Sneak Peek: Paradise arrives in Killinghall

Killinghall, the large village near Harrogate with little to offer visitors, is having a moment.

A Tesco Express opened today on the site of the former Three Horseshoes pub on Ripon Road. Tomorrow, an 80-seat cafe offering food cooked by a Michelin-starred chef will open a short stroll down the road at Daleside Nurseries.

On April 8, the Old Spring Well at the other end of the village will re-open as The Curious Cow of Harrogate, promising a high-end dining experience.

Finally it seems people may have a reason to visit Killinghall other than to view new houses.

Large plants grown in hothouses are a prominent design feature.

Plants to buy and eat

The creation of Paradise Cafe has particularly caught the imagination because it fuses two successful local businesses on one site.

Daleside Nurseries has been operating in the village since 1958; Frances Atkins, Roger Olive and John Tullett forged a formidable reputation for food 20 years ago at the Yorke Arms at Ramsgill, where Ms Atkins became the first British female chef to win a Michelin star in 2003.

For 18 months the trio operated out of a van in the Daleside car park, which seemed as incongruous as seeing Ronaldo having a kickabout on The Stray.

But finally the long-planned 80-seat cafe is ready to welcome its first customers.

Situated at the rear of the nursery, the cafe has a light and airy modern feel, with large plants grown in hothouses liberally dotted around. The plants, like the art on the walls, are for sale.

Chef's table at Paradise Cafe

The chef’s table at Paradise Cafe.

The cafe will open from 9am to 5pm six days a week and on Friday evenings.

An outdoor area overlooking the lake outside the café is due to open later this year, catering for another 80 people.

Main courses from £14 to £20

On arrival, diners are able to sit at the chef’s table directly opposite the kitchen and watch the food being prepared.

As for the menu, it includes several small plates for starters, main courses, sandwiches made with home-made bread, pastries and pudding.

Main courses include limed and ginger seared scallops, Swiss potato cake, artichoke and apple for £14, crispy duck pancake, crunchy greens and red orange gel for £15 and dry-aged Yorkshire beef steak, baked stuffed garlic potato, crisp leaf and aubergine relish for £20.

A scallops dish

Ms Atkins says the menu will change frequently but the idea is to combine plant-based food with produce from local farmers. Local cheeses will be sold at a later date.

“This is what we perceive as being healthy food, full of flavour, made with great ingredients.

“We want people to be relaxed. It’s not about how great we are. It’s about how great the food is.”

Chefs Frances Atkins and Roger Olive in the kitchen.

Stuart Townsend, managing director of Daleside, said this was the biggest improvement in Daleside’s 64-year history.

“It broadens our offering. I love growing good quality plants and Frances and her team enjoy serving good quality food so it seems the perfect fit.

“People expect more from nurseries and garden centres these days. We want to grow top quality plants and we want to sell top quality food.”

Man arrested after police seize sword, knives and drugs in Harrogate

A man has been arrested after police found bags of drugs, 10 knives and a sword at a house in Harrogate yesterday evening.

Police were called to reports of a man threatening a woman in the Skipton Road area and officers detained a man in his 40s at the scene.

He was arrested and searched, and officers found bags of white powder, which is believed to be cocaine, two knives and a quantity of cash in the suspect’s possession.

This led to a further search of his house in the Skipton Road area of Harrogate, where further items were discovered including:

The items were seized and the suspected drugs have been sent for analysis.

The man was arrested on suspicion of drug, weapon and public order offences and remains in custody today while enquiries continue.

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Boarded-up building in Harrogate town centre could become pharmacy

Plans have been lodged to convert the former William Hill bookmakers in Harrogate town centre into a pharmacy and retail unit.

The Pharmacy Group has submitted a planning application to Harrogate Borough Council to convert the boarded-up unit on the town’s Beulah Street.

It would see the bookies, which has been closed for some time, converted into a shop and the unit facing Station Parade into a pharmacy.

Office space will also be created in the space above the pharmacy.

Former William Hill on Beulah Street

The view from Station Parade.

The Pharmacy Group is a third generation family-owned business with 30 NHS community pharmacies across Yorkshire. They include Harrogate Pharmacy on Haywra Crescent.

The developer said in documents submitted to the council that the proposal would bring “positive benefits” to the area.

It said:

“The change of use from turf accountants to retail and offices and the proposed redevelopment of the site will bring positive benefits to the area by maintaining, enhancing and giving new life to a key property on both Beulah Street and Station Parade.”

Harrogate Borough Council will make a decision on the plan at a later date.

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Stonefall Cemetery highlights Harrogate’s female war casualties

To mark International Women’s Day next month, free tours will take place at Stonefall Cemetery that put a spotlight on six female war casualties who are commemorated there.

The tours have been organised by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) and will take place on March 5,6 and 8.

Visitors will be able to learn more about local women who served in the Auxiliary Territorial Service and the Territorial Army Nursing Service.

One of the women, Sister Florrie Prest from Bilton, served at Dunkirk and in Africa and also on hospital ships in the Atlantic and Mediterranean.

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During the Second World War almost 1,000 service personnel were buried at Stonefall Cemetery. Many of them came from across the Commonwealth. There will also be tours from March 12-14 to mark Commonwealth Day.

These include two brothers serving in the Royal Canadian Air Force who died just a few months apart as well as a descendent of the last King of Fiji.

Elizabeth Smith, public engagement coordinator for the North East of England, said:

“The themed guided tours at Stonefall Cemetery will give local people a chance to reconnect with their history, to learn about the work of the CWGC, and discover the remarkable stories of the men and women who are buried in their community.”

To book on the free tours visit https://www.cwgc.org/our-war-graves-your-history/what-s-happening-near-you/

For more information please contact: Elizabeth Smith on elizabeth.smith@cwgc.org

Harrogate hospital currently ‘very full’, say health officials

Harrogate hospital managers warned yesterday that “high numbers of very sick patients” is causing long waiting times.

They added that people with less urgent issues are experiencing long waits.

The news comes weeks after Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust reported that it had reached maximum bed capacity at the start of February due to covid and winter pressures.

In a post on its social media, the trust urged people to call the NHS on 111 unless they had a life-threatening or severe illness or injury.

It said:

“During this week at Harrogate District Hospital we are experiencing high numbers of very sick patients, and due to this the hospital is very full. As a result, patients with less urgent issues may experience longer waiting times than usual.

“This isn’t ideal and we will endeavour to keep waiting times as short as possible. We know that patients can be in pain, stressed or scared, and our dedicated team with do everything they can to help.

“Your health is our utmost priority and all we ask for in return is our staff are treated respectfully and do not have to face verbal or physical abuse as they try to do their job.

“Unless you have a life-threatening or severe illness or injury, we would ask you to contact NHS 111 first.”

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Harrogate district small businesses and families prepare to ‘get stung’

The owner of a family-run nursery chain, which is set to launch a new setting in Harrogate, says he is preparing to “get stung” by rising energy prices.

Matthew Dawson, director of Children’s Corner Childcare, said he had already seen a significant rise in energy bills at his six Leeds nurseries over the last 18 months – including almost double in some cases.

The nursery is set to open a branch at Central House, on Otley Road, in April, when the price hike is introduced.

Mr Dawson said:

“We have several utilities contracts due to run out in the coming months and as such are likely to get stung by the ever increasing costs of keeping our buildings warm.

“This is especially important when looking after young children as we do and not something where corners can be cut.

“Our newest site in Harrogate has a number of obstacles in terms of its energy efficiency which are going to have to be addressed.”

Mr Dawson said the nursery was going to have “the most energy efficient heating system we could find” installed to help mitigate rising costs, as well as investing in insulating the building further.

He added:

“This will not only reduce our ongoing energy bills, but also to reduce our environmental impact as well.

“This will come at a significant cost to the business at a time when margins are squeezed ever tighter by other increasing extraneous costs.”

£80 a month more to pay

For Knaresborough family-of-three, the Hobsons, the energy bills are set to go up by at least £80 per month.

Regional sales director Mike Hobson, who lives with his wife Hannah and their eight-year-old daughter Grace, said:

“This isn’t sustainable and it is now eating into other areas of living costs, especially with all the extra expenditure at the moment, including inflation.

“We were paying £160 a month and we are now paying £240 – for a family-of-three, that’s an extra £1,000 a year.”

From left to right, Grace, Hannah and Mike Hobson, from Knaresborough.

However, the price hike is not just set to hit families and homeowners, with the majority of residents across the Harrogate district set to feel the pinch.

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Catherine Aletta, a junior digital designer at Cloud Nine, which is based at Hornbeam Park, rents a two-bedroom flat near Harrogate town centre with her partner.

She said:

“Energy prices are already a big chunk of monthly outgoings. As prices are set to rise even further, we are both concerned that it will have a big impact on us. The monthly bills are already a consideration to our lifestyle and if they do go up, we will have to start looking at how we possibly cut back on other things.

“We are both very conscious of our energy consumption and do our best to reduce our usage to keep the monthly bills manageable. We use the timer to restrict the amount of time the heating is on, we turn off lights as we leave rooms and make sure we don’t leave the TV on when we are not watching it.

“We have lived in our apartment for six months and we have noticed that the prices have already gone up. Obviously we have had the heating on quite a lot in recent months due to the cold weather, but it is a concern for next winter. If the prices go up even further, we will start to struggle.”

Catherine Aletta.

The price rise comes after the energy regulator, Ofgem, lifted the maximum rate that suppliers can charge for an average duel-fuel energy tariff by £693 — an increase of 54 per cent.

This is to reflect the fourfold increase in energy market prices over the last year.

Plan to convert Harrogate’s Alexa House into family home

Plans have been submitted to convert a Victorian guest house in Harrogate into a family home.

The Alexa House on Ripon Road was sold last year for an undisclosed sum by former owner Sandra Doherty.

Mrs Doherty, who owned the property for 15 years, sold the bed and breakfast after she stepped down as chief executive of Harrogate District Chamber of Commerce to retire to Northumberland.

She had previously had an application to convert the guest house into seven apartments rejected in January 2021 after Harrogate Borough Council said it would not “contribute to local distinctiveness”.

Now a fresh proposal has been tabled to the council to convert the guest house into a family home.

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The application by the Architect Design Studio Ltd on behalf of Laura Harvey includes converting the outbuildings at the property into a garage and workshop area and reducing the size of the car park.

Harrogate Borough Council will make a decision on the proposal at a later date.

Alexa House was built in 1896 by the renowned art collector Baron Conrad Adolphus du Bois de Ferrieres.

It was built as a hunting lodge for its London-based owners to spend time enjoying Harrogate’s spa waters and riding in the nearby countryside.

Another industrial unit approved for new Harrogate business park

Plans have been approved to build another 800 sq metre unit at an industrial park on the outskirts of Harrogate.

Harrogate Borough Council has given permission to Teakwood Investments to expand Harrogate West Business Park, which is situated at the junction of Burley Bank Road and Pennypot Lane, opposite the Army Foundation College.

Planning permission was first granted to build the site in 2020. Construction is currently underway and ventilation firm EnviroVent is set to base its headquarters there.

Another 11 units have also been granted planning permission since then.

A council report says:

“The development of Harrogate West Business Park will significantly support Harrogate district’s sustainable economic growth and covid recovery.”

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Is Harrogate council leader using misleading statistics to justify £47m spend?

Harrogate Borough Council leader Richard Cooper has been accused of using a misleading statistic to support a £47 million redevelopment of the town’s convention centre.

Cllr Cooper has claimed 88% of conference delegates to the centre return to the area for leisure. However, the Stray Ferret has not been able to find the statistic he refers to -— only one that says, when asked, delegates said they were likely to return.

The statistics matter because the soon-to-be-abolished council wants to fast-track the start of what would be one of the biggest public spending commitments in its 48-year history.

It says Harrogate Convention Centre needs the investment to continue attracting visitors — and to boost the economic impact on the entire Harrogate district.

What is Cllr Cooper claiming? 

Cllr Cooper, the Conservative council leader and chair of the convention centre board, told a council meeting this month:

“The purpose and vision of the convention centre is to deliver high quality conferences, exhibitions and events that bring maximum economic impact and prosperity to the district.

“It is important to emphasise that this is for the district and this is not a noose around the district’s neck.

“And I can demonstrate that by saying almost nine out of 10 people — 88% — an astonishing statistic — who come to Harrogate Convention Centre for business return to the district for leisure. This is streets ahead of other venues.”

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Kirk Hammerton resident Alex Smith has submitted a freedom of information request asking where this information was from. Neither he nor the Stray Ferret has been able to find it.

Mr Smith told the Stray Ferret he was not a member of any political party but was interested in transparency and standards.

The Visit Britain Statistics

His FoI suggests Cllr Cooper may have been referring to 2018 research by Visit Britain on how much delegates to business events spend.

This research said 88% of delegates to Harrogate Convention Centre, from a sample of 98, said they were ‘likely or very likely’ to return to the area. Of those, 62% said they were ‘very likely’ to return.

But it does not say how many actually do and neither Mr Smith nor the Stray Ferret is aware of any research that does so.

Mr Smith’s FoI request says:

“Residents are used to Cllr Cooper’s robust approach to political point-scoring.

“But, as chairman of the Harrogate Convention Centre, he is obliged to give out accurate information; and as a councillor, he is bound by a code of conduct not to mislead the Mayor and council.

“He is not free to invent ‘astonishing’ statistics to suit his argument.”

The FoI then asks for Cllr Cooper’s source, adding:

“If there is no other source than the one I’ve quoted I’d be grateful if you could inform me when and how Cllr Cooper will correct his wilful misinformation.”

The Stray Ferret asked Cllr Cooper last week where the statistic he quoted was from but has not received a response.

Previous claim

In July 2020, Cllr Cooper told a council meeting that 75% of Harrogate Convention Centre delegates returned. He said:

“75% of 150,000 is 112,500 visitors that come to our district because of the convention centre who we would never see here otherwise.”

Again, it is not clear where this information is from — or why the figure appears to have grown to 88%.

Harrogate Borough Council will be abolished next year as part of a shake-up of local government that will see a new North Yorkshire Council formed.

Cllr Cooper has said he does not intend to seek re-election in May’s local elections for the new council.

 

Colourful mosaics brighten up Harrogate street

Nine colourful mosaics that spell out the word ‘Harrogate’ have been installed on a town centre street.

The mosaics, which were created by disabled artists at Harrogate charity Artizan International, are now on the side wall of the Boots building on Cambridge Place.

The idea came from Harrogate BID, which funded the project. It asked businesses and residents what they felt best symbolised the town.

The responses, which included Bettys, cycling, Yorkshire Tea and The Stray, were given to Douglas Thompson, who is a local mosaic artist and freelance creative at Artizan.

One of the mosaics

Harrogate BID chair Sara Ferguson said the mosaics have given the drab street a much-needed lift.

“Now in place, the mosaics look absolutely fantastic, and they have given the much-used passage between Cambridge Street and Oxford Street a real lift.

“This has been a fantastic partnership, the result of which is now bringing some much-needed colour to Cambridge Place at the same time as enhancing the area.”

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Susie Hart, founder of Artizan International said the artists enjoyed creating the mosaics:

“Our members and volunteers spent many hours creating each of the nine letters. They have taken great pride in their work, and thoroughly enjoyed the challenge.

“And each time they journey along Cambridge Place, they will have the satisfaction of knowing they have made these letters which are now adding a positive contribution to the town centre.”

Picture caption: BID Chair Sara Ferguson, sixth from left, Artizan International Founder Susie Hart MBE, fourth from right, and Douglas Thompson, third from right, pictured with Artizan International members and volunteers in front of their Harrogate letters.