Yurtshire, in the Nidderdale countryside, is drawing on the power of nature, to create a revitalising experience for visitors from across the Harrogate district and further afield.

The 93-acre site, which features Eavestone Lake, is being developed by Tom Sterne, whose family are long-term investors in the retail, leisure and hospitality sectors, in Ripon and surrounding areas.

Located between Ripon and Pateley Bridge, just off the B6265 road, the site with its nine luxurious tree yurts, opened last summer.

Following the high demand of a staycation year, three more units are being added, after planning permission was granted by Harrogate Borough Council.

Plans are also in hand to add spa-type facilities and services, including a sauna, facial and body massages.

The site features the 13-acre Eavestone Lake

Mr Sterne, who has more than ten years of experience of outdoor hospitality-based business, gained through his operation of hire company Yorkshire Yurts and    YurtBar, which caters for the corporate entertainment market, told the Stray Ferret:

“I’m using the expertise that I have gained to create a new facility to satisfy the needs of people who are increasingly focused on wellness, lifestyle issues and the environment.”

He pointed out:

“Our site has an abundance of natural assets, including forty acres of forest, a 13-acre lake and the biodiversity that goes with them, from birds, butterflies and insects to clear night-time skies that are perfect for people whose spirits are lifted by looking at the stars.

“The aim is to harness and harmonise with all aspects of the natural environment – woodland, water and wildlife – to provide guests with a restful and regenerative stay that is good for mind, body and the healing process.

“That is why people wanting to find a peaceful and idyllic place to go on retreat, represent a growing part of our business.”

The yurts have been designed to provide a five-star level of luxury

In the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Yurtshire is surrounded by stunning  scenery, that would not look out of place on a canvas by the landscape master painter J.M.W. Turner.

Views from the decking of each Yurt site, which has its own private hot tub, underline why nearby Grassington was chosen for filming of the smash-hit Channel 5 programme All Creatures Great and Small.

Each of the nine placements has its own private hot tub and decking area

With Grassington and other attractions, such as Fountains Abbey, Studley Royal, Brimham Rocks and Stump Cross Caverns, drawing more staycationers to Yorkshire, there is scope for Yurtshire to build on a successful first season.

Nicola Warters, pictured here with Tom Sterne, says the yurts provide five-star luxury in idyllic surroundings

Yurtshire manager Nicola Warters, said:

“We are providing the type of luxury accommodation that can be found in a five-star hotel, but instead of waking up surrounded by bricks and mortar, our visitors are in the heart of the woodland and arise to the sound of birds singing.

“Some also come for the pleasure of picking out the star constellations, as they relax in the soothing waters of their hot tub. It’s therapeutic on every level.”

Read more:

• The natural beauty of Fountains Abbey captured on camera
• Stars of All Creatures Great and Small stars seen in the Harrogate district

Police have closed off the Pinewoods after suspected gunfire was heard this evening.

Someone in the area told the Stray Ferret they heard three “very loud” bangs, which they presumed to be gunshots, at around 5pm.

They said a police helicopter has been circling the woodland since then.

The Stray Ferret spoke to one police officer who said armed police had “contained” the area but did not give any further information. It is not known if anyone has been hurt.

We will have more information on this developing story as we get it.

A pair of nurses from Starbeck who are cycling across Europe for charity have made the trip even more special — by getting engaged in Paris.

Andy Dennis proposed to Tracey Hill at the foot of the Eiffel Tower, and even had friends on hand to film the occasion and celebrate with them.

He said:

“Everything was perfect: the company was lovely, the place chose itself — there was a view of the tower framed by the trees.”

Tracey said:

“He got down on one knee and it felt like going into an exam you haven’t prepared for.

“I just kept saying, ‘What are you doing? What’s going on?'”

Fortunately, Tracey accepted the proposal, and the newly engaged couple have enjoyed some time in Paris to celebrate.

Staying in a hotel for a couple of nights is luxury compared to some of their other experiences so far. Tracey said:

“We’ve been wild camping on our way here. You’re getting up, you feel sticky, you’re in a field, there’s nowhere to wash yourself except with a handful of water from your bottle.

“You’re packing up and off you go onto the road – it’s so hot from about half past eight, you’re just so grateful when you go through a forest.

“We watch out for each other and push ourselves to drink even if we aren’t thirsty, so we don’t get dehydrated.”

Now, the couple are back on the road towards Geneva.

They have told close family about their engagement, and Andy posted the video on his blog about the trip, but it will be many weeks before they can celebrate with friends and family.

They don’t expect to complete the 2,000-mile trip to Gibraltar for three months.

The ride is the couple’s latest fundraiser for Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF), a medical charity providing support to people in conflict zones and other troubled areas of the world.

Andy has completed previous challenges as part of a bid to raise £200,000 for MSF, which he has worked for on four missions: Uganda, twice in South Sudan, and in an ebola centre in Sierra Leone.

Read more:

• Ripon soldiers in Cyprus to undergo mammoth charity challenge
• Harrogate business man praises ‘amazing’ charity following £2m aid convoy into Ukraine

In his day job, Andy is a staff nurse on the intensive care unit at Harrogate District Hospital, where he and Tracey met. She now works as a nurse in dermatology at York Hospital.

Both have been supported by their employers, who have given them time off to complete the ride from Amsterdam to Gibraltar. The couple are funding all the travel, accommodation and food themselves, so all money donated goes directly to MSF.

To follow the couple’s progress, visit Andy’s blog or Tracey’s blog. You can donate to the cause by clicking the links from either of their blogs.

Harrogate district residents are being urged to tell police chiefs about their experiences of the non-emergency 101 and emergency 999 services.

It follows long-running concerns in the district about the length of time it takes to answer the calls.

The police contact survey opened on Wednesday and runs until June 26.

The survey, run by the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, will inform police forces, the Home Office and local crime commissioners on any challenges around reporting to the police.

Participants answer questions testing their understanding of emergency and non-emergency reporting systems, as well as newly emerging ways of contacting the police, like web chat, online forms and messaging over social media.

Zoë Metcalfe

Zoë Metcalfe, the North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, said:

“Reporting to 101 and 999 remains a challenging area of business for police forces across the country. The needs of those making contact must be understood, and we must prioritise those most in need.

“I have expressed my concerns to the Chief Constable regarding poor call handling times. The Chief Constable and I are committed to significantly improving the customer contact experience and call handling times, and will monitor performance closely with the aim to improve the service as a priority. This will also include the call-waiting times for the non-emergency 101 service.”

Read more:

• Police commissioner: 101 line deluged by ‘neighbours complaining about each other’
• Commissioner Candidates questioned: the 101 call system ‘not fit for purpose’

Ms Metcalfe’s predecessor, Philip Allott, was told by North Yorkshire county councillors last year that the non-emergency line was “not fit for purpose and it hasn’t been fit for purpose for the last eight years” and that “the phone just doesn’t get answered”.

Ms Metcalfe will discuss North Yorkshire’s force control room’s performance in her next public accountability meeting on Tuesday.

Members of the public can submit questions in advance of the meeting via email to info@northyorkshire-pfcc.gov.uk. They should include their name and address.

You can take part in the public contact survey here.

Harrogate business Glawning Ltd has been named microbusiness of the year at the Federation of Small Businesses awards.  

Glawning, which sells awnings and accessories for campervans, was set up in 2013 by husband and wife James and Sarah Martin.

Since then, the company has flourished, and last year turned over more than £500,000.

The annual awards, which celebrate the best of small business and entrepreneurship, attracted more than 3,000 entries from the UK.  

Glawning won the Yorkshire award before defeating 12 other regional finalists at yesterday’s event in Glasgow, which was hosted by TV presenters Clare Balding and JJ Chalmers.

Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon was also there to address the nominees.  

Read more:

• Plan to demolish Harrogate Debenhams withdrawn
• ‘Somebody knows something’— Killinghall peacock mystery deepens

Ms Martin said:  

“We set up our business after identifying a gap in the market and this award is very much a testament to all the work we have put into creating and launching a product that we ourselves need and use.” 

The company now plans to launch in Europe and the USA this year.

Martin McTague, FSB national chair said:  

“This is an example of a small business that recognised an opening for a new product and worked hard to create something that has been a success amongst the campervan community.

“I wish them success as they continue to innovate and create new products and take on the international markets.” 

This article is sponsored by Ripon City Council.

Ripon City Council invites people of all ages from the Harrogate district and further afield  to join its citizens in a once in a lifetime celebration in this Right Royal city, where the biggest free Platinum Jubilee party in the north is being held over four days to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee and her selfless 70 years of service to this country.

Three days of continuous FREE musical entertainment from June 2 to 4 on a stage in front of Ripon Town Hall will see 24 of the country’s leading tribute acts perform, alongside FREE fairground rides for all the family and face painting, Punch and Judy and magic shows for children.

Full details can be found by clicking or tapping here to see Ripon City Council’s Platinum Jubilee brochure.

There’s something for everybody – from parents with a three-year-old wanting to have their face painted, to a 103 year-old great grandmother who wants to come and enjoy the nostalgic wartime songs made famous by forces sweetheart Vera Lynn.

All the fairground rides are free and there will also be a Twister ride suitable for adults

Seating will be provided on Market Square for the comfort of those wanting to take the weight off their feet while watching the tribute acts.

Music in Ripon’s Market Square

The extensive concert programme will feature just about every musical genre, from rock and roll to soul and Britpop to disco dancefloor fillers and popular classics.

Ripon’s Market Square will be in the national and international spotlight at 9.45pm on Thursday June 2, after Ripon Community Poppy Project successfully applied for the city to be be one of the 1500 locations included in the UK-wide chain of Platinum Jubilee beacons that will be simultaneously lit across the land.

Beacons will also be lit in Commonwealth countries.

During the three days of activities on Market Square,  Jubilee celebrations, including the beacon lighting  in London and elsewhere in the UK, can be seen live on a large TV screen.

Adding to the very special nature of the beacon lighting event, a lone piper will play Diu Regnare, which has been written specifically for the Platinum Jubilee.

The Platinum Jubilee Horn sounds

Another huge highlight will come at 9pm on Saturday June 4, when Ripon’s world-famous setting of the watch ceremony will be in the spotlight as the city council presents the Platinum Jubilee Horn, commissioned and made by craftsmen to provide a lasting memento of this history-making celebration.

The setting of the watch, which is the world’s longest unbroken ceremonial activity, will also be performed at 9pm on each concert night, by one of the city’s very-own ‘fab four’ hornblowers, resplendent in their distinctive uniforms and tri-cornered hats.

The concerts, with a programme that has been carefully arranged to include something for people of all ages and musical tastes, will start at 10.30am on Thursday June 2 and Friday June 3 and at 11am on Saturday June 4. They will go on into the night, finishing at 11.30pm on each of the three days.

Local residents and visitors to the city can enjoy three full days of free musical entertainment provided by 24 acts and going on until 11.30pm

Concert goers can listen to tribute acts singing the songs of Elvis, the Everly Brothers, Madonna, Little Mix, Phil Collins, George Michael, Katherine Jenkins and many more.

Music from Ripon City Band will accompany an afternoon of family fun in Spa Park on Sunday June 5. They will start at 2pm with a Jubilee Big Band welcome and conclude at 4.30pm with a rousing Last Night of the Proms performance, ending with Land of Hope and Glory.

Ripon Community Poppy Project – whose Knit and Natter group made the miles of Royal bunting that adorn the city’s streets – will be running the activities in the park, that also includes face painting, Jubilee-themed crafts and a treasure  hunt for children,

Ripon, whose regal roots reach back to 886 and King Alfred the Great, is primed for the biggest royal bash in its long and distinguished history and 1,136 years after the first blast of his ceremonial horn, the city council, citizens and visitors, will celebrate and thank the most enduring member in a long line of monarchs – HRH Queen Elizabeth II – for her remarkable service.

For those who wish to celebrate by raising a loyal toast or two in Ripon’s many pubs and restaurants, the regular Transdev 36 bus service may be an advisable means of getting to and from this city that certainly knows how to throw a party.

Harrogate Borough Council’s Conservative leader Richard Cooper has made changes to his top team, 10 months before the local authority is abolished.

Cllr Cooper has appointed Cllr Sam Gibbs, who represents Harrogate Valley Gardens, as cabinet member for the environment, waste reduction and recycling brief on his six-person cabinet.

Rebecca Burnett, who represents Harrogate St George’s, has been appointed chair of the planning committee, which makes decisions on major housing and development projects.

Ed Darling, who was elected in Knaresborough Castle, is the new chair of the 12-person licensing committee, which can grant or refuse alcohol and Hackney cab licences.

Sam Gibbs

Cllr Gibbs, who has represented Valley Gardens since 2018, will replace Cllr Andrew Paraskos.

Collecting household waste is one of the council’s biggest responsibilities and this year it will be trialling wheelie bins for housing recycling.

According to the Richmond Conservatives website, Cllr Gibbs is employed as the constituency agent for Chancellor and Richmond MP Rishi Sunak.

He is also a county councillor, winning the Valley Gardens & Central division in this month’s local elections.

Read more:

• ‘Where’s the infrastructure?’: New councillor queries 480-home Bluecoat Wood plan
• Council hopes to start Otley Road phase two in autumn

Rebecca Burnett

Rebecca Burnett replaces Cllr John Mann as chair of the planning committee.

Cllr Burnett has been a councillor since 2014 but will be stepping down from local politics when the council is abolished in April 2023.

She was the cabinet member for planning from 2015 until 2020, during the formation of Harrogate district Local Plan 2014-35, which allocates over 13,000 new homes for building in the district up to 2035.

Other appointments

Ed Darling will become the new chair of the licensing committee, replacing Cllr Victoria Oldham, who will become the council’s final Mayor.

The Stray Ferret asked Cllr Gibbs, Cllr Burnett and Cllr Darling for comment but none responded.

The committee memberships will be confirmed at next week’s full council meeting. Read the full list here.

Bettys will close its tea rooms early today as staff gather to celebrate the end of two difficult years.

The ‘Big Get Together’ will see all 1,600 staff from Bettys & Taylors invited to mark the hard work done by the company’s individuals and teams since 2020.

Today will be the first time everyone has been able to get together for what has been an annual celebration since the start of the covid pandemic.

Organiser Victoria Turner said:

“Every year we hold our internal Honours Awards which recognise the achievements and successes of our people over the 12 months.

“This year also marks the 60th anniversary of Bettys & Taylors coming together as Group, so it’s a special opportunity to bring everyone together to celebrate and reconnect after the challenges of the last two years.”

The tea rooms at Harrogate, York, Northallerton and Ilkley will close at 3.30pm today, while Harlow Carr closes at 4pm, to allow staff to join the celebrations.

Read more:

• Bettys applies to create new baby changing room in Harrogate tea rooms
• Bettys and Taylors win Queen’s Award for Enterprise

Harrogate and Knaresborough MP Andrew Jones has told Parliament that cuts to train services in the towns will damage business and make it impossible for some commuters to be at work on time.

The two early morning weekday services from Harrogate to Leeds were axed this week, meaning the earliest commuters can arrive in Leeds is 7.28am

Speaking in a Commons transport debate yesterday, Mr Jones said it was a “bad mistake” to think that the decline in passenger numbers due to covid was now at a fixed level and “service levels can be cut back accordingly”.

He added:

“We have seen some of the implications of this locally on the Leeds-Harrogate-Knaresborough-York line.

“The services that have been cut back are the early morning services to Leeds, although many people from Harrogate commute to Leeds for work.

“Some will now find it impossible to be in work on time. For other service users, it is now impossible to connect with the Leeds to London services that get into our capital before 10am.

“That is not good enough for business people, and Harrogate has significant conference business at its convention centre, with many people travelling to it from across the country.

“Other rail cuts have created long gaps in the evening services and an earlier finish on the Knaresborough service. These cuts are obviously bad for our night-time economy.”

Mr Jones, a former transport minister, said the cuts were “not great to see” because rail services had been “making such great progress after all of the years of Labour’s no-growth northern franchise”.

He cited the six daily direct London services and better rolling stock as examples.

Read more:

• Harrogate commuters frustrated as early trains axed today
• How did a First World War bomb end up in Knaresborough?

Mr Jones said he’d had a “very positive meeting” with Robin Gisby, the chair of rail operator Northern, who he said “recognised the significance of the services that have been cut, and he is working on reinstatement for later this year”.

One of the key issues, he added, was training more drivers.

Praise for local buses

Mr Jones also used his speech to praise the “excellent leadership” of Don Mackenzie, who was the North Yorkshire county councillor in charge of transport until the local elections on May 5, for securing £8m from the government for a scheme with Harrogate Bus Company to bring 39 electric buses to Harrogate and Knaresborough.

Mr Jones added:

“The bottom line is that the new electric buses are very popular, and the customer response has been excellent.

“I have checked this with the bus company and with passengers. People like the ride quality and the quietness, alongside the fact that the vehicles are bright, airy and pleasant to be in. They are obviously also emission free, which is highly popular.”

Mites will be released into Rossett Nature Reserve in Harrogate in a bid to tackle the growth of an invasive species of water weed.

The crassula mites attack Crassula helmsii — also known as New Zealand pygmyweed — an invasive non-native species which is causing problems for the wastewater network.

It grows on the arms of filter beds, stopping them functioning properly, and can become dominant in wetland areas which then poses a threat to the breeding habits of native species, including the protected great crested newts.

The release of the mites is a joint trial project between Yorkshire Water, Harrogate Borough Council, the Centre of Agriculture and Bioscience International and Yorkshire Wildlife Trust.

Dr Steph Bradbeer, invasive species and biosecurity advisor at Yorkshire Water, said:

“Invasive non-native species pose a very real risk to Yorkshire’s environment and wildlife. They can also impact on our ability to treat and distribute water to homes and return wastewater safely to the environment.

“Crassula is one such species and we hope this trial will provide an environmentally friendly way of tackling it in the environment and at our wastewater treatment works.”

Read more:

• Water voles thriving in new Nidderdale home
• Yorkshire Water urges caution around reservoirs over Bank Holiday

The mites have been quarantined and tested extensively to ensure they will only tackle Crassula helmsii and will not attack other species of Crassula, such as stonecrops, which are attractive plants that brighten up stone surfaces in the summer.

The announcement of the trial coincides with Invasive Non-native Species Week, which began on Monday and aims to raise awareness of and prevent the spread of invasive plants.

Invasive non-native species not only impact on the environment, but also have a large economic impact, costing the UK economy an estimated £1.8 billion per year.

Councillor Andy Paraskos, Harrogate Borough Council’s cabinet member for environment, waste reduction and recycling, said:

“This is a new approach for us in the Harrogate district and we welcome this opportunity to work with Yorkshire Water and Yorkshire Wildlife Trust – and of course the Crassula mites – to use a practical solution to help tackle this non-native weed at Rossett Nature Reserve.”