Harrogate town centre restaurant not expected to reopen

A restaurant which opened in central Harrogate earlier this year is understood to have closed permanently.

Samsons began welcoming customers in mid-March, offering fine dining with seasonal Yorkshire produce from the former home of Le Bistrot Pierre in Town Centre House on Cheltenham Crescent.

However, it closed in the summer, when a spokesperson said the closure was temporary for “essential works”.

Now, the Stray Ferret understands, the restaurant will not reopen.

Its website is still taking table bookings, but there have been no new posts on its social media feeds since the end of July.

The company was incorporated in March 7 this year by Thomas Shotton, Duncan Bell and Mark Morris, who was its general manager. Mr Morris resigned as a director on March 23.

On the same date, he resigned as a director of Harrogate Industries Ltd, a company he co-founded last October with Mr Shotton. Mr Bell was then appointed director.

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When the business launched, executive chef Josh Whitehead said it would offer “a taste of Harrogate”. He said, having begun his career in Harrogate, he was looking for a new challenge when he saw the Samsons role advertised and it “stuck out like a sore thumb”.

He was joined in the kitchen by his friend and former colleague Andy Castle, previously head chef at the Ox Club in Leeds.

The Stray Ferret approached Samsons for a comment but had not received a response by the time of publication.

Oatlands community artwork to be unveiled in Harrogate this weekend

A ceramic tree mural created as part of a community arts project will be unveiled this weekend in Harrogate.

Oatlands Community Centre was awarded funding from the Arts Council to run the project in June, marking the Queen’s platinum jubilee.

Local ceramic artist Anna Whitehouse ran free workshops at the centre, teaching people about the history of brickworks in the Oatlands area and how to process the locally-dug clay.

They then created pieces of art themselves, putting together a ceramic tree mural which will go on display outside the community centre. Anna said:

“The tree design was chosen for its symbolism, with Oatlands Community Centre being rooted firmly at the heart of the community.”

The centre and its volunteers are the supportive framework; the roots, trunk and branches, but can only grow leaves and flourish through the engagement of the community and their sense of ownership.”

Oatlands Community artwork

Oatlands Community Centre was previously a Methodist chapel, located near the top of Mount Street, just off Leeds Road. The street used to be the access road to the Harrogate Red Brick Company, which operated from 1860 to 1936.

The church itself was built using bricks from the works, which were taken from the heavy clay which lies in the ground across the area.

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Since the workshops were held in June, the ceramic pieces have been dried, fired in the kiln and assembled into a mural ready for the unveiling tomorrow between 10am and noon.

Anna will be on hand to talk about the project, and Oatlands Community Centre will be offering coffee and cake to visitors.

Funding was organised through Two Ridings Community Foundation. Its CEO Jan Garrill said:

“This was a great and very creative way to celebrate Her Majesty’s platinum jubilee. All credit to Oatlands for embracing both the spirit of the jubilee and the Let’s Create funding from Two Ridings.”

Pedestrian seriously injured in collision at Knaresborough retail park

A woman pedestrian suffered serious injuries when she was involved in a collision with a Land Rover at St James Retail Park in Knaresborough today.

The woman, in her early 60s, was injured at about 12.15pm near the McDonald’s roundabout.

She was treated at the scene by paramedics before being taken to hospital by ambulance with a serious leg injury.

There has been extensive traffic disruption while the emergency services worked at the scene.

North Yorkshire Police is asking witnesses to make a report via its website or by calling 101. Quote reference NYP-07102022-0176 when providing details.

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Harrogate student flies to Greece to compete in Pentathlon GB squad

An Ashville College pupil has flown to the birthplace of the Olympic Games to compete in the 2022 Biathle, Triathle and Laser Run European Championships.

As a member of the Pentathlon GB squad, Lydia Eastwood will be taking part this weekend in the girls under-13 individual laser run and the under-13 mixed laser run relay.

Laser Run is a two-discipline event where athletes run and shoot, and complete a number of laps depending on their age. Each lap includes running and shooting.

Being held in Marathon – famously known as the site where the ancient Greek army was victorious against the invading Persian forces in 490 BCE – it comes less than a fortnight after taking part in the world championships in Lisbon, Portugal, where she helped secure gold for the GB under-13 girls team.

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Last month Lydia finished first in the girls under-13 age group at the Biathle of the Roses competition at Allerthorpe lake in York, which is part of the Pentathlon GB series.

And back in July, Lydia and her grandfather Tony competed in the British Biathle Championships at Salford Quays.

Lydia finished sixth and Tony claimed silver in the Masters class.

Jane Ellis, Ashville’s head of lower school, said:

“Lydia has her sights firmly set on competing in a future Olympic Games, and there is nothing that could stop her achieving this ambition.

“We are incredibly proud of Lydia. She is a truly remarkable young athlete and we are wishing her, and her Pentathlon GB squad teammates, the best of luck in this week’s competition.”

Harrogate and Ripon gardens win gold at Yorkshire in Bloom awards

Harrogate has been awarded a gold medal and been named a winner in the small city category at last night’s Yorkshire in Bloom awards.

The annual awards encourage communities of all sizes to use flowers to brighten up the landscape as well as foster community spirit and civic pride.

Although Harrogate is a town, it was entered in the ‘small city’ category due to the size of its population and took first place at a ceremony in Tadcaster.

Harrogate Borough Council parks and gardens flowers

Harrogate Borough Council maintains parks and green spaces across the district.

Harrogate Business Improvement District, which undertakes schemes to drive footfall to the town centre, also won a gold medal and was category winner in the BID division.

Harrogate’s Valley Gardens received a platinum award and Starbeck won a gold medal in the urban community category.

Starbeck in Bloom

There was success too for Ripon, which took a platinum award for Spa Gardens, a silver gilt award for the city itself and a discretionary award for the best platinum jubilee display.

The Himalayan Garden and Sculpture Park was awarded a Gold Medal in the Tourist Attractions Award category and a Best Conservation Project Award.

Joel Dibb, Head Gardener said:

“The Garden suffered devastating tree losses last winter due to the disease Phytophthora ramorum. The team took up the challenge to replant and move on from this distressing event and have had a busy year selecting and replanting trees.

The discretionary Conservation Project Award recognises all this hard work and the wildlife conservation we do to keep the garden wildlife friendly.”

A post on Harrogate in Bloom’s Facebook page said:

“Well done to all our local community groups and to the team at Harrogate Borough Council – here’s to further success in 2023!”

Yorkshire in Bloom is a charity incorporated organisation and a regional body representing the RHS Britain in Bloom campaign that is organised by the Royal Horticultural Society.

Judges assess criteria developed by the RHS in consultation with the regions.

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Harrogate council spends £400,000 on bin worker overtime

Harrogate Borough Council has spent £408,000 on overtime for bin workers over the last three years.

The Stray Ferret sent a freedom of information request to the council after a refuse collector got in touch to express concerns about overtime spending.

The council spent £138,246 on overtime in 2019, £135,636 in 2020 and £134,196 in 2021. The figures do not include casual workers.

The council, which will be abolished in just under six months, employed 93 waste and recycling drivers and loaders in 2020, compared with 95 in 2021 and 100 in 2020.

David Houlgate, secretary of the Harrogate local government branch of public sector union Unison, said the council had been “in a recruitment and retention crisis for some time”, adding:

“There are a number of factors for this crisis but primary it is, in our view, because of pay freezes and below inflation pay rises for over a decade or more as a result of chronic under-funding from central government who do not appear to care about public services.

“Consequently, some services such as environmental services have endured staffing issues for a number of years.  Your readers may have noticed on some occasions that their refuse or recycling collection has been late or not happened at all, as a result.

“Staff may have been asked to work overtime to alleviate the problem but more concerning is that there has been an over-reliance on agency workers to deliver some services.”

Mr Houlgate said Unison submitted a freedom of information request around the costs of agency workers in 2019 and later wrote to the council’s overview and scrutiny commission asking it to look into the “excessive” sums.

The committee agreed to undertake a review but this was delayed by covid and in July this year Unison was informed it was “unlikely that the agency workers piece of work will be undertaken”. Mr Houlgate said:

“The staffing situation has arisen because council staff have been underpaid and undervalued for well over a decade and the situation now with the cost of living crisis has reached a breaking point.”

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The Stray Ferret asked the council what the overtime pay rate is for waste and recycling staff and whether it was able to manage the service better to reduce costs.

A council spokesperson said he didn’t have an answer for the pay rate but added:

“Our waste and recycling service has around 30 rounds out per day collecting household waste, recycling, garden waste and trade waste from the 500 square miles of the Harrogate district.

“There are a number of reasons why overtime is required to support the delivery of this service.

“On a day-to-day basis this could range from roadworks, delays or breakdowns leading to rounds finishing late and employees working over their contracted hours. Short or longer term driver and staff shortages also require additional time to be worked by employees to ensure the delivery of this service.

“It is fair and right that additional time worked by employees over contracted hours – that equates to less than five per cent of the overall delivery of the service – is paid at the appropriate rate in-line with our overtime policy. Equally, where hours are worked on bank holidays to ensure rounds are completed, overtime is rightly paid to employees.

“Without the good will and support from staff to work these additional hours we would struggle to deliver the existing quality of service that our residents and business customers expect to receive.”

 

Traffic and Travel: Harrogate district updates

Roads

Temporary traffic lights are due to arrive today on Harrogate’s busy Cold Bath Road for five weeks as Northern Gas Networks carries out maintenance work, according to North Yorkshire County Council’s live roadworks map. This is likely to cause considerable delays.

Roadworks are also taking place on nearby Victoria Road, where a diversion is in place.

Elsewhere in Harrogate, long-term work on Crescent Road means motorists are unable to turn left at the Parliament Street junction. Traffic coming the opposite way on Ripon Road is unable to turn right.

Montpellier Road remains closed until October 12 as Northern Gas Networks carries out maintenance work.

Roadworks are also due from 9am to 7pm today on Leadhill Crescent.

Drivers should expect the usual Friday morning rush hour delays on key routes, such as Wetherby Road, Knaresborough Road and Skipton Road but it is the first Walk to School day this term, which may reduce congestion slightly.

At Blossomgate in Ripon, work is due to take place to replace and reset the kerb and improve the road.

Further afield, anyone travelling eastbound on the M62 this morning should be aware of early morning problems.

2 lanes (of 3) remain closed on the #M62 eastbound in #WestYorkshire between J29 (for the #M1) and J30 (#Rothwell) whilst recovery is ongoing for a lorry involved in a collision.

There's just over 2 miles of congestion on approach so allow extra journey time this morning. pic.twitter.com/RKU3rvh5XP

— National Highways: Yorkshire (@HighwaysYORKS) October 7, 2022

 

Trains and buses

No rail strikes today, but another day of strikes is expected tomorrow.

Northern, which operates services through Harrogate and Knaresborough, has urged passengers not to travel on strike days.

As for today, Northern services between Harrogate and Knaresborough going to York and Leeds are scheduled to run as normal this morning.

But rail passengers on Harrogate’s LNER services have been warned to expect disruption until the end of the weekend..

Major engineering works in the Newcastle area by Network Rail will affect many services on the LNER route during this period.

Meanwhile, the Harrogate Bus Company is not reporting any problems this morning.

You can check service updates here.

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Harrogate hospital A&E performance remains ‘well below’ national standard

A&E waiting times performance at Harrogate District Hospital remains “well below” the national standard as health bosses urge people to only attend the department if necessary.

Latest figures show that the hospital had 4,554 attendances to its emergency department in August 2022.

The national standard for emergency department waiting times is to admit, transfer or discharge 95% of patients within four hours.

According to NHS England figures, 62% of patients were seen within that timeframe at Harrogate hospital.

Meanwhile, a total of 82 patients waited longer than 12 hours to be seen.

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In a report to its board, Jonathan Coulter, chief executive at Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust, said the performance remained “well below” the standard set nationally.

He said:

“The board should be aware that our A&E performance in August remained well below the national standard and we had a higher number of 12 hour waits in the department than in previous months.

“The situation has improved in September, but the changes that we have initiated and highlighted earlier need to be delivered in order for us to provide the improved urgent care service that we all want to have in place.”

Visiting the Emergency Department at Harrogate District Hospital pic.twitter.com/8cITeTrHkj

— Harrogate NHS FT (@HarrogateNHSFT) October 3, 2022

The move comes as the trust has urged people to only attend its emergency department if they have a life-threatening or severe illness or injury.

In a statement, the trust said it expected to see a high number of patients at A&E this week.

It said:

“This week we are expecting our hospital in Harrogate to be very busy. As a result, visitors to our emergency department with less serious issues may experience longer waiting times than usual.

“This isn’t ideal and we will endeavour to keep waiting times as short as possible.”

Have you experienced a long wait in Harrogate’s A&E department? We’d like to hear from you. Email contact@thestrayferret.co.uk or call us on 01423 276197. 

Harrogate College event offers landlords advice on making older buildings greener

Landlords in the Harrogate district are to be offered advice on retrofitting buildings to make them more environmentally sustainable.

Harrogate College is holding an information evening in partnership with Harrogate District Climate Change Coalition, entitled Retrofit for Landlords.

It will take place from 6-7.30pm on Wednesday, November 2.

The event will aim to explain how ‘eco-refurbishment’ of buildings can improve efficiency, cut energy bills and reduce carbon emissions.

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Harrogate College principal, Danny Wild, said:

“We look forward to welcoming many landlords to this event, where they can hear about the benefits of retrofitting.

“Working closely with local employers, to ensure our courses and training delivers the maximum possible benefit to them, is one of our key aims.

“We are also striving to become a net zero carbon college by 2030, as set out in our sustainability pledge, and supporting green skills like retrofitting aligns perfectly with our sustainability goals.

“So we are delighted to be teaming up with the Harrogate District Climate Change Coalition to stage this event, which sets out how practical steps can be taken to help both our economy and the environment.”

Speakers include Sarah Stark, from Harrogate Borough Council, who will give details about a new council grant for landlords and who will answer questions about EPC (Energy Performance Certificate) regulations.

Representatives from York and North Yorkshire LEP will give presentations on the net-zero business toolkit and energy and retrofit options, respectively.

John Kerr from Zero Carbon Harrogate, will be discussing the work it is doing – including through teaming up with Harrogate College – to provide free retrofit training, and how landlords can access it.

Places at the event can be booked here:  www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/harrogate-college-retrofit-event-tickets-425667923217.

 

Business Breakfast: 1,000 people attend Harrogate business conference

Business Breakfast is sponsored by Harrogate law firm Truth Legal. 

More than 1,000 people attended a business conference in Harrogate yesterday.

Brand Yorkshire held its 12th annual business conference at Pavilions of Harrogate at the Great Yorkshire Showground. Nearly 60 businesses had stalls at the event.

Staff from companies all over the country networked at the event, which attracted many local firms.

Georgina Pogge-von Strandmann, solicitor and branch manager at Ison Harrison in Harrogate, told the Stray Ferret:

“The event has been great to attend. We’re here to explain all of the services we can offer at our new Harrogate branch as a full-service law firm. We’ve spoken to a lot of people, everyone is really friendly.”

Sally Bendtson, who owns Limelight HR, said:

“It’s been really good so far, there is a nice mixture of people we know and people we haven’t worked with yet. Last year we just had a stand but this year we’ve got a stand and I’m doing a talk.”

Brand Yorkshire has been holding business events for more than a decade. They are run by Richard and Mona Norman.

Ms Norman told the Stray Ferret:

“People are still wanting to meet people face to face, especially in Harrogate. We have more than a thousand booked to attend.

“What is music to my ears is when the stand holders come to me, even when the day hasn’t finished yet, to say they are already getting business from the event.”

Boroughbridge chamber holds networking event

The Crown Hotel on Bridge Street in Boroughbridge.

The Crown Hotel

Boroughbridge Chamber of Trade is to stage business networking event on Tuesday next week.

The event will also feature a presentation from Kevin Charity, the new chief executive of The Coaching Inn Group, which recently bought the town’s Crown Hotel.

Coaching Inns took over the historic 37-bedroom hotel in February after its parent company, RedCat Pub Company, purchased the building from Best Western for an undisclosed fee. It is investing about £450,000 in refurbishing the site.

The event takes place at the Crown Hotel from 5.30pm to 7pm. Non-chamber members are welcome.