson said:

“The army is committed to rooting out all forms of inappropriate behaviour and we have a zero-tolerance policy on sexual offences – any personnel convicted of a sexual offence will be dismissed.

“We have very strong safeguarding mechanisms at AFC(H) to ensure junior soldiers have the right support structures. This includes multiple methods of accessing welfare support, including confidential support lines.

“It would be inappropriate to comment on investigations which may be ongoing”

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Harrogate’s Miss Yorkshire and the role of the modern beauty queen

Anyone over the age of 70 might remember a group of feminists dramatically flour bombing the 1970 Miss World competition.

The group was protesting at a contest that objectified women. Miss World then was broadcast on the BBC and was one of the biggest TV events of the year — the feminists made headlines all over the world. Now, the idea a beauty contest being scheduled alongside Strictly on a BBC One Saturday evening is unthinkable.

The beauty pageant though has survived this lack of major TV profile and last weekend Chloe McEwen, a 21-year-old woman from Harrogate, was crowned Miss Yorkshire. She will go through to compete in the Miss England contest next year.

In a world where even Barbie has had a feminist makeover, could the same be said for the beauty contest?  Chloe’s story of being crowned Miss Yorkshire got hundreds of likes on the Stray Ferret’s social media post and noticeably no jibes.  Chloe says her small group of close friends have embraced her doing it:

“They’ve all genuinely been really supporting towards me, no one has had anything negative to say.”

Chloe has a powerful story to tell. At the age of 16 she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Such were the severity of her symptoms she spent eight months in hospital and gained four stone in weight.

“When I got out of there I was so depressed, so filled with anxiety, worried about what people would think of me. I went from this petite, pretty girl to having all this weight on me. Some people didn’t recognise me. It really knocked my confidence.

“I cut my circle of friends really small, focussed on myself and my health; getting into the gym little by little and slowly building up to being a personal trainer”.

Instagram and YouTube though are full of young women using social media to campaign and spread messages. Why did she chose a beauty contest to get her message across?

“If you’d have told me four years ago when I got out of hospital I would be doing this, I would have said not in a million years.

“For me to even get to a point of having enough confidence to compete — I want to spread the message that no matter where you are in life and you haven’t got that confidence, if you work on yourself, you can do something like a beauty contest.”

Composite image of before and after photos of Harrogate Miss Yorkshire contestant Chloe McEwen.

Chloe’s photos of her weight loss and fitness journey

The rules for entering the Miss England contest are clear — you have to be between 16 and 27 years old and unmarried. It’s described now though as ‘beauty with a purpose’.  The winner needs to have a powerful narrative and raise money for the organisation’s charity. Chloe says ‘there are plenty of beautiful girls out there but if you haven’t got that strong message, they’re not going to pick you nowadays”.

Soroptimist International is an organisation that looks after the interests of women and girls. It has an active Harrogate and district branch – with members who will remember the 1970s fight for equal rights.

The local communications officer, Lesley Berry, said in 2021 the organisation’s annual conference heard from 33-year-old Dr Carina Tyrrell – a former Miss England who is a first class honours Cambridge graduate and respected public health physician who worked on the development of covid vaccines.

Ms Berry said:

“We want people to do whatever they want to as long as nobody is exploiting them or forcing them to do it. If it is something you want to do when you’re young.

“This young lady seems to be doing it to enhance her confidence and spread awareness of the issues she’s overcome. That is a positive message”.

In an age where women’s empowerment is about individual choice, Chloe McEwen has chosen her way of spreading her message.  She hopes that, with so many young women suffering from anxiety, it works and has impact.

Chloe’s Instagram images (Chloemcewen8) and her message

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Handmade rug showroom opens in Harrogate tomorrow

A new handmade rugs showroom is set to open in Harrogate.

Emma Mellor Handmade Rugs will welcome its first customers on Albert Street tomorrow (October 7).

The store, which is based in the former Dizzy Duck unit, will sell a range of rugs from Afghan to Scandinavian designs.

Emma Mellor, who owns the venture and has a showroom in York, said she chose to open in Harrogate after initially visiting to buy some paint and noticed the vacant unit.

She said:

“I’ve always loved Harrogate. My grandma used to bring me here when I was little for a treat.

“I’ve always wanted a showroom here and I’ve always really liked this street. But it’s weird, because I actually came here for a tin of paint and it just snowballed.

“I came for a tin of paint and left with a shop.”

The showroom on Albert Street in Harrogate.

The showroom on Albert Street in Harrogate.

Ms Mellor, who took an interest in textiles after working in a rug shop herself, took over the Albert Street unit three weeks ago.

She said that it felt like a natural choice to open a new showroom in Harrogate.

Ms Mellor said:

“I really wanted to have a shop here, it seems like a natural place. I work with a lot of interior designers who are based around this area.”

The showroom will be open Tuesday to Saturday from 10.30am until 4.30pm.

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Ripon on track to be chosen for double devolution deal

Ripon City Council has cleared an important hurdle in its double devolution bid to take control of city assets.

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

It was part of the Conservative-controlled council’s double devolution agenda which pledges to let local people take control of local assets.

The council said it would choose up to six locations this autumn to put forward full business cases. Final decisions are expected in spring next year before assets are transferred to successful bidders later in the year.

This afternoon Ripon City Council was notified by council assistant chief executive Rachel Joyce the evaluation board proposed to to set up individual project teams to work with Ripon and Selby.

The news is likely to come as a blow for other towns, including Knaresborough, which also expressed interest. Harrogate was unable to bid because it does not have a town council.

Ms Joyce said in correspondence with the city council:

“Two expressions of interest that were considered, submitted by Ripon Town(City) Council and Selby Town Council; were both ambitious and multi-faceted, with a number of service areas involved in the evaluation of their expressions of interest.”

Flag of Ukraine on Ripon Town Hall

Ripon Town Hall

The Ripon devolution bid sought management of Ripon Town Hall, Market Place and Car Park, public toilets within the city and the Wakeman’s House listed building.

Ms Joyce said:

“Whilst the bids were considered to be showing the level of ambition for their areas that was originally envisaged for the double devolution project they highlighted that the evaluation criteria was not sophisticated enough to manage a wide range of services within its scoring mechanisms.

“It is therefore proposed by the evaluation board that individual project teams are set up to work with Ripon City Council and Selby Town Council to bring forward double devolution proposals to be considered by the executive in these two areas recognising that these may require more support.”

The news has been welcomed by Cllr Andrew Williams, the Independent leader of Ripon City Council, who also represents the Minster and Moorside division on North Yorkshire Council.

He told the Stray Ferret:

“We have cleared an important hurdle and that’s very good news for Ripon as we seek greater say over our own destiny.

“We put forward a very strong double devolution bid and North Yorkshire Council has shown that it is willing to listen to us and work with us — in considerable contrast to the relationship that we had over almost 50 years with Harrogate Borough Council.”

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Call to spend Harrogate Station Gateway money in Skipton if scheme falls through

A councillor has said funding intended for Harrogate’s £11.2m Station Gateway should be spent in Skipton if the scheme falls through.

Last month, senior Conservative councillors in Northallerton agreed to consider different options to rescue Harrogate’s troubled transport project.

The most likely option for North Yorkshire Council is to focus on its less controversial aspects, which might include public realm improvements at Station Square and One Arch, in an attempt to deliver the scheme in some form.

But alternative options could also fail to win support and the council may decide to scrap it altogether.

Station Square

Rather than handing money back to government, Andy Brown, the Green Party councillor for Aire Valley  told the council’s Skipton and Ripon planning committee this week the Harrogate money could be used to improve Skipton’s own £7.8m Station Gateway scheme.

Like Harrogate, it’s being paid for through the government’s Transforming Cities Fund but has proved far less controversial with the public than across the A59.

The planning committee met on Tuesday afternoon in Skipton to consider replacing a footbridge over the Leeds and Liverpool canal, which forms part of the Skipton Gateway proposals.

Councillors approved the replacement bridge but its design was strongly criticised as it does not offer ramped disabled access.

Cllr Brown queried if Harrogate Transforming Cities Fund money could be spent on the bridge to improve accessibility.

He said:

“We should be sending a message [to the council] that they seek every alternative source, including if the Harrogate scheme falls through, to achieve disabled access”.

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A report prepared for the council’s Conservative-run executive in September confirmed that funding would be able to be transferred from the Harrogate scheme to Skipton or Selby with approval from the government.

It said:

“In principle, this funding may be able to be reallocated to either or both the Selby and Skipton Transforming Cities Fund projects in North Yorkshire. Written approval from the funder would be required which would be requested should this be necessary.

“The full business cases for these projects would have to justify any proposed reallocation in addition to agreement from the funder.”

North Yorkshire Council has said it will put forward its next steps for the Harrogate Station Gateway before November.

Harrogate Music Weekender: line-up revealed

The line-up has been revealed for the first Harrogate Music Weekender, which begins in seven days.

Thirty events will take place from Friday, October 13 to Sunday, October 15 and feature everything from rock and acoustic to Ibiza anthems and throwback hits.

Fifteen venues including Manahatta, Husk Beer Emporium, Artizan Café, Piccolino, The Den and Foundry Project will take part in the music extravaganza.

Harrogate Business Improvement District, which is funded by local businesses to increase the number of town centre visitors, has organised the event.

It hopes the event, along with next week’s Visit Harrogate Restaurant Week and the ongoing Harrogate Comedy Festival will provide a town centre boost in the pre-Christmas lull.

DJ Mark Green will kick off the weekend at the Yorkshire Hotel at 6pm on the Friday night with an Ibiza-themed closing party.

As well as the events across the weekend, Harrogate BID will have a walking DJ booth and street performers in the town.

Matthew Chapman, Harrogate BID manager said:

“We are looking forward to making this a successful annual offer in the Harrogate events calendar and hopefully bring people from far and wide into the town to experience the vibrant live music offer that we have.”

Here is the line-up.

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Friday, October 13

Opening event – 6 – 8PM – The Yorkshire Hotel Sky Bar – DJ Mark Green

5:30pm – 7:30pm – Foundry Project – Robbie Miller

7pm – 9pm – Doubletree by Hilton Majestic Hotel & Spa – DJ in Fredericks Lounge

7pm – 11pm – West Park Hotel – DJ & Sax

7:30pm – 9:30pm – Artizan Café – Musical Empowerment, a local inclusive band

8pm – 10pm – Piccolino – DJ

8pm – 10pm – Manahatta – North Road live band

8pm – 10pm – Husk – Biz & Jason band

8pm – 10pm – The Yorkshire Hotel – DJ Dean Snowdon

8pm – midnight – Doubletree by Hilton Majestic Hotel & Spa – Abba Tribute Night (ticketed)

8pm – late – Foundry Project – DJ Patrick Wood

10pm – midnight – The Den – The Robbie Miller Band

Saturday, October 14

2pm – 4pm – HMV, Victoria Shopping Centre – Ade Payne

2pm – 6pm – Harrogate Theatre – Ember and Matt Edgington

3pm – 5pm – The Den – Biz Denton

3pm – late – West Park Hotel

Opening event – 6pm – 8pm – The Crown Hotel – Singo Bingo

7:45pm – 9:15pm – The Den – The Henri Gaston Experience Nigel Clark

8pm – late – Revolucion De Cuba – Mariachi Band and DJ

7pm – late – Manahatta – DJ Max Czernik

8pm – late – Foundry Project – DJ

8pm – late – Piccolino – DJ Josh Farcas

9:45pm – 10:45pm – The Den – Jonny Skinner

11pm – 12:30am – The Den – Nigel Clark (90’s front man from Dodgy)

Sunday, October 15

12pm – 4pm – Husk – Husk’s Sunday Wax – Bring Your Own Vinyl and we’ll play at least 1 side!

1pm – 5pm – Cedar Court Hotel Tipi on The Stray – Nathan – So ‘n’ So Music

4pm – 7pm – Banyan – North Road lead singer and drummer double act

4pm – 11pm – Husk – Harrogate’s Indie’s Block Party DJ Takeover featuring Pizza Social, Husk, Lillypad & Mabgate Bleach on the decks

7pm – 8:45pm – The Den – Jake Pattinson

9pm – 11pm – The Den – Hobo Chic

 

23 Harrogate district community groups awarded £55,000

Twenty three community organisations have shared £55,000 in the latest round of grants awarded by The Local Fund for the Harrogate District.

The successful applicants are small organisations that can use the funding to make a big difference on a range of initiatives, including helping older people participate in activities and addressing loneliness.

They include fortnightly lunch club Lifeline Harrogate,  Knaresborough Museum Association, Jennyruth Workshops in Ripon and Boroughbridge and District Community Care.

The Local Fund was created in 2017 to fund local voluntary organisations.

It is supported by North Yorkshire Council, Harrogate and District Community Action and Two Ridings Community Foundation. It also receives at least 10p from every ticket sold by the Local Lotto.

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Celia McKeon, chief executive of Two Ridings Community Foundation, said the grants would “make a huge impact on the wellbeing of local people all over the district”. She added:

“This round of funding has been really interesting and far reaching, distributing grants to address rural isolation alongside activities and support in the local towns.”

Ms McKeon urged local people and businesses who wanted their charitable giving to benefit the communities they live in to invest in the fund.

Here are details of the successful applicants.

 

Council to bid for £1.7m emergency funding for hospital discharges

North Yorkshire Council looks set to bid for up to £1.7 million worth of funding to help ease pressure on hospital emergency departments.

The Department of Health and Social Care has invited local authorities to apply for grants to help with discharges in social care, which in turn will support accident and emergency units.

Ministers have allocated North Yorkshire as one of the authority areas which has the “greatest health and care challenges”.

The government has given the council an indicative funding amount of £1.1 million, but has encouraged it to apply for up to £1.7 million.

A report by Abigail Barron, assistant director for prevention and service development at the council, has proposed a number of measures as part of the council’s bid.

Among them include employing additional agency social workers to speed up discharge allocations, establishing winter grants for the voluntary sector to help with prevention and developing additional support for unpaid carers.

Ms Barron said the measures would help to “avoid hospital admissions and expedite discharge and flow”.

She added:

“The schemes will also assist North Yorkshire Council’s strategic objective of both supporting hospital discharge and reducing reliance on short stay residential beds.”

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The move comes after Harrogate District Hospital managers raised concern that patients were staying in hospital longer than they should because of a lack of private care services.

Last year, Jonathan Coulter, chief executive at Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust, said the issue had a knock on effect on emergency departments and was the “biggest issue” that the trust faced.

In September 2022, the trust also outlined plans to launch its own home care service in a bid to free up hospital beds.

At the time, the move was met with some concern by councillors who said it could “distort the market”.