Appeal to trace suspect after assault in Harrogate

Police are appealing for CCTV footage around the Granby Road area after a man was assaulted in Harrogate.

The victim was approached by an unknown man on Granby Road and assaulted, leaving him with minor injuries to his hand, wrist and ankle.

It happened on Monday, January 23, around 2.20pm.

Police describe the man they want to speak to as white, aged in his late 20s to early 30s, and around 6ft tall with dark, mid-length hair. He was wearing a red coat and carrying a dark rucksack.

A spokesperson for North Yorkshire Police said:

“We’re now requesting the public’s assistance to help establish the full circumstances surrounding the incident.

“In particular, our officers are keen to hear from any local residents that may have CCTV or doorbell cameras which may have caught the incident.”

Anyone with information that could help the investigation should email beth.long@northyorkshire.police.uk, or call 101, select option two, and ask for Beth Long.

To report information anonymously, call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111, quoting reference number 12230013525.

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Harrogate councillors block fellow Conservative from civic title as standards row continues

Six Conservative councillors have denied a councillor from the same party the chance to receive a prestigious civic title.

Harrogate Borough Council has the power to bestow the title of honorary alderman or honorary alderwomen to past members who have given over 15 years of good service.

The impending abolition of the council on March 31 to make way for the new North Yorkshire unitary council means a host of councillors can be considered.

The list includes Nick Brown, Conservative councillor for Bishop Monkton and Newby, who has been a borough councillor for 15 years but had been the subject of a standards investigation following comments he made.

During a meeting last month, Conservative council leader Richard Cooper proposed a successful motion to change the council’s constitution and effectively ban councillors from becoming an honorary alderman or alderwoman if they have fallen foul of the council’s code of conduct but have then refused to take any of the recommended actions such as apologise to members.

The authority’s general purposes committee met yesterday evening and voted on which councillors would be recommended for the title.

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Before voting on Cllr Brown, head of legal and governance Jennifer Norton read out a statement on his behalf that said the councillor believed he had no outstanding course of action to take following his investigation.

Ms Norton said:

“The decision notice identifies two actions, the first one being to draw the process to a close as it’s not been possible to reach a satisfactory conclusion or an apology — and the second one is to recommend to Cllr Brown that he reflects on the concerns raised and considers whether the points he was trying to make in a submission were well served by his style of presentation or use of injudicious language.

“Cllr Brown advises me that he’s reflected on the concerns raised and has also informed me that on September 24, 2021, he sent an email to all his colleagues with an informal apology. In this way he feels there are no outstanding courses of action for him to take when you assess that against the decision notice.”

However, six Conservative councillors on the committee — Richard Cooper, Tim Myatt, Rebecca Burnett, Matt Scott, Ed Darling and Sam Gibbs — all voted against recommending Cllr Brown for the honorary alderman title.

Ripon independent, Pauline McHardy, Liberal Democrat, Philip Broadbank and Cllr Brown himself voted in favour.

Longest serving female also excluded

By six votes to three, the committee also voted against recommending Liberal Democrat member for Hookstone, Pat Marsh, who is the longest-serving female councillor on the authority with 33 years’ service.

Cllr Marsh was found to have breached the council’s code of conduct after she made comments to a resident, that were secretly recorded, about council leader Richard Cooper, council officers and Cllr Cooper’s employer, Conservative MP for Harrogate & Knaresborough Andrew Jones.

A standards panel at HBC asked Cllr Marsh to make a public apology but she refused, citing her right to free speech and accusing the panel of not being politically balanced, having two Conservatives and one independent councillor.

By five votes to four, councillors voted against former Ripon councillor and current county councillor Andrew Williams from becoming an honorary alderman despite his 20 years of service.

The full list of councillors put forward for the title and how long they have served is below:

Philip Broadbank, Liberal Democrat councillor for Starbeck (44 years)
Nigel Simms, Conservative councillor for Masham and Kirkby Malzeard (24 years)
Margaret Atkinson, former Conservative councillor for Fountains and Ripley (23 years)
Jim Clark, former Conservative councillor for Harlow (22 years)
Trevor Chapman, Liberal Democrat councillor for Bilton Grange (19 years)
Michael Harrison, Conservative councillor for Killinghall and Hampsthwaite (19 years)
Sid Hawke, Ripon Independents councillor for Ripon Ure Bank (18 years)
Stuart Martin, Conservative councillor for Ripon Moorside (18 years)
Christine Willoughby, Liberal Democrats councillor for Knaresborough Eastfield (17 years)
Matthew Webber, Liberal Democrat councillor for New Park (16 years)
Robert Windass, Conservative councillor for Boroughbridge (15 years)

24 bus from Pateley Bridge to Harrogate saved

The 24 bus route between Pateley Bridge and Harrogate has been saved until at least April next year.

The service provides a lifeline for many people in rural parts of Nidderdale, including Birstwith, Darley and Summbridge.

North Yorkshire County Council warned this month it was one of about 80 bus routes in North Yorkshire facing uncertain futures at the end of March.

But councillor Keane Duncan, the Conservative executive member for highways and transport at North Yorkshire County Council, said today:

“The 24 is a key route that many people rely on so I am pleased to announce that we have been able to step in to support this service.

“When the operator notified us that it planned to withdraw most services on this route, we secured short-term funds to cover these until April 2023.

“This allowed us time to investigate a longer-term solution. We have now secured continuation of the service until April 2024, operated by Transdev (The Harrogate Bus Company).

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Cllr Duncan added the timetable will continue unchanged, but with most journeys now receiving financial support.

“We hope that passengers will support the 24 service and that usage will build over the coming 12 months.

“This positive outcome on the 24 is part of our efforts to support several at risk routes across North Yorkshire.

“We will continue to work closely with operators in order to protect as much of the bus network as we can through a period of unprecedented pressure.”

Harrogate pre-school wins Ofsted praise for care and teaching

A pre-school in Harrogate has been praised by Ofsted for its “high expectations” and helping children to prepare for school.

Little Crickets, based at Harrogate Cricket Club on St George’s Road, maintained its ‘good’ rating in its latest report from inspector Clare Bligh.

She found children were given tasks to challenge them and help them learn, as well as building on their interests, and had opportunities to be active outdoors.

In a report published this week, she said:

“Parents are very happy with the pre-school. They report that they receive lots of information about their children’s learning and development. They are actively involved in contributing to children’s assessments.

“Key persons ensure that parents know about what their children are learning in the setting. Parents particularly enjoy the regular parent consultation meetings. They also appreciate that during the settling-in period, staff fully consider the needs of their families and the individual children.”

Visiting in December, the inspector found children were “happy and motivated to learn”, going into the “thoughtfully designed” pre-school with confidence.

Ms Bligh praised the support offered to children with English as an additional language. She found they were encouraged to use their home languages and staff translated their words to ensure they were understanding the tasks set for them.

She added:

“Staff feel very supported by the leaders. They have regular supervision sessions.

“Managers ensure they check the well-being of staff and are keen to identify any workload issues. Any issues are managed effectively.

“Staff report that they love their jobs and enjoy working in this caring and supportive pre-school.”

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The report said in some cases, children were not given enough time to think about and give their answers before staff provided them. During large-group activities, not everyone was invited to join in, such as song time before lunch.

Ms Bligh said this could be improved to ensure children were able to develop their thoughts and to take advantage of all learning opportunities.

Responding to the report, Little Crickets manager Rebecca Vass said:

“I am really proud of our staff team who as always go above and beyond to meet the individual needs of the children who attend Little Crickets and this is what Ofsted saw when they came to visit.”

Jen Baldry and Ben Priestley, co-chairs of the pre-school committee, added:

“The committee continue to be incredibly grateful to all the staff who consistently deliver a great learning environment and a genuine care for the children at Little Crickets.”
North Yorkshire has lowest IOPC complaints rate of all police forces

North Yorkshire Police has the lowest number of complaints against its staff and officers of any police force across the country.

The latest figures, for 2021-22, reveal 282 complaints were made to the Independent Office for Police Complaints (IOPC) about the force.

The second lowest figure for complaints was 372, made against Suffolk Police.

North Yorkshire also had the lowest number of complaints when taking into account the size of each force, with 90 complaints per 1,000 staff. Norfolk and Suffolk were next, with rates of 145 and 146 respectively.

The Metropolitan Police had the most complaints of all forces, with 7,216 during that year. However, it also has the highest number of staff, at almost 47,000, giving it a rate per 1,000 employees of 155.

The force with the highest rate of complaints per 1,000 employees was Cleveland, at 697.

Last week, the force revealed it had received 740 complaints about its officers and staff in 2021-22. Today’s statistics relate to complaints raised to the IOPC.

The numbers have been revealed as complaints against police are in the spotlight, following the case of Met Police officer David Carrick who admitted a series of sexual offences against women over a period of two decades in the force.

A spokesperson for North Yorkshire Police said:

“The force has recently led a national pilot scheme that checks all vetted staff against the Police National Database (PND) every month.

“This process was implemented to ensure that any police contact outside of North Yorkshire is brought to the attention of our vetting unit and professional standards department. This covers both police officers and police staff.

“A recent report by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary Fire and Rescue Service following an inspection of vetting, misconduct, and misogyny in the police service, highlighted the good work by North Yorkshire Police and recommended that all forces make routine use of the PND as a tool for revealing any unreported adverse information about police officers and staff. It was announced last week that all forces in England and Wales will be adopting this approach.

“The vast majority of our officers and staff are honest, hardworking and act with integrity. But we are not complacent and know that there will be a number within our force who are not. When misconduct is found, we will take action. We encourage anyone who has any concerns about an officer or staff member they have come into contact with, to please report it to us.”

Allegations

In the statistics, published by the IOPC,  North Yorkshire Police also had the second lowest rate of allegations made against its employees, at 280, behind British Transport Police’s 208.

The IOPC said the number of allegations could be higher than the number of complaints because each complaint could contain more than one allegation. In North Yorkshire’s case, the total number of allegations against its 3,122 employees was 874, from 282 complaints.

Of those, 370 allegations were about the level of service provided by the police, and 260 were about the use of power, such as to make arrests or to carry out searches.

There were 160 allegations about individual conduct, such as being unprofessional or lacking impartiality.

Thirteen allegations were made about discriminatory behaviour and two complaints were about sexual misconduct.

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However, North Yorkshire Police took the longest of all forces in England and Wales to finalise its complaints. On average, it took 190 days for each complaint, while the next highest were the Metropolitan Police at 157 days and West Midlands Police at 148 days.

The Local Policing Body (LPB) received 61 requests for reviews of the way complaints had been handled and it investigated 39% of these – the fifth highest rate of investigations of decisions by forces around the country.

It found, in 61% of cases, the action taken by the force was “not reasonable and proportionate” after a complaint.

Cycling group questions commitment to active travel in Harrogate district

A cycling group has said the expected abandonment of the second phase of the Otley Road cycle route has raised serious questions about the commitment to active travel in the Harrogate district.

Cllr Keane Duncan, executive member for highways and transportation at North Yorkshire County Council, said yesterday none of the proposed Otley Road options had proved popular and he was asking “serious questions” about whether to proceed.

Kevin Douglas, chair of Harrogate District Cycle Action, said his group was one of the council’s consultees on the scheme and he was disappointed not to have been told the news.

He said the council had confidently predicted the scheme would succeed in 2017 and six years later only a third of it had been delivered.

Mr Douglas agreed there were problems with phase one but said shelving the scheme wasn’t the solution. He said he’d like to see alternative proposals and a more consistent commitment to active travel in the district, adding:

“If they do scrap it there needs to be very careful scrutiny of what’s happened here and whether there is a real commitment to doing things properly.

“To do these schemes you have got to be committed to change, like in Leeds and York.

“Let’s get Active Travel England, who are experts, to come in and look at the county council’s proposals and see what they think of them.”

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The three-phase Otley Road cycle route was supposed to be part of a wider scheme providing safe cycling between Cardale Park and the town centre. Mr Douglas said:

“If they don’t build phase two I’m not sure how they are going to see that through.”

He compared the lack of progress on Otley Road and other active travel schemes, such as Beech Grove and Victoria Avenue in Harrogate and Harrogate Road in Knaresborough, as well as the Harrogate Station Gateway, with the £70 million realignment of the A59 at Kex Gill, which is about to get underway.

Mr Douglas said removing car parking space on Beech Grove would encourage cyclists to use the road yet it wasn’t one of the options included in the Otley Road phase two consultation.

He said it was wrong to blame cyclists for the scheme collapsing when the real issue was a lack of commitment to active travel.

 

Business Breakfast: Harrogate law firm appoints new solicitor to disputes team

The Stray Ferret Business Awards will be held on March 9 at the Pavilions of Harrogate. The event will be a celebratory night with prize draw and afterparty.

Richard Flinton, the chief executive of the new North Yorkshire Council is the guest speaker. Early bird ticket prices are available until February 9 and available to buy here. Bring your team, network and have fun. 

A Harrogate law firm has hired a new solicitor in an effort to bolster its disputes team.

LCF Law has hired Will Bates, who has joined the company from fellow Harrogate-firm McCormicks.

Mr Bates has advised companies and individuals on all types of commercial disputes over the last five years since qualifying and has particular expertise in sport related disputes.

He said:

“I wanted to join LCF Law because its disputes and litigation team has a great reputation for being cohesive and effective on behalf of a broad spectrum of clients. 

“The firm is also well-known for encouraging career progression.”

Charles Abraham, head of disputes at LCF Law, said:

“Will will be working on a wide range of commercial disputes, as an Associate solicitor in our six-partner dispute resolution team.

“He has an impressive track-record for getting the best possible outcome for his clients and is also skilled at mediation. He is a welcome addition to our team.”

Harrogate businesses invited to quiz broadband experts

The NYnet connectivity team.

The NYnet connectivity team.

Businesses in Harrogate will have the chance to quiz broadband experts at two drop-in sessions next month.

NYnet’s connectivity team will be at Indulge Café on Hornbeam Park to answer questions from companies and provide information on how to access the company’s high performance full fibre network.

The sessions are open to all businesses in the Harrogate district, including those on Hornbeam Park.

Alastair Taylor, CEO of NYnet, said: 

“These sessions are a chance for local businesses to sit down with our team over coffee and have an informal chat about any issues they might be experiencing with connectivity.

“We can share our knowledge and talk through some of the options for improving their digital performance, including connection to our gigabit full fibre network and applying for match funding through Digital Enterprise.”

The drop-in sessions will be held on Thursday, February 9, from 10.30am to 12.30pm and Tuesday, February 28, from 1pm to 3pm.

Those businesses interested in attending should e-mail sales@nynet.co.uk to register their interest.

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Local Liberal Democrats could determine fate of £11.2m Harrogate Station Gateway

A decision on whether to proceed with the £11.2 million Harrogate Station Gateway could depend on a Liberal Democrat-controlled committee of councillors.

The gateway scheme, which would radically transform the area opposite Harrogate train station, has proved highly divisive and controversial.

It would see James Street partly pedestrianised and a section of Station Parade reduced to single lane traffic to make way for cycle lanes.

Funding for the scheme was secured in March 2020 but nearly three years later, and despite three consultations, North Yorkshire County Council has yet to make a final decision on whether to proceed.

station gateway james street

Part of James Street would be pedestrianised.

The council’s Conservative-controlled executive has now said the scheme will come before its Harrogate and Knaresborough area constituency committee before a final decision is made. Eight of the committee’s 14 members are Liberal Democrats.

The committee is currently only an advisory body but Cllr Keane Duncan, the executive member for highways and transportation at the council, suggested its views will be crucial. He said:

“It would be very difficult for us to proceed with the scheme if local elected councillors were opposed.

“The people of Harrogate and Knaresborough have elected councillors. The majority of those are not Conservative, they are of a different political persuasion to the executive. We want to listen to what those councillors say.”

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Asked whether the Conservatives had passed the buck on such a political hot potato, Cllr Duncan replied:

“It is a hot potato but with great power comes great responsibility. Local people in Harrogate and Knaresborough have elected their councillors and we have all stood on a platform to make difficult decisions.

“The executive of the county council believes very strongly in localism. We want to ask local councillors for their views and we will pay very due attention to their views. That’s the right thing to do.”

Cllr Keane Duncan, executive councillor for access at North Yorkshire County Council.

Cllr Keane Duncan in Harrogate

Cllr Duncan, who lives in Ryedale, said he had no vested interest in the scheme, which he inherited when he took up his role in May last year. But he added:

“Having looked at it as an outsider, I feel there are great advantages in terms of improving the pedestrian and cycle links and making this corner of the town centre easier to access and a better place to spend time, so on balance I’m supportive.”

Consultation was ‘never a referendum’

The third consultation revealed once again more people feel negatively than possibly towards the scheme, albeit by a slender margin of 46% to 45%, with nine per cent neutral.

Cllr Duncan said the consultation “was never meant to be a referendum” and there was “significant support” for key elements of the scheme, including changes to the public realm and better walking and cycling infrastructure. He added:

“If you look at the actual figures there were just 17 more negative responses than positive responses. And if you factor in the nine percent neutral responses, actually that’s a long way away from the universal negativity that many people would suggest, because most people are positive or neutral towards it.

“With all that support that’s been expressed by the public, it would be a shame not to bring this project that’s been ongoing for a very long time to a decision point for councillors to be able to make a decision one way or another.”

Cllr Duncan also suggested scrapping the scheme could damage Harrogate and North Yorkshire’s chances of future funding.

“More than £11 million would be spent elsewhere in North Yorkshire or returned to government. I think that would be a great shame for Harrogate but also it would rock government’s confidence in North Yorkshire and that would be a great shame for Harrogate and the county.”

Cllr Keane Duncan will talk about other Harrogate transport issues, such as the A59 Kex Gill realignment, the proposed park and ride and the threat to bus services in an interview on Saturday.

Harrogate hospital told to reduce 18 month waiting list to zero patients

NHS bosses have set a target for no patient to be waiting 18 months for surgery at Harrogate District Hospital.

Officials at NHS England have told Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust, which runs the hospital, that its waiting lists of more than 78 weeks should be brought down by the end of March.

Currently, the trust has 120 patients waiting more than a year and a half to have an operation.

The figure has gradually fallen since April 2022, when 205 people were waiting 18 months or more for surgery.

The number of patients waiting for an operation at Harrogate District Hospital since April 2022. Data: HDFT.

The number of patients waiting for an operation at Harrogate District Hospital since April 2022. Data: HDFT.

However, the number of patients waiting 52 weeks or more still stands at 1,299 people, an increase on the figure of 1,187 last April.

A spokesperson for Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust said:

“During the Covid-19 pandemic there was a risk of the NHS being overwhelmed with the number of patients seriously unwell with the virus. Protecting the NHS became a top priority and to ensure there was hospital capacity to cope with the pandemic, and to protect patients and staff, non-urgent routine hospital treatment was postponed.

“Since we emerged from the pandemic, a key focus for the NHS has been to reduce waiting lists, with a particular focus on those waiting longest for planned care, and to eliminate waits of over 104 weeks by March 2022 and 78 weeks by April 2023.

“Elective (planned) care is planned treatment at our hospital involving specialist clinical care or surgery, following a referral by a GP or health professional. It can refer to elective admission, outpatient appointments and diagnostic services, and relate to many conditions to improve the quality of life of a patient, to help them psychologically, or extend their life – for example cataract surgery, hip replacement, physiotherapy, or reconstructive surgery.

“Our teams have been doing extraordinary work to reduce waiting times and to see patients as soon as possible despite the ongoing difficulties that Covid-19 has caused. They have worked hard to add additional clinics, scans and operations; as well as adapting pathways and using technology to improve our offer to patients.”

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Last year, the trust’s board approved an increase in capacity at the hospital to help deal with the long waiting list.

The £14 million project will see two additional operating theatres, two procedure rooms and a 12-bed ward for patients who require extended stays in care built on the site.

The trust also hopes the project will help to “future proof” the hospital for a growth in population and changes in demographic in the district.

North Yorkshire Police using lie detector tests to target sex offenders

North Yorkshire Police is using lie detector tests to target suspected and convicted sex offenders across the county.

At a public accountability meeting of the North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner this afternoon, the force’s head of safeguarding, Heather Whorriskey, revealed officers have used a polygraph test 87 times since it first started using the equipment in October 2020.

The tests work by measuring how a person responds to certain questions, such as if their blood pressure rises or if they get sweaty palms, to detect traits associated with lying.

However, the tests are controversial as they are not 100% accurate and the results can’t be used as evidence in the courts.

After a guest on ITV’s Jeremy Kyle Show died after reportedly failing a lie detector test, MPs in 2019 criticised the producers after they admitted they did not know how reliable their lie detector tests were.

Detective Superintendent Whorriskey said NYP uses the tests before a suspect is charged to investigate if they have been in communication with children using a device.

The tests are also used on “lower-level” people on the sexual offenders register to understand the risk they might pose to the public.

However, Det Supt Whorriskey said many people about to take these test reveal things before it starts as they “realise their answers are likely to give away some untruths.”

She said:

“It’s used quite significantly whenever offenders are using communication devices to assess whether or not they have engaged in further communication with children. We’re able to use that to prioritise those devices for examination within our digital forensic unit.”

Det Supt Whorriskey said the use of polygraph tests is increasing and will be used 13 times in the next three weeks alone. She added:

“It identifies unknown risks and offences we would not have known about without having used the equipment. It’s absolutely value for money.”

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