Harrogate’s Windsor House gets new co-working space and cafe

A new co-working space, meeting area and café have opened in Harrogate’s Windsor House.

The facilities were created during the second phase of a refurbishment of the imposing building, which overlooks Valley Gardens.

Owned by property firm Boultbee Brooks, Windsor House is home to more than 115 businesses, and includes 75,000 sq ft of flexible workspace.

Harrogate borough mayor, Cllr Victoria Oldham, officially opened the new facilities at an event attended by more than 100 dignitaries.

Mayor Victoria Oldham at Windsor House

Mayor Victoria Oldham cuts the ribbon.

The refurbishment, which included repairing the leaky roof and installing new furniture, has been overseen by interior design firm and Windsor House tenant RU Creative, which sourced and installed the main focal point — an olive tree.

The new space seats 110 people, who can visit the renovated café, which has been renamed The Pantry at Windsor House. The pantry is run by husband-and-wife Antonio and Jo Nobile.

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The building, formerly the Grand Hotel, is a short walk from the town centre.

Karen Winspear, Boultbee Brooks’ building manager for Windsor House, said:

“After four months of intense work and much anticipation, we are delighted to have opened this beautiful new space for our tenants.

“The grand foyer, which has been returned to its former glory, is a luxurious space for workers to meet clients, to work together, or just relax over a coffee or lunch.

“There is more to come at Windsor House, with plans to open a new yoga studio in the new year.”

Three-month jail term for ‘confused’ man found with bayonet in Kirk Hammerton

A man was caught wandering the streets of the Harrogate district with a bayonet after he went looking for spies he thought were bugging his home.

Christopher Graham, 58, from Harrogate, was found with the large, sheathed military-style blade in Kirk Hammerton after his daughter called police saying she was concerned for her father’s welfare, York Crown Court heard.

She told police her father’s mental state had “deteriorated in recent days, to the extent that he thought his [home] was being bugged”, said prosecutor Brooke Morrison.

Graham left his house “saying he was going to kill [the people he thought were wiretapping his home]”, she added.

Police went looking for him and eventually received reports of a man matching Graham’s description looking “disorientated and confused” at a local petrol station.

Officers found him on York Road, Kirk Hammerton, where he appeared “quite confused, had no shoes or socks on and was attempting to hitchhike”. Ms Morrison said:

“He was picked up by police and found to be carrying a bag which contained, among other items, a sheathed bayonet [blade].”

He was taken in for questioning and told officers he had become “more and more anxious in recent days”. The prosecuting barrister added:

“He said he had forgotten the knife was in his bag and didn’t realise he had it with him.”

Graham, of Butler Road, Harrogate, was arrested and charged with carrying a bladed article in public. He admitted the offence, which occurred on September 25, and appeared for sentence today.

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Ms Morrison said there was no evidence that Graham had taken the bayonet out of the bag while he was wandering the streets.

He hadn’t been taking his medication at the time and had been detained in hospital in the past for mental health issues. He was said to suffer from a chronic relapsing psychotic disorder.

The court heard he had 19 previous convictions for 42 offences, including burglaries and drug-related matters, most of which occurred in the 1980s.

His most recent conviction was in 2009 for an offence of false imprisonment for which he received an 18-month jail sentence.

Ms Morrison said Graham had a drug habit at the time of that offence.

‘No intention of harm’

Defence barrister Victoria Smithswain said Graham had been remanded in custody since his arrest and had therefore already served the equivalent of a four-month prison sentence.

Recorder Tahir Khan KC told Graham:

“It appears that you had not been taking your medication, as a result of which you became confused and were thinking negative thoughts.”

He said it was evident the bayonet blade was never brandished, adding:

“I am satisfied that you had no intention of harming anybody…

“I deal with you on the basis that this was an isolated lapse on your part because you had not been taking your medication.”

Graham was given a three-month jail sentence which triggered his immediate release from custody due to the amount of time he had already spent on remand.

Business Breakfast: Prosperis to be main sponsor of Stray Ferret Business Awards 2023

Business Breakfast is sponsored by Harrogate law firm Truth Legal.

Prosperis, the Knaresborough based financial advisors and employee benefit consultants, are to be the main sponsor of the Stray Ferret Business Awards 2023.

Nominations are now open for 10 award categories that highlight all aspects of business from leadership, business growth to inclusivity.

The Stray Ferret Business Awards judging panel is made up of some of the districts most influential leaders : Marcus Boardall CEO of Reed Boardall, Charlene Lyons CEO of Black Sheep, Martin Rae CEO of Cloud Nine and James Farrar COO of York & North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership.

Managing Director of Prosperis, Niall Gunn said:

“We’re delighted to be the main sponsor of the Stray Ferret Business Awards.  As a leading corporate consultancy working across Yorkshire, we know there is so much best practice in the Harrogate district to celebrate and highlight.

“The event promises to be a great occasion – the judging panel is impressive and I’m sure competition for each award will be stiff.”

The Stray Ferret Business Awards 2023 will be held on 9 March 2023.

If your business, team or staff member has an award winning story to tell then now is your time to shine!

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Harrogate law firm McCormicks Solicitors has appointed a new Partner.

David Birks (left) joins as head of the commercial disputes and sports litigation team which offers a wide range of litigation services to both individuals and businesses across the region as well as nationally.

Before becoming a solicitor Mr Birks headed up the North Yorkshire Trading Standards Consumer Advice Team and Special Investigations team, dealing with regulatory matters and specialising in anti-counterfeiting matters.

 

Senior Partner Peter McCormick OBE said:

“We are delighted to welcome David on board, bringing as he does in-depth expertise in a complex area of law which is a key focus for the practice.”

Mr Birks has experience in sports disputes, including arbitrations, tribunals and FA, Premier League and EFL regulatory matters. His specialisms include insolvency (individual and corporate) and Directors Disqualification Act Proceedings.

 

The Stray Ferret launches 2023 Business Awards

Does your business or workplace have a good story to tell? We’re looking to recognise the best and the brightest in the Harrogate district’s business community.

On March 9 next year, the Stray Ferret Business Awards will celebrate those businesses at a glittering black tie ceremony in the Pavilions of Harrogate and we want your entries.

The Stray Ferret Business Awards 2023, sponsored by local financial advisers Prosperis, are for businesses across all sectors in the Harrogate district including Ripon, Masham, Boroughbridge, Harrogate, Pateley Bridge and Knaresborough.

We are delighted to announce four of the region’s most influential leaders are on the Stray Ferret Business Award’s judging panel:

There are 10 award categories − from Dynamic Leader to Business Growth and Inclusivity.

It doesn’t matter if the business is large or small − the awards are to recognise excellent organisations, their leaders or unsung heroes.

It’s free to nominate and we will profile the great work of all the winners, so we would encourage you to put forward your business today.

You can see a full list of award categories on our Awards page. Entries close January 16.

In tough times we need, more than ever, to celebrate success and give individuals and teams the recognition they deserve.

Harrogate hospital employs security staff for first time

Security staff have been employed for the first time at Harrogate District Hospital in response to a growing number of reports of aggressive and abusive behaviour.

The security officers work overnight, particularly focusing on the accident and emergency department, to offer reassurance to staff.

Speaking at a meeting of North Yorkshire County Council’s Harrogate and Knaresborough area constituency committee today, Jonathan Coulter, chief executive of Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust, said:

“We were always reluctant to have our own security service on the hospital site because we felt we were a health service, not anything else. I know other trusts went much more quickly into having dedicated security personnel on site.

“We have in the last six months introduced, between 7pm and 7am overnight, our own security service, which is a bit of a shame that we’ve had to do that, but it was something that made the staff feel safer, particularly in the early hours with the emergency department where Harrogate has never had a problem before, but has had an increasing problem.

“I wouldn’t say it’s anything like we get lots of these incidents, it’s a handful of incidents but they don’t need to happen very often for it to be disturbing and for people to get concerned about it.”

Mr Coulter was responding to a question from Cllr Michael Schofield, who said he had read about an increase in verbal abuse from patients and visitors when they were asked to wear face masks.

Cllr Schofield, a Liberal Democrat who represents Harlow & St George’s division, added:

“I find it quite alarming that staff and volunteers have to deal with this situation.”

Mr Coulter said compliance with mask-wearing was “amazingly” high early in the pandemic and at the beginning of each lockdown, but had dropped since then and some volunteers were being verbally abused for asking people to put on masks.

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Plan submitted for 20mph zones around five schools in Harrogate

A community-led plan could see five schools in the west of Harrogate involved in a pilot scheme to encourage pupils to walk and cycle.

Harrogate Grammar School, Rossett School and Ashville College, along with Rossett Acre and Western primary schools, would all be covered by a 20mph zone with supporting infrastructure, such as safe crossing points.

Jenny Marks presented the proposal to North Yorkshire County Council’s Harrogate and Knaresborough area constituency committee this morning.

It follows extensive work done by Dr Marks, Ruth Lily and other members of the community to engage with schools, parents and community groups to assess potential support for the scheme. Dr Marks told the meeting:

“We are speaking from a position of significant collective concern for the safety of nearly 5,000 schoolchildren and for all of those who use the network of roads around these schools on a daly basis, including residents and users of Rossett and Ashville sports centre, Busy Bees nursery and Rossett Nature Reserve.

“We’re speaking from a strong position of local knowledge and support, having spent the last 18 months consulting schools, local residents and other stakeholders in order to better understand their needs.”

Dr Marks said the extensive consultation had enabled the group to formulate a detailed plan for the area which would help to make walking and cycling safer, encouraging people out of their cars.

She said the changes would be increasingly important as more and more homes were built in the area, increasing the number of children travelling to local schools.

She received support from across the chamber for the plan, which followed the committee voting to support 20mph zones around schools at its previous meeting last month.

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Councillors praised the work the group had done to engage with the local community, including speaking at Harrogate and Pannal Ash Residents Association’s AGM.

Cllr Michael Schofield (pictured above), whose Harlow and St George’s division includes three of the five schools involved, said:

“I was fortunate enough to grow up in my division and attend two of the schools, as did my wife. The schools then were very safe to walk to, very safe to cycle to.

“My two children have been to three of the schools – one Rossett Acre and Rossett High, one Rossett Acre and the grammar school. The traffic now is absolutely atrocious.

“Because of the lack of a safe active travel scheme round there, it’s turning into a bit of a self-destruction merry-go-round.

“Parents feel that the roads aren’t safe enough for their children to cycle on to school, so they then jump in the car and take them to school, adding to the problem.”

Highways department to decide

The proposal for the zone will be submitted to North Yorkshire County Council’s highways department, which will consider whether the 20mph zone could be introduced. Highways officers are expected to report back to the area committee at a future meeting.

However, Cllr Pat Marsh, who represents the Stray, Woodlands and Hookstone division, said a 20mph limit had been outside Hookstone Chase Primary School for 15 years but was ignored. She added:

“I think we are all supportive — it’s not that we’re negative at all, because we do want to protect particularly schools, our children, and encourage them to get out of cars onto bikes or walking.

“We have got to go through the due process and for me, I want the police here, I want the police to monitor them, because without that we’re lost.

“We can have all the signs we want, but until somebody starts to fine the people who abuse it, we don’t go anywhere.”

Concern over lack of secondary school at new Harrogate district town

Concerns have been raised about the absence of a secondary school in plans for a new Harrogate district town of up to 4,000 homes.

The proposed town, called Maltkiln, will be built in the Hammerton and Cattal area and will include a GP surgery, shops and two primary schools — but not a secondary school.

According to a North Yorkshire County Council report, the scheme proposes to expand Boroughbridge High School, which has about 600 students, to meet demand for secondary school pupils.

Land in Maltkiln has also been “safeguarded” for a high school, but this would only be built in future should it be required.

Green Party councillor Arnold Warneken, who represents Ouseburn, told a Harrogate and Knaresborough Area Constituency Committee meeting today that plans to expand Boroughbridge High School to meet demand would generate its own problems.

He added that local residents were surprised the development did not have its own secondary school given that thousands of homes are expected to be built.

Cllr Warneken said:

“This is a massive impact on this community and everything needs to be in place that is going to address that impact.

“The pupils are not just going to come from the Maltkiln development, they are going to come from places like Whixley, Green Hammerton and Tockwith as well. All of those have experienced big developments as well.

“I am concerned that we are asking, as a result of Maltkiln, for a school to be further developed in Boroughbridge when I believe that Boroughbridge has its own set of problems in terms of levels of development and the number of pupils that will generate.”

Boroughbridge High School.

Boroughbridge High School.

Officials at the county council said in a report that it was “not expected” that the size of the development would “generate sufficient pupils” to require a new secondary school.

Sue Turley, strategic planning officer in the county council’s children’s and young people service, said the council had forecast that Boroughbridge High School would be able to meet the demand for secondary school pupils from the new town.

She said:

“In terms of the secondary provision, it is expected that Boroughbridge High School would be expanded because there is sufficient space at the school and to grow the school, which is part of a federation with King James School.

“However, it is important to realise that there is safeguarded land within Maltkiln for secondary provision as indicated should this be required in the future. There is that provision there and I think that everybody wanted to see that there was that provision in that development plan for the site, which is now being consulted on.”

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Cllr Pat Marsh, chair of the area committee, raised concern that the move did not meet the sustainable aims of the development.

She said:

“Why are we saying this is a sustainable community and yet expecting children to travel at 11 to Boroughbridge?

“Then this joining with King James becomes problematic because Knaresborough itself has got over 1,000 new houses and where is the secondary school there? It’s King James.

“So there is going to be a major issue with secondary schools.”

Extension of consultation

Harrogate Borough Council has agreed to extend a consultation into  Maltkiln until November 25.

Council officials launched a six-week consultation on October 3 into its draft new settlement development plan document, which sets out a 30-year vision and policy framework on how the town is designed and developed.

However, Cllr Warneken, who represents Ouseburn on North Yorkshire County Council, called for an extension amid concern that the planning process was being rushed ahead of the new North Yorkshire Council coming into being.

He issued the plea after it emerged the consultation documents had been changed midway through — without people being told — and raised the prospect of a judicial review.

You can take part in the consultation over the new town here.

Lane closures and speed restrictions coming to A1 in Harrogate district

Lane closures and a 50mph speed limit are being introduced to a stretch of the A1 that passes through the Harrogate district.

National Highways is to carry out patching repairs on the southbound carriageway between junction 49 (Dishforth) and junction 51 (Leeming Bar) from Tuesday next week until mid-December.

According to a press release today by National Highways, during full closures a local signed diversion will be in place using the A6055 which runs parallel to the A1.

Access to properties and businesses will be maintained at all times. Those affected will be contacted directly.

National Highways project manager Ted Chamberlain said:

“This work will ensure that we continue to provide our customers with a safe, smooth carriageway. We’ll be working overnight using a combination of full closures and lane closures. This will minimise disruption to the peak traffic flows during the day.

“When lane closures are in place there will be a 50mph speed restriction to protect road users and our workers. We advise drivers to anticipate delays and allow extra time for their journeys.”

National Highways is the government-owned company responsible for maintaining England’s motorways and major A roads.

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Police close A59 at Kirk Hammerton after serious crash

The A59 at Kirk Hammerton is closed in both directions due to serious crash.

North Yorkshire Police said the road is closed between Station Road to York Road and Maston Lane to York Road.

A police statement added:

“Motorists are advised to find an alternative route if travelling between Harrogate and York.”

We will update this story as we get more information.

New Harrogate music festival in doubt after row with vicar

A new music festival in the Harrogate district faces an uncertain future after the sudden departure of the man who made it happen.

German composer and pianist Thomas Flessenkaemper organised the first Amy Woodforde-Finden Music Festival in Hampsthwaite last month.

The ambitious two-day event, celebrating the work of composer Amy Woodforde-Finden, who is buried in Hampsthwaite’s village church, was a success.

This led to hopes the festival would become an annual event, promoting the work of Amy and other female composers, as well as engaging local artists and schools.

But Mr Flessenkaemper has resigned from his position as director of music for the benefice of Hampsthwaite, Killinghall and Birstwith.

The Stray Ferret understands he did so following a disagreement with Suzy McCarter, the vicar of Hampsthwaite with Felliscliffe, Killinghall and Birstwith.

Revd Suzy McCarter

Revd Suzy McCarter

The Venerable Jonathan Gough, Archdeacon of Richmond and Craven, did not respond to questions about a fallout when contacted by the Stray Ferret.

He said Mr Flessenkaemper had taken up a new post at the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity in Gibraltar, adding:

“The success of the festival was largely due to Mr Flessenkaemper’s inspiration, leadership and commitment.

“Worshippers in the benefice are very grateful to Mr Flessenkaemper for his great contribution to the life of the churches and the villages since his appointment earlier this year.

“They are sad to see him go, but they recognise that a musician of his calibre will need to develop his musical career in a larger setting, and they wish him every success in his new post at the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity, Gibraltar.

“The Parochial Church Councils will consider future plans for the Amy Woodforde-Finden Music Festival in the New Year.”

Mr Flessenkaemper declined to comment when contacted by the Stray Ferret.

Amy Woodforde-Finden's tomb

Amy Woodforde-Finden’s tomb in St Thomas a’Becket church in Hampsthwaite.

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