Call to make Valley Gardens colonnade safer after horror fall

A grandmother has called on Harrogate Borough Council to fix uneven paving slabs in Valley Gardens after she fell and suffered a broken arm, busted lip and bruising to her face.

Jane Blayney, who is a former chair of Friends of Valley Gardens and a former district and county councillor, tripped two weeks ago at the entrance of the Sun Colonnade by Cornwall Road.

Ms Blaney lives nearby and was in shock after the incident but a neighbour, who is a doctor at Leeds General Infirmary, took her to Harrogate District Hospital’s emergency department.

She is concerned that many of the elderly residents who live around Valley Gardens may trip and suffer even more serious injuries than she did.

She said:

“I looked like I’d been in a boxing match with Muhammad Ali.

“A lot of older people like me walk in Valley Gardens. For some of them it could have been much worse.”

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Ms Blayney reported the fall to the council, which has put cones and tape around some of the slabs but Ms Blayney thinks they are insufficient. She had hoped it would have done more to make the entrance safe.

With an artisan Christmas market taking place in Valley Gardens this weekend, Ms Blaney wants to see the council fix the slabs to make sure nobody else trips.

The Stray Ferret saw several uneven paving stones up and down the Sun Colonnade when we visited the site today.

Uneven paving slabs at the Sun Colonnade

Ms Blayney added:

“I want safety and I don’t want it to happen to anyone else.”

A council spokesman said:

“We’re sorry to hear Mrs Blayney had a fall in Valley Gardens and we wish her a speedy recovery.

“We plan on repairing the path in the new year when suitable replacement materials become available. Until this time, we have placed cones to warn people to avoid this section.

“We have a programme of works to improve the Sun Colonnades in Valley Gardens, which includes new lighting and steam cleaning the paving. We have also surveyed the whole area and, if required, will be undertaking further works to repair the path.

“Anyone who spots any uneven paving in our parks should get in touch with us so we can carry out any repair work.”

Revealed: route for Harrogate’s free Christmas road train

A free road train will take visitors around Harrogate from Friday, just in time for the two town centre Christmas markets.

The Candy Cane Express will stop at James Street, St Mary’s Walk and Crescent Road. It will also pass Montpellier Hill, Cheltenham Parade, Station Parade and Victoria Avenue.

Face masks are advised on the road train, which will operate from December 3 to 12. Face masks are also advised around both markets.

The train route will take in the sights of the Christmas lights, Christmas shop window displays, Christmas rides and Santa’s postbox.

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It’s all part of the council’s drive to get people into the town centre to support the new fayre and the artisan market in Valley Gardens, which will also stimulate high street businesses.

Excitement has been building since the Christmas rides started in the town centre last month. This week stalls for the Christmas fayre appeared in the town centre.

A map of the Christmas road train.

When are the town centre Christmas markets?

Harrogate Christmas Fayre, which the council is running in partnership with Market Place Europe, will be open between 10am and 7pm Monday to Wednesday, 10am and 9pm Thursday to Saturday, and 10am and 4.30pm on Sunday.

The market will take place on Cambridge Street, Market Place, Station Square and Cambridge Crescent and will provide gifts and mouth-watering treats for people to enjoy as they wander around, taking in the sights and sounds.

Around 50 traders will take part in the fayre.

In addition, Little Bird Made is set to hold a festive artisan market in Harrogate’s Valley Gardens this Saturday and Sunday, with times to be confirmed.

The artisan market will feature approximately 60 local and regional traders and producers who will sell a variety of festive arts and crafts, clothing, homeware, jewellery, as well as food and drink.

Great Yorkshire Showground aiming to give 20,000 booster vaccines

The Great Yorkshire Showground vaccine site in Harrogate is aiming to give 20,000 covid booster jabs in two weeks.

It was revealed yesterday the site would re-open on Monday and that people eligible for booster jabs could now book appointments using the NHS booking service.

The showground clinics are being run by Yorkshire Health Network, an organisation which represents GP practices in the Harrogate district.

The site was scheduled to be open until December 22 but the Stray Ferret understands it could now continue to operate until March as the government bids to speed up the vaccine programme. However, this has yet to be confirmed.

In addition to the showground site, eligible patients can continue to get booster jabs from other locations in the Harrogate district, including Ripon racecourse, Homecare Pharmacy site in Chain Lane, Knaresborough and the Memorial Hall in Pateley Bridge.

Dr Cath Dixon, executive chair and clinical lead of Yorkshire Health Network, said: 

“Firstly, I want to say thank you to the teams at the Yorkshire Event Centre for their stellar support, along with the ranks of vaccinators, clinic staff and volunteers who are incredibly dedicated and help make this all possible.

“I’m delighted we’ve been able to secure this additional capacity to deliver the vaccination programme in the Harrogate district, with a range of options now available for patients.”

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Heather Parry, managing director of Yorkshire Event Centre, added: 

“We are proud to play a part in the drive to ensure the nation stays safe against covid, by supporting the NHS as we have done throughout the pandemic.”

The government announced yesterday that vaccinations will be offered to all adults over-18 and the gap between a second dose and booster would be cut to three months.

However, the NHS is currently still only offering appointments to over-40s. The NHS has advised people to wait to be contacted for booster appointments.

The move comes as 17.8 million booster vaccines have been given nationally, according to government data.

No figures are currently available for the number given in the Harrogate district.

Starbeck mum hoping to grow Solo Mamas support network

A single mother from Starbeck set up a Solo Mamas group seven years ago to meet other mothers who understood how difficult parenting alone can be.

Georgina Newsham felt alone and wanted to create an inclusive, supportive network of likeminded single mothers.

Since then Ms Newsham, who moved to the Harrogate district from West Yorkshire three years ago, has seen the group expand to the point where it now has 155 members in north and west Yorkshire.

The group provides advice and support as well as hosting monthly meetings and annual holidays.

Ms Newsham said:

“Being a single mother can often have a lot of negativity around it and I wanted to turn it into a positive. We started with just three of us meeting once a month at soft-play. Now there’s 155 of us.

“Everything is on you and it can be really draining so having this network has become a lifeline for a lot of us.”

Solo Mamas camping trip to Kettlewell in June this year.

Ms Newsham moved to Knaresborough three years ago but now lives in Starbeck after her relationship broke down. She said the group was “amazing” with offers of spare rooms and help to pay rent.

Following a surprise, large donation Ms Newsham was able to set up a crisis fund to help members who are struggling financially. She said she plans to apply for charitable status next year.

“There’s always someone out there that understands. The focus is for us to support each other through anything.

“Just having that network there, you can’t put it into words how it feels. It’s the difference between being completely alone and knowing you have someone.”

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Ms Newsham runs the group in her spare time alongside working as an adult social worker and an end-of-life doula.

As well as meet-ups and holidays, the group also has a private Facebook group for mums and organises regular workshops. Ms Newsham recently held a workshop with a solicitor to discuss writing a will and advance planning after one member took her own life.

Looking ahead, she wants to grow the membership, organise more meet-ups and maybe even hold a small wellbeing festival.

“I’m really hopeful that going into next year we can build our membership and start being there for more mums and their kids.”

Harrogate district churches urge people to light up their windows for Christmas

Harrogate district churches are urging people to light their windows to spread a message of love and hope at Christmas.

Harrogate Hub, which represents churches across the town, started the initiative, called The Light Shines, last Christmas.

It encourages people to decorate one of their windows and display it during the dark Advent nights, and include the the words ’The Light Shines John 1:5′ somewhere in it.

The displays are plotted onto a Google map and shared online so people can see them as they walk around different neighbourhoods, such as Jennyfields, Oatlands and Bilton. There were also displays in Ripon and Spofforth last year.

The trails will be lit up from December 12 to 19 between 5pm and 8pm.

More than 140 homes took part in the initiative last year.

The Light Shines

Anyone can get involved with #thelightshines by decorating a window or walking a trail. To register visit www.theharrogatehub.org/thelightshines.

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The Revd Alan Garrow, vicar of St Peter’s Church in Harrogate, said:

“In the past couple of years we have been reminded that many of the things we take for granted as permanent and normal are in fact temporary and provisional.

“The Light Shines is about focusing on something that doesn’t change: God calls us home.”

The project was developed by trustees of Harrogate Hub, who are mainly church leaders. They include; Alan Garrow, St Peter’s Church; Ben Askew, Kairos Network Church; Adam Price, Hope Church; Wynn James, Life Destiny Church; Ben Clowes, Nidd Valley Methodist Circuit; Nick Gee, Harrogate Vineyard Church and Michelle Hayes, Resurrected Bites.

 

Harrogate district recycling centres appeal for Christmas toys for kids

Harrogate district residents are being urged to donate toys and games at household waste recycling centres in the run up to Christmas.

The aim is to collect 10 tonnes of items, which will be passed on to young people, aged up to 16, who are experiencing hardship this Christmas.

The Re-use Santa Appeal is working with No Wrong Door, which supports young people in or on the edge of the care system at centres in Harrogate and Scarborough, on the initiative.

No Wrong Door replaces traditional council-run young people’s homes with hubs that combine residential care with fostering.

Staff at the county’s recycling centres, which are operated by Yorwaste on behalf of North Yorkshire County Council and City of York Council, will ensure donations are in good working condition before they are delivered to children.

The gifts will be given as part of a Christmas family bag to families in North Yorkshire and York. Surplus items will be distributed to other charities.

There are three recycling centres in the Harrogate district: on Wetherby Road and Penny Pot Lane in Harrogate and on Dallamires Crescent in Ripon. Drop-off points are located by the containers for household reusable items. Donations will be accepted until December 15.

The sites are also taking donations of new or part-used Christmas wrapping paper and tape as part of the appeal.

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County Councillor Derek Bastiman, executive member for waste management at North Yorkshire County Council, said:

“Christmas is a time of good will. So we’re asking families who can to add a little light to the festive season this year for many children who are less fortunate.

“I encourage people to check their cupboards for any unwanted toys and games and to donate them in the confidence that their items will go to a good home.”

Last Christmas, people donated more than 2,000 games, toys, puzzles and books, including air hockey tables, dolls’ houses, Nerf guns, bicycles and giant teddy bears.

Cllr Paula Widdowson, executive member for environment and climate change at City of York Council, added:

“It’s critical the donations are clean, well-cared for and in full working order. Thank you once again to everyone who supports this appeal.”

Appeal for missing man last seen in Harrogate

Police are appealing for information on a missing man who was last seen in Harrogate.

Danny Love, 38, was reported missing on November 25 and there is concern for his welfare.

Danny, who is from Morley, is described as white, 6ft tall, stocky with brown hair and blue eyes. His left arm is missing from below the elbow.

West Yorkshire Police said his last confirmed sighting was in Harrogate on November 21.

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He was last seen wearing a dark jacket, red t-shirt, black tracksuit bottoms and a black beanie hat.

Police added in a statement:

“Anyone who has seen him or who has any information that could assist in tracing him is asked to contact Leeds South officers via 101 quoting log 889 of November 25 or online via www.westyorkshire.police.uk/101livechat.”

Mayor’s Christmas Carol Concert to go ahead at Royal Hall

The Mayor’s Christmas Carol Concert at Harrogate’s Royal Hall has today been given the green light to go ahead.

The concert is a popular part of the Harrogate district’s festive programme but this year’s event had been in doubt due to covid.

Harrogate Borough Council said a fortnight ago it was “working with public health to determine if and how the event can take place safely given the rising covid rates amongst school-age children who form the choir and orchestra for this event”.

But a council spokesman confirmed today the event, which was cancelled last year due to covid, would take place at 6pm on December 23.

Tickets are free but have to be booked in advance. You can do so here.

Face coverings must be worn.

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Harrogate’s St John Fisher school acquires academy status

St John Fisher Catholic High School in Harrogate has today become an academy.

The school, which has about 1,420 pupils aged 11 to 18, has joined the Bishop Wheeler Catholic Academy Trust, which is based in Menston, West Yorkshire.

The trust has 11 other schools, including St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School and St Robert’s Catholic Primary School in Harrogate and St Mary’s Catholic Primary School in Knaresborough

Academy schools are directly funded by government and have more control than other state schools. They do not have to follow the national curriculum.

St John Fisher school

The trust issued a statement announcing the news.

Headteacher Steve Mort said in the statement:

“The support we have enjoyed over the last year shows how the trust will enable St John Fisher to continue providing an outstanding Catholic education to our children, and I am very pleased that we have already been able to begin reciprocating through our growing partnerships with the trust’s other schools.”

Jane O’Gara, chair of the governing body at St John Fisher, said in the statement:

“We are delighted to be joining our fellow Catholic schools in the Bishop Wheeler Trust and we are looking forward to working closely together with them to continue providing the education our young people deserve”.

The Stray Ferret contacted the school to ask why it had pursued academy status and what it would mean to pupils but nobody at the school was available to respond.

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St John Fisher was graded ‘outstanding’ at its last Ofsted inspection. Many pupils are Catholics but the school educates children of all faiths and none.

It shares an associated sixth form with St Aidan’s Church of England High School, which is itself an academy within the Yorkshire Causeway Schools Trust.

St John Fisher school

The trust, which is named after Bishop William Gordon Wheeler, Bishop of Leeds from 1966 to 1985, has 10 primary schools and two secondary schools serving 4,800 pupils in North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire. It hopes to increase this number to 18 over the next few years.

Diane Gaskin, chair of the trust board, said in the statement:

“The outstanding education that the school provides makes it a great addition to our trust family.”

 

 

 

 

Community groups in the dark about Harrogate Spring Water’s Pinewoods plan

In July, Harrogate Spring Water promised to publish “within weeks” details of a new planning application to expand its bottling plant in the Pinewoods. But as the end of the year approaches, it looks no nearer to being made public.

The company’s pledge followed January’s high-profile refusal to expand the plant, which would have meant destroying public woodland planted by local families in the area of Pinewoods known as Rotary Wood.

To compensate, Harrogate Spring Water offered to replant trees, create scrubland and build a pond on private land behind Harlow Carr Gardens.

But the loss of trees at Rotary Wood provoked a major backlash and councillors on Harrogate Borough Council‘s planning committee voted overwhelmingly to reject it.

Harrogate Spring Water already has outline permission dating back to 2016 to expand its bottling plant, but the company said in July it was working on a completely new application and the old application would be disregarded.

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The company pledged to consult with the community before pursuing a formal planning application to the council.

However, the Stray Ferret has been told that no meaningful talks with community groups have taken place since January’s refusal.

Groups that are still in the dark about what the new application will look like include the Rotary Club, which planted the trees in Rotary Wood, and Pinewoods Conservation Group, a charity that works to preserve the Pinewoods.

A spokesperson for Harrogate Spring Water said:

“Harrogate Spring Water is still in the process of talking to all relevant parties. We will communicate any update as and when it happens.”