A charity has funded two cancer nurses at Harrogate District Hospital in response to fears not enough people can access specialist cancer care.

Macmillan Cancer Support announced today it had spent £214,000 on the two-year posts as part of a £4.5 million investment across Yorkshire and the north-east of England.

The funding will pay for 42 specialist cancer nurses in northern England, of whom two will be employed by Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust.

The development roles will see nurses with an interest in moving into cancer services step into specialist cancer roles.

Noreen Hawkshaw, the Macmillan lead cancer nurse at Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust, said:

“We’re facing incredibly challenging workforce issues at the moment and I know Harrogate is not unique with this.

“Undoubtedly the Macmillan investment into the two development roles will ease the pressure on the specialist cancer care we are able to provide for patients by creating more capacity.

Ms Hawkshaw added the investment would “allow nurses the time and space to develop into these specialist cancer nurse roles”, adding:

“We urgently need more of them to meet the rising demand on our services.”

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Macmillan said in a statement too many people in the north of England cannot access specialist cancer care and there are too few Macmillan cancer nurse specialists employed across the region.

It said a “crisis in cancer nursing” had left 630,000 people with cancer in the UK with a lack of dedicated support.

2,500 cancer nurses needed

The charity estimates an extra 2,500 specialist cancer nurses are required now.

Heather McLean, Macmillan’s head of partnerships for the north, said:

“Macmillan cancer nurse specialists are the people at the heart of cancer care, this unique role makes a huge difference to people diagnosed with cancer and their families at a very distressing time in their lives.

“There are currently a huge number of specialist cancer nurse vacancies across Yorkshire because it’s increasingly difficult to get people with the right knowledge and skills, who are ready to step into those specialist nursing posts.”

Rachel Moser, the interim programme manager with the West Yorkshire and Harrogate Cancer Alliance, which is hosting the programme in partnership with Macmillan, on behalf of the four cancer alliances across the north-east and Yorkshire region, said:

“Patients tell us how much they value cancer nurse specialists and the care and support they provide.

“I’m delighted to be leading this programme on behalf of the regional cancer alliances which will help us ensure we have a ready supply of skilled individuals for these crucial roles into the future.”

A Betfred bookmakers looks set to open in Harrogate town centre after plans were approved.

Done Brothers (Cash Betting) Ltd, which trades as Betfred, applied to Harrogate Borough Council to open the bookies on Cambridge Road.

The proposal will see the former YMCA charity shop, which sits next to Greggs, converted into a bookmakers. The unit was also previously occupied by a travel agents.

Harrogate Borough Council has now approved the proposal.

The developer said in its plans that the opening of Betfred would help bring the unit back into use and “provide additional staff employment”.

It said:

“Betfred do not currently operate a bookmakers in central Harrogate, Betfred require additional premises to meet demand from the local residents. 

“The proposal therefore seeks a new opening of Betfred’s existing bookmaker businesses within Harrogate and would result in new options for bookmakers’ business within the town centre.”

The developer added:

“The introduction of Betfred’s businesses within the town centre will grow a local business, providing additional staff employment and bring a vacant unit back into use within Harrogate which supports economic growth principles in national and local planning policy.”

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The North Pole post office in Harrogate has reopened in time for children to post letters to Father Christmas.

The festive attraction is once again located at Harrogate International Festivals’ office, on Cheltenham Parade, and will remain open until Christmas Eve.

Funded by Harrogate Business Improvement District and produced by Harrogate International Festivals, the post office features snow flurries, Christmas music as well as the post box.

The Christmas attraction began in 2020 as a way of lifting spirits during the second covid lockdown and has returned both years since.

The post office is so busy the elves who sort through the letters are not able to reply individually, however, visitors can download a letter and message from Father Christmas, via the HIF website, or by scanning the QR code located next to the post box.

The post office is one of the key features in this year’s Destination Christmas campaign, which is a joint initiative between Harrogate Borough Council, Visit Harrogate, Harrogate BID and Harrogate International Festivals.

It also includes an ice-skating rink, fairground attractions, the candy cane express, Harrogate Christmas Fayre and the Father Christmas Experience.

Read more:

• Guide to Christmas markets in the Harrogate district
• Solicitor struck off for failing to protect vulnerable Harrogate homeowner

Clemence Roux, from Harrogate International Festivals, said:

“We are delighted to bring this attraction back again, and will make sure once again that Father Christmas gets all the children’s letters.

“Harrogate BID has been extremely kind in sponsoring the scheme for another year, they have helped us make Harrogate a little more festive.”

Harrogate BID chair Sara Ferguson said:

“The Christmas attraction lifts spirits and contributes to the efforts of so many who are working together to make Harrogate ‘Destination Christmas’.”

Pictured from left are: Clemence Roux, from Harrogate International Festivals, Harrogate BID Manager Matthew Chapman, Harrogate borough mayor Cllr Victoria Oldham, and Harrogate International Festivals chief executive Sharon Canavar at the opening of the post office.

A solicitor has been struck off for a year after failing to protect a vulnerable client from a conman who bought his Harrogate home.

Anthony Gale was employed by Ison Harrison solicitors when he acted for both the buyer and the seller of a property on St George’s Road.

The solicitor had a long-standing professional relationship with the buyer, Sukhdev Singh, who acquired the property by telling the seller he had paid off the outstanding mortgage of just under £120,000. However, there was no evidence of any mortgage having existed or any money having been paid for the home, the tribunal heard.

Singh acquired the home through a company he had set up, before renting it back to the vulnerable man, who had no tenancy agreement to protect him. Singh was jailed earlier this year for four counts of fraud, all relating to the same property and its former owner.

A hearing of the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal last month found the seller, known as Client A, was autistic and had an estimated mental age of 12 years and four months. Mr Gale said he did not realise this when he was dealing with the sale.

A report from the tribunal, published last week, said:

“The admitted misconduct represented a grave departure [from] the ‘complete integrity, probity and trustworthiness’ expected of a solicitor.

“The harm Mr Gale caused to the solicitors’ profession was extensive. The harm caused both to those directly involved and to the profession was eminently foreseeable.”

The three members of the tribunal panel said Mr Gale’s misconduct was “deliberate, calculated and repeated”, and led to a vulnerable client being taken advantage of in the transaction, which took place in 2016.

Mr Gale also faced an allegation that, in 2020 when he was employed by Lofthouse & Co, he acted without authorisation in another property sale and signed a contract without instruction.

Read more:

• Accountant jailed for conning Harrogate man out of his home
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The hearing last month heard that he had been before the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal before, in 2018, relating to allegations about his conduct on five other conveyancing matters, between 2005 and 2014. While he denied all five charges, the tribunal found the majority of them proved and he was ordered to pay a fine of £10,000 and costs of £28,291.

He also had sanctions imposed on his practice, including preventing him from being the sole practitioner or owner of a law firm.

The report from last month’s hearing into the latest allegations said:

“Mr Gale’s repeated misconduct demonstrated his complete lack of insight into and understanding of his failings.

“The tribunal held serious concerns as to the risk of repetition in the future given Mr Gale’s demonstrable propensity to ignore red flags in conveyancing transactions, and his inherent inability to identify and heed warning signs of fraud or exploitation.”

‘Blind spot’

The tribunal heard that while the Solicitors Regulation Authority, which brought the application to have him struck off, had been investigating Mr Gale, he had denied all the allegations against him.

However, he admitted them shortly before the hearing, in August this year. The tribunal report said:

“It was plain to the tribunal that Mr Gale had a complete blind spot with regard to the obligations to ‘know your client’, the risks of fraud in conveyancing transactions, management of conflicts of interest, and the obligations attendant upon accepting instructions from vulnerable clients.

“The previous sanction imposed in 2018 had not rectified Mr Gale’s ineptitude in those respects, and had not protected either the public or the reputation of the profession from repeated harm.”

Mr Gale was ordered to pay costs of £12,000 and was suspended from practising for a year.

After that date, he will face restrictions on his work including being barred from running his own business, being a partner in a business, or taking on a role where he is responsible for legal practice or finance and administration.

He is also prevented from holding clients’ money and being a signatory on a client account.

In order to work as a solicitor, he will have to seek approval from the SRA, and will have to complete further training in four areas of practice, including working with vulnerable clients and understanding the risks of fraud.

Business Breakfast is sponsored by Harrogate law firm Truth Legal.

Recruitment company delivers employment workshops to new communities in Harrogate

Recruitment company, Corecom Consulting, has delivered three employment workshops to refugees in Harrogate.

Managing Director, Jonathan Sanderson, and Delivery Consultant Elise Simpson, approached Migration Yorkshire with a proposal to provide employment support on their Connecting Opportunities scheme.

Elise Simpson said:

“I had volunteered with refugees at university and knew that Corecom’s ethos centres around wellbeing and empowering individuals

Our MD, Jonathan, has already carried out a multitude of activities to promote equality and diversity within the workplace and our local communities so, with his support, I made contact with Migration Yorkshire.”

An initial workshop focused on CV writing, followed up by a second on interview preparation with the final workshop guiding on the use of LinkedIn as a marketing tool.

Following a successful pilot, there are now plans to roll the workshops out to other Connecting Opportunities participants.

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Recognition for Harrogate College’s sustainability work

Harrogate College’s commitment to sustainability has been recognised by a major environmental awards scheme.

The Green Gown Awards celebrates examples of exceptional green projects that are being carried out by education institutions across the country.

Harrogate College reached the finals this year after being shortlisted for the Tomorrow’s Employees category.

The judges said they were impressed by the college’s partnership work to provide retrofit training, delivery of green skills based on local feedback, and efforts to embed sustainability into its courses.

Principal Danny Wild said:

“As a college that is determined to play its part in tackling the climate emergency, we are pleased to see our ever-evolving sustainability work being recognised in this way.

“The Green Gown Awards celebrate best practice in environmental initiatives across the country, so we are in good company.

“This recognition will inspire us to work even harder to become a centre of green excellence and, as outlined in our Sustainability Pledge, become a net zero college by 2035.”

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

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When will the council clear the leaves? 

When will harrogate Council begin clearing all the autumn leaves from the pavements and gutters? We live on a tree-lined road but to date Harrogate Borough Council have not cleared any of the leaves from the pavements and the gutters.

The pavements are impacted with wet leaves which is a hazard for elderly residents and all of the gullies are blocked causing water to accumulate at the bottom of the road. Many neighbouring councils publish start dates for clearing leaves, some of which began at the end of October, and detail the roads which are to be cleared.

Harrogate Borough Council does not publish any  information which raises concerns as to when they are going to address the problem of clearing the leaves on pavements and blocked gullies on the many tree-lined streets in the area.

Jane Hill, Harrogate

Harrogate Christmas Fayre returns from December 2 and so does the stall dedicated to local charities.

Harrogate Borough Council and operators Market Place Europe have collaborated to offer local charities the chance to promote themselves and generate funds.

The number of charities which are set to be featured on the stall has increased from 10 to 11 this year.

Artizan International, Carers Resource, Dementia Forward, Girlguiding North Yorkshire West, Harlow Hill Men’s Shed, Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust Community Charity, Harrogate Easier Living Project, Harrogate Skills 4 Living Centre, Harrogate Town AFC Community Foundation, Samaritans of Harrogate and District, and Ripon Walled Garden are all set to use the stall to raise money and awareness.

Carol Chapman from Samaritans of Harrogate and District said:

“We are always delighted with the heartfelt support of our local community and especially at times when we are able to connect with them during events such as this.

“Christmas can be a particularly difficult time of year for people, for lots of different reasons which may trigger feelings of isolation, loneliness and depression to name a few.

“Samaritans volunteers want to raise awareness that they are here for emotional support on a 24/7 basis, 365 days a year.”

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The charities involved were identified via the Local Lotto initiative. This is a council-run initiative to raise additional funds for voluntary or community groups across the Harrogate district.

HBC leader Cllr Richard Cooper said:

“Building on the success of last year, Destination Harrogate is due to be even bigger and better. And with thousands of people expected to visit the town, I’m sure these charities will be able to raise their profile and generate some funds for their worthy cause, at a time when it is needed the most.”

Harrogate Christmas Fayre begins on Friday, December 2 and ends on Sunday, December 11. It will take place on Cambridge Street and Market Place in the heart of Harrogate town centre.

There are several attractions debuting at the fayre this year, including a new ice skating rink, an après ski bar and York’s 32m ferris wheel.

Government changes to planned investment zones have raised questions over the future of planned renovations at Harrogate Convention Centre.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt this week announced a “refocus” of the initiative and put a halt to all expressions of interest which were submitted – including the convention centre.

It has raised questions over what the future now holds for a £49 million investment project to bring the town’s centre up to scratch.

What is planned?

Harrogate Borough Council unveiled plans back in 2020 to refurbish the town’s convention centre to the tune of £49 million.

The redevelopment plans include a major refurbishment of event areas and upgrades to the venue’s heating and ventilation systems.

There are also plans to create a flexible events space for up to 1,200 people.

Council officials have argued that the investment is needed for the centre to compete with other venues – in particular the looming prospect of a conference centre in Leeds.

Senior Harrogate council officials have gone as far as to warn that the centre could suffer huge losses of £250 million unless a major redevelopment is carried out

The proposals are currently in the final design stage with a decision expected to be taken next summer by the new North Yorkshire Council – which will take ownership of the venue in April.

However, questions still surround paying for the work.

How will it be funded?

Council bosses had previously submitted proposals to government to help fund the project as part of a £540 million devolution deal.

However, ministers turn down the plans, to the dismay of local leaders.

Cllr Carl Les, leader of North Yorkshire County Council.

Cllr Carl Les, leader of North Yorkshire County Council, told the Stray Ferret following the decision that he shared the disappointment of others, such as Harrogate Borough Council leader Cllr Richard Cooper, about the lack of funding.

He said:

“We did put a request for the Harrogate Convention Centre in the asks which were submitted to government.

“Harrogate sent officers to present the case, but the message from civil servants was that it should not be included.

“I share Richard’s disappointment, but we were given a clear steer and we are supporting Harrogate in that.”

A separate bid for £20 million from the government’s levelling up fund has been made for the venue, but Harrogate is ranked as a low priority area in the fund.

Read more:

• Council explores move to protect Harrogate Convention Centre with limited company status
• Working group set up to steer future of Harrogate Convention Centre

The uncertainty over funding has also led to a working group being set up to help steer the future of the venue as it approaches a crucial time in its 40-year history.

Senior officials and councillors from Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire County Council will come together to discuss the convention centre’s £49 million redevelopment plan and how it could be funded, as well as how the venue should be run in the future.

It has also previously been suggested that a limited company could be set up to take over the day-to-day business of the venue.

The chancellor’s announcement is the latest stumbling block to be put in front of the project.

Funding the multi-million pound project and heeding the warning that the centre needs to be competitive is proving to be a hurdle for local officials.

However, it is a hurdle that council leaders will need to clear over the next 12 months if they wish to keep the project alive.

The clock is ticking.

A much-loved stalwart of Harrogate Theatre’s pantomime is to be honoured with a tribute evening to raise funds in his memory. 

Phil Lowe directed and co-wrote the theatre’s pantomime for 13 years before he died unexpectedly in October 2021. 

Bring Me Sunshine: A Tribute To Phil Lowe will be an evening of songs and comedy routines performed by pantomime cast members past and present, plus a special guest appearance from UK Foo Fighters’ Jay Apperley. 

Hosted by panto regulars Tim Stedman and Howard Chadwick, the one-off event, on Thursday, January 12 from 7.30pm, will be a celebration of Phil’s most memorable moments with Harrogate Theatre.  

Audience members are invited to pay what they like for tickets, from £10 to £40; VIP tickets, which include a complimentary prosecco on arrival and canapés at the interval, cost £50, and boxes are £200. 

The proceeds will be split between the British Heart Foundation and Phil’s children. 

Read more:

• ‘Irreplaceable’ Harrogate Theatre pantomime director Phil Lowe dies
• Tim Stedman returns for 22nd panto at Harrogate Theatre

North Yorkshire County Council has faced pressure from opposition councillors to reconsider how its environmental actions are managed before postponing a decision on whether fracking is appropriate in the area.

A full meeting of the authority saw a North Yorkshire Climate Coalition, which includes 18 environmental groups, calling on the authority to move “further and faster” over environmental issues, and drop party politics to introduce measures more rapidly.

The coalition pressed the council – which declared a climate emergency in the summer – to address the twin climate and ecological emergencies and to harness “huge economic opportunities” during a transition to a cleaner, greener economy.

The meeting was told that the authority’s leader, Councillor Carl Les, had this week called for people to support the Yorkshire and Humber Climate Change Commission move to declare an ecological emergency, before his Conservative group voted to stop the creation of a biodiversity crisis working group at the council.

Councillor Greg White, executive member for climate change and customer engagement, said the authority did not want to be judged on what it said, but rather its actions, and that its plan for cutting carbon was “bold”.

Coun White added while the council was working to introduce carbon-cutting measures it also needed to focus on its main purpose, which was to provide much-needed services.