For years, the big nose and glasses have amused Harrogate residents and visitors alike. Now Bespoke Eyewear‘s striking window display has earned national recognition.

The shop on Royal Parade was named most engaging practice window at the three-day 100% Optical show, which attracted more than 10,000 attendees at Excel London.  It is the largest optical fair in the UK.

Bespoke Eyewear opened in 2010 as an opticians and dispensary for spectacular frames unavailable elsewhere in the UK. The nose and glasses were put up in 2012 and have become both a selfie spot, boosting the company’s social media following, and a directional landmark.

Bespoke Eyewear collects its award

Owner Jonathan Nixon said:

“In 12 years this is our first award and we have never been thanked by Harrogate Borough Council for our Christmas window even though we have had thousands of people taking pictures of it over the years.

“We dress our big nose and glasses depending on the occasion.

“We started in a recession and after covid we are still growing! It is so important to win this award as the idea is to stop an individual and get them to come and look at our stock. The polystyrene nose and glasses is iconic to the shop and recognised all over the country.”

Read more:

• ‘Shocking’ lack of NHS dentists in Harrogate and Knaresborough raised in Parliament
• Hawico closes Harrogate shop after 28 years

The most engaging practice window award was open to companies that could demonstrate how their window design had driven sales. Three practices were shortlisted.

Bespoke Eyewear optometrist speaking at 100% Optical

Bespoke Eyewear’s clients include Oscar-winning actresses and football legends. Its awards entry said:

“We have a 3D printed model of Ian Wright’s head made to his actual measurements. We send him a picture of the glasses on his ‘head’. If he likes them, they can be perfectly fitted and posted out without him coming to the practice.

“Ian’s head sits in the shop window and passers-by, whether it be local or tourist, often say ‘that’s Ian Wright!’.”

A Liberal Democrat MP has raised concerns in Parliament about the “shocking” lack of NHS dentists in Harrogate and Knaresborough.

Daisy Cooper, MP for St Albans and the party’s health spokesperson, was taking part in a House of Commons debate yesterday on expanding the NHS workforce when she raised concerns about dentistry.

She said only half of children in North Yorkshire managed to see an NHS dentist last year, adding:

“In Harrogate if you are lucky enough to find an NHS dentist taking on any new patients you face a two-and-a-half year wait to see them. This is a shocking state of affairs.”

Ms Cooper called on a minister to visit the area to speak to patients and dentists to see the situation for themselves.

The issue has long been a cause for concern in Harrogate and Knaresborough. A Stray Ferret investigation carried out in March 2021 found that just two NHS dentists in the Harrogate district were accepting new patients – one in Knaresborough with a waiting time of two-and-a-half years, and one in Boroughbridge with a waiting time of three years.

Two years later, the NHS website currently lists just two practices in the district as accepting new patients, but only those under the age of 17 – one in Ripon and one in Boroughbridge. None are listed for Harrogate.

Tom Gordon, spokesperson and parliamentary candidate for the Liberal Democrats in Harrogate and Knaresborough, said:

“Patients in Harrogate and Knaresborough are facing an access crisis. Only yesterday I spoke with a family who moved to the area more than 18 months ago, they have been unable to find an NHS dentist and are now paying for private care. This is all too common; families are faced with a bill for private treatment or unacceptable waits to be seen by an NHS dentist.

“As a former health services researcher, I know how important it is that we get to grips with the dental crisis, and the impact that poor dental outcomes have on wider health & well-being.

“I am grateful to the Liberal Democrat MP Daisy Copper for raising this in Parliament and putting more pressure on ministers to act to fix this access crisis.”

The Conservative MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough, Andrew Jones, was approached for comment by the Stray Ferret, but no response has yet been received.

Read more:

• Lack of NHS dentists ‘severely affecting’ North Yorkshire residents’ health
• Watchdog report: Just one NHS dentist per 10,000 people in Harrogate district
• Harrogate district patients feeling ‘catastrophic impact’ of dental crisis
• Investigation: ‘Shocking’ waits for NHS dentists in Harrogate district

A councillor has called for a pause in housebuilding in Harrogate while work on a new local plan for the whole of North Yorkshire is drawn up.

In December, members of North Yorkshire County Council’s executive approved the creation of a new local plan, which must be finalised within five years of North Yorkshire Council being formed on April 1.

It will identify land that can be developed and will replace the seven local plans that are currently used by the soon-to-be-abolished district and borough councils.

This includes Harrogate Borough Council’s Harrogate district Local Plan 2014-35, which was adopted in 2020 and says over 13,000 homes can be built between 2014-2035. The council has said the document will guide planning decisions until the new local plan is created.

Harrogate’s local plan has led to large new housing developments being built in almost every corner of the district. Last month, approval was given to 162 more homes on Kingsley Drive in Harrogate and 1,300 homes at Clotherholme in Ripon.

But councillors have heard repeated concerns about whether the district’s roads, schools and GP practices can cope with the increase in housing.

Read more:

• New Harrogate district housing plan should not be ‘tickbox exercise’, says councillor
• Knaresborough housing site should be reviewed under local plan, says councillor

The thorny issue came up at a full meeting of North Yorkshire County Council on Friday.

Statistics released in the government’s last Housing Delivery Test revealed 1,641 homes — 266% above target — were built in the district between 2018 and 2021.

This led Liberal Democrat councillor for the High Harrogate and Kingsley division, Chris Aldred, to ask North Yorkshire County Council’s Conservative executive member for planning for growth, Simon Myers, if the new council would consider pausing new applications in areas where these government targets are being met.

He said:

“There are areas within the county where we’re well ahead of scheduled housing delivery targets. In Harrogate we are 200% over-target according to the government’s own statistics.

“While we’re developing a new local plan for the county, could you consider in areas where we are well ahead of delivery, we actually pause the application process so we don’t get any houses in areas where we might not have done when we’ve got the new local plan.”

The new council will create six new planning committees to oversee decisions across parliamentary constituency areas, such as Harrogate and Knaresborough and Skipton and Ripon.

They will be set up with councillors from across the political spectrum voting on whether significant planning applications go ahead.

‘Misleading’ figure

After the meeting, Cllr Myers told the Local Democracy Reporting Service the 200% figure was misleading. He said:

“Essentially, Harrogate has only just caught up with its own housing targets. It isn’t 200% over. The development is all in accordance with the local plan and to halt development would put Harrogate at risk of the plan being seen as out of date and open the possibility of speculative development. And of course with development we hope to deliver affordable housing which is sorely needed in every part of the county.

“The figure of 200% ‘over delivery’ was published in the government’s housing delivery test calculation pre-adoption of the Harrogate local plan. This was based on delivery against the standard methodology figure that does reflect an accurate picture of need. If you look at delivery against the actual plan-target, the figure is lower.

“In summary, the 200% figure is misleading and the higher-than-plan-target delivery rates should not be cause for alarm as they reflect positive progress on addressing a significant shortfall and reflect a planned trajectory.”

Every month the Stray Ferret tries to find out what our local MPs have been up to in their constituencies and in the House of Commons.

In February, the president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, made a speech to MPs in the lead up to the first anniversary of the war with Russia. Major decisions were made on Kex Gill and Ripon Barracks. Meanwhile, concern was once again raised about sewage into rivers.

We asked Harrogate & Knaresborough MP, Andrew Jones, Ripon MP Julian Smith, and Selby and Ainsty MP Nigel Adams if they would like to highlight anything in particular, but we did not receive a response from any of them.

Here is what we know after analysing their online presence.

Andrew Jones, Harrogate and Knaresborough MP.

In Harrogate and Knaresborough, here is what we found on Mr Jones:

• On February 3, Andrew Jones visited Windsor House in Harrogate, which recently has undergone refurbishment.
• Mr Jones wrote to North Yorkshire Police chief constable, Lisa Winward, following a crash on Yew Tree Lane which saw two teenagers seriously injured. He called for traffic calming measures in the Pannal Ash area.
• He called for a debate in Parliament over access to grassroots sport after meeting with the Football Foundation and Pannal Ash Junior Football Club.
• Mr Jones urged greater cooperation between developers on February 10 after residents raised concerns over unfinished road surfaces, poor drainage and inadequate street lighting on new estates.
• On February 16, Mr Jones described criticism of his voting record on sewage as “ridiculous”. His comments came as concern was raised over the overflow of sewage into rivers.
• On February 27, Mr Jones asked ministers in the House of Commons what more could be done to remove barriers for adults deciding to restudy and update their skills.

Read more:

• MPs Watch: A new Prime Minister and government U-turns
• MPs Watch: ‘Wrong’ tax cuts and the death of the Queen

Julian Smith, MP for Ripon and Skipton.

In Ripon, here is what we found on Mr Smith:

• Mr Smith met with teachers from the UK parliament teacher ambassador programme on February 3.
• On February 8, Mr Smith attended a talk in Westminster Hall speech by Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Mr Smith described him as “the ultimate war leader”.
• On the same day, Mr Smith published a letter from the Ministry of Defence confirming that Claro Barracks in Ripon will remain operational until later 2026. Part of the barracks are subject to planning permission for new housing.
• Mr Smith made one spoken contribution in the House of Commons in February on the Northern Ireland protocol. He paid tribute to John Caldwell who was shot in Omagh.
• On February 23, Mr Smith welcomed the government’s decision to approve a final business case for the A59 Kex Gill realignment.

Nigel Adams, MP for Selby and Ainsty which includes rural Harrogate.

In rural south Harrogate, he is what we found on Mr Adams:

• On February 7, Mr Adams described the appointment of Lee Anderson MP as the new Conservative Party chairman as a “clever appointment” by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.
• Mr Adams tweeted on February 8 that planes should be supplied to Ukraine after a speech by President Zelenskyy
• Mr Adams posted no new updates on his website in February.
• He made no spoken contributions in the House of Commons during February.

It’s time to join the Stray Ferret Business Club. The third in our series of networking events in association with The Coach and Horses in Harrogate is a lunch event on March 30 from 12.30pm.

Don’t miss out on this chance to network with businesses from across the Harrogate district. Get your tickets by clicking or tapping here.

A Harrogate district care company has extended its sponsorship of rugby league side Leigh Leopards.

Homes Together Ltd, which is based on Victoria Avenue in Harrogate, will continue to sponsor the Super League club into the new season.

It will see the care provider be the main shirt sponsor for the next two years.

The renewed deal will see Homes Together sponsor the men’s team, women’s team, youth team, and the learning disabilities team.

Speaking about the sponsorship decision, David Ashton-Jones, managing director at Homes Together Ltd, said:

“Our partnership and relationship with Leigh Leopards has been a huge success and opened up so many opportunities for our staff and service users. The club have been big supporters of the work we’re trying to do in bringing new experiences to our service users and show that sport can and should be enjoyed by all.

“We quickly saw that there were other ways for us to grow our partnership and give our support to members of the club. We look forward to seeing what the new season will bring for us all.”

Mike Latham, chairman of Leigh Leopards, said:

“Having Homes Together as main shirt sponsor to the first team is wonderful and we very much value their tremendous support and involvement. This support has now been extended further and demonstrates their commitment and also their faith and belief in us as a club.

“As a supporter for over 50 years, the club historian and now the proud chairman I know how much the club means to the local community and we are determined to ensure we continue to strive for excellence in all we set out to achieve, while remaining accessible, friendly and inclusive.

“I see all those qualities in our highly valued partners Homes Together who strive to create better lives for people and continually strive for excellence in a caring and professional manner. Hearing of their business ethos, their values and their ambitions is inspiring, and to have the company aligned to ours as main sponsor makes me very proud.”

Harrogate chamber meeting to focus on connectivity

The spotlight will be on connectivity in business at the next meeting of Harrogate District Chamber of Commerce.

Held on March 13 at the Kings Suite at Harrogate Convention Centre, will hear from speakers about initiatives on broadband connectivity and the public highway – both topics important to businesses.

Speakers at the monthly business event will be Alastair Taylor, CEO of NYnet; Dr Kim Johnston, regional partnership director, consumer at City Fibre and Cllr Keane Duncan, North Yorkshire County Council’s executive member for highways and transport.

David Simister, Harrogate District Chamber of Commerce chief executive, said: 

“The thread for our March meeting is the highway, be it super or public, with each of the speakers giving an overview as to current developments in the Harrogate District.

“Connectivity and superfast broadband speeds are what businesses expect as the norm these days, and anything less could impact on them being able to function properly, and even lose them work.

“We expect Cllr Duncan to give an update on the Harrogate Station Gateway Project – three years after it was first put before the business community.”

Members and first time visitors wishing to attend the March meeting are asked to register their attendance in advance via the Chamber’s new website here.

A networking session will start from 5.30pm and speakers will begin at 6.15pm.

Read More: 

• Business Breakfast: Small indies to pop up on Harrogate high street
• Business Breakfast: Harrogate company builds robots to help tackle leaking pipes

A cashmere clothes shop in Harrogate has closed after 28 years.

Hawico on Montellier Parade was the first Hawico shop outside Scotland when it opened in 1995.

It has now closed, with the loss of two jobs, and the unit is vacant.

David Sanderson, a director of Hawico, said the company had been considering the shop’s future for some time. He added:

“We’ve been in Harrogate quite a while but it seems like it’s run its course. We can’t afford for this business not to pay and it got very marginal in Harrogate so we decided not to renew the lease.”

Mr Sanderson said trade at the store had got “harder and harder” in recent years, especially since covid.

Read more:

• Sawley Arms celebrates planning permission for café and shop
• New Look in Harrogate to close

Hawico, a family business that makes clothes at a factory in Hawick, Scotland has 10 stores in Scotland, Switzerland, Germany and Italy.

Mr Sanderson said the site of the Harrogate shop was previously owned by another Scottish clothing company and the unit had provided “a little bit of Scotland in Harrogate for some time”.

It is the latest loss to Harrogate’s high street after the closure of Bijouled, which sold gifts and accessories on Parliament Street and fast fashion brand New Look, which was based in the Victoria Shopping Centre.

Bijouled is now closed

Police have arrested two men on suspicion of conspiring to steal vehicles in Harrogate.

Officers acting on intelligence stopped a grey Seat Leon on Leeds Road near Pannal on Friday (February 24) at about 8pm after observing the men behaving suspiciously, North Yorkshire Police said in a statement today.

The statement said the suspects, both in their 30s, were getting out of the car and approaching other vehicles in Harrogate.

It added:

“Both occupants and the car itself were searched by officers, and a number of tools including pliers and screwdrivers were located. 

“As a result, both men – aged in their 30s and from Leeds – were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to steal motor vehicles.”

Both men have been released on bail pending police enquiries.

Read more:

• Police reassure Harrogate councillors over knife crime concerns
• Northern Lights captured over Harrogate

Rugby legend Martin Offiah visited Harrogate today for an event to mark the rollout of 100 electric vehicle charging points.

Mr Offiah, who once raced down the wing at Wembley for England, touched down at the slightly humbler surroundings of Park View car park on East Parade in his role as a brand ambassador for Connected Kerb, a company that provides the infrastructure for electric vehicle charging points.

Harrogate Borough Council signed a contract with Connected Kerb for the installation of charging points in Harrogate, Ripon, Knaresborough, Boroughbridge, Pateley Bridge and Masham.

Mr Offiah joined Harrogate district mayor, councillor Victoria Oldham, as she cut a ribbon to signify Park View car park’s six electric charging bays were now ready for use.

Charging bays are also active in Harrogate at West Park multi-storey car park and the council’s civic centre and also at Chapel Street car park in Knaresborough and Market Place in Masham.

The charging points in Park View car park.

All the other bays, listed below, should be live by April. They are available to anyone who downloads the Connected Kerb app and has a Type 2 EV charging cable.

Mr Offiah, who has a statue outside Wembley Stadium and has been a Connected Kerb ambassador since 2018, said his message to people in the district was to “look for reasons to get an electric vehicle rather than reasons not to get one”.

The project has been funded by the council with additional support from the Office for Zero Emissions Vehicles.

The deployment is part of the council’s efforts to increase the proportion of cleaner ultra-low emission vehicles in the district.

Councillor Phil Ireland, the council’s cabinet member for carbon reduction and sustainability, who was at today’s launch, said:

“The Harrogate district has seen a rapid uptake in the purchase of electric vehicles, and if we are to achieve our ambition of net zero by 2038 it is important we support those residents to charge electric cars, while also encouraging more cycling and walking.

“These new charging points will support the uptake in electric vehicles for both our residents and our visitor economy, across the district.”

Chris Pateman-Jones, chief executive of Connected Kerb, said:

“Providing long-lasting, affordable and accessible charging points in northern towns and cities is essential to ensuring that nobody is left behind in the electric vehicle transition.

“By supporting EV drivers in Harrogate who have no access to off-street parking, we can make charging their vehicle more convenient while boosting local air quality and meeting climate goals.”

Where are the new charging points?

Harrogate

Victoria multi-storey car park – 12 Bays

Hornbeam Park – 12 Bays

Odeon – 12 Bays

West Park – 8 Bays

Park View – 6 Bays

Dragon Road – 10 Bays

Knaresborough

Conyngham Hall – 12 Bays

Chapel Street – 10 Bays

Leisure Centre (new) – 5 Bays

Ripon (new)

Cathedral Car Park – 6 Bays

Blossomgate Car Park – 4 Bays

Ripon (existing)

Leisure Centre – 5 Bays

Phoenix Business Park – 4 Bays

Boroughbridge (Phase 2)

Back Lane Car Park – Up to 6 bays

Pateley Bridge

Southlands Car Park – 4 Bays

Masham

Market Place – 4 Bays

A Harrogate man who only took up running three years ago beat nearly 10,000 runners to win the Brighton half marathon on Sunday.

Cal Mills, 22, completed the 13.1-mile course in one hour, six minutes and 37 seconds, which was faster than the world record time until 1965, when Britain’s Ron Hill ran one hour, five minutes and 44 seconds.

Ugandan Jacob Kiplimo’s current world record is 57 minutes and 31 seconds and Mo Farah’s British record for the distance is 59 minutes and 32 seconds.

What’s even more remarkable is that former Harrogate Grammar School student Cal only started running at the age of 19 and is virtually unknown in the sport.

He won his first event, the Guy Fawkes 10k organised by Nidd Valley Road Runners, in 2021 and followed that up by winning the Harrogate 10k last year.

Leading the field in last year’s Harrogate 10k.

After finishing 10th in this year’s Manchester half marathon, he turned up in Brighton hoping for a decent time and ended up smoking everyone, being cheered to victory by thousands of people on his way to the finish line. He said:

“It’s absolutely mad. It was the craziest atmosphere I have ever run in. I have never felt like that before when I crossed the line.”

Cal, who is in his final year studying history at the University of Leeds and runs for Leeds City Athletic Club, wasn’t into running at school and only got into the sport seriously during lockdown.

In the space of three years he has gone from Stray jogger to elite distance runner. The Brighton half marathon, which was being held for the 33rd time, is a major event on the British road running circuit.

Celebrating in Brighton on Sunday

Cal’s next event will be the London marathon in April and despite his achievements he isn’t putting any pressure on himself.

“It’s been a surreal journey. Nobody knew my name at Brighton. If I had started when I was younger, who knows where I could have taken it.

“But I just want to enjoy it. If I end up being a high standard club runner that’s fine by me.”

Read more:

• Nidderdale fell running group achieves affiliation to England Athletics
• Harrogate Grammar School pays tribute to Seb Mitchell

Teachers across the Harrogate district left the classrooms today as part of a series of national strikes organised by the National Education Union.

This morning, picket lines were seen outside schools including Harrogate High and Springwater in Starbeck.

Teachers from Rossett Acre Primary School formed a picket on Pannal Ash Road and received support from several passing motorists.

Year 6 teacher Timothy Marshall told the Stray Ferret the North Yorkshire secretary of the NEU had joined the picket first thing, and all the teachers were going to an official march in Leeds this afternoon.

He said:

“We were all a bit scared to be here at first, but we’re proud of what we do. We love our jobs and work incredibly hard.

“If you don’t pay teachers fairly, you have over-worked, unhappy teachers.

“I scrape to the end of the month every month, and my partner and I work full-time. I’m in a respected profession.

“Strike action is the last resort. Nobody wants to strike. I can’d afford to lose £300 this month, but that’s why I’m striking.”

A picket line outside Harrogate High School today

Mr Marshall said two non-union teachers had refused to cross the picket line this morning and five members of school support staff had joined the protest in solidarity as well.

He said he and his colleagues were striking not just to protest against a real-terms pay cut of up to 10% in recent years, but also to call for better working conditions and funding for schools.

Asked whether the strike action was justified when it resulted in more disruption for children’s education, he said:

“I would say taking the money out of school budgets impacts them more.

“I’m a teacher who needs resources. If we have to sit in assembly with the lights off, which we do, and in the staff room with the lights off, which we do, you can’t tell me this action is what is impacting schools.”

Rossett Acre Primary School is part of the Red Kite Learning Trust, a multi-academy trust with 13 member schools across North and West Yorkshire.

Its chief executive, Richard Sheriff, said many schools were taking steps to cut their fuel consumption and reduce bills, which he viewed as a sensible move amid a cost-of-living crisis. He said:

“No doubt schools are making every effort both in our trust and in every single part of the country to reduce bills.

“It’s good to hear they are making every effort to not use lights unnecessarily – the same as I do in my office.”

As a former president of the Association of School and College Leaders, he said he worked closely with unions to ensure conditions and benefits for staff were the best they could be.

However, he said, issues of funding for education were for the treasury and department for education. He added, as leader of RKLT, he was doing all he could to push the government for “fair and better funding for schools and our young people”.

Read more:

• Harrogate hospital nurses to strike again next month
• Meet the man aiming to restore pride and ambition at Rossett School