Two women from the Harrogate district are to swim the English Channel this weekend for charity.

Andrea Stark, from Harrogate, and Jacqui Hargrave, from Knaresborough, have been open water swimming together for seven years. But this will be the duo’s biggest challenge yet.

They are part of a four-person relay team in which each person will raise money for a different cause. Andrea is raising money for the mental health charity Samaritans. Jacqui is swimming for Harrogate-based Saint Michael’s Hospice, which supported her best friend in her final days.

The swim normally takes 15 hours and the rules state each person can only swim one hour before another member of the team takes over. The team has to tackle currents and find their way around shipping lanes – so the swim could be up to 30 miles long.

The team of four are set to embark on the English Channel Challenge on Friday.

Andrea, a nurse at Harrogate Hospital, said:

“We’re beginning to let ourselves get excited but it’s still all very dependent on the weather. We are definitely ready, we’ve done lots of training and swam at Whitby to get used to the current and the temperature.

“It’s taken us 7 years to build up to this. We love it so much and we prefer the open water and the feeling it gives – you’d be amazed at the positive impact it has on your mental health. Our families have been amazing too. There will be times when our bodies hurt but that’s when we’ll think of those charities and it’ll keep us going.”

To support Andrea, click here.

Jacqui, who writes an open water swimming blog, said:

“I am feeling more confident now, I really want to get it done – we all do! It’ll be invigorating and a challenge for us but we’ve done all the preparation and we’ve planned it all out.

“Under a quarter of people succeed but we are all very determined to accomplish this. Our driver is very experienced and understands the water so we’re in safe hands. It’s just about pushing ourselves against the harsh currents and of course the cold. The charities need their work promoting especially with all the uncertainty.”

To support Jacqui, click here.

Read more:

• An ice cream shop in Knaresborough has raised money for the local charity, Frank’s Fund.
• Former Ashville pupil will attempt to swim the channel this month.

The women are due to enter the water on Friday morning but the weather could postpone it by a few days. Their swim has already been postponed once following lockdown.

Richard Powell, a deputy health centre manager from Chesterfield, and Leanne Davis, a paramedic from Rotherham, make up the rest of the relay team.

Harrogate Town and other football clubs face a “cliff edge scenario” if fans are not allowed back into stadiums for six months, Town’s chairman has warned.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson put plans for fans to return at the start of October on hold today when he announced further restrictions to tackle rising coronavirus infections.

Supporters were due to return to grounds in small numbers, with some Football League clubs trialling 1,000 fans at games last weekend.

Irving Weaver, Town chairman, has said his club and others could experience “severe pain” if their loss of income is not subsidised.

He said:

“Today’s statement by the Prime Minister was not unexpected but if there is a further six months delay before we can allow fans into our stadiums then we are running into a cliff edge scenario.

“From mid-March through a normal close season we were helped by furloughing our employees. Now back into full swing anticipating fans returning, the black hole is upon us. Around thirty percent of a club’s total income is derived through the turnstiles. Without a subsidy the pain will be severe.

“I know that the government are well aware of the situation. Let us hope that there is help on the way, not just for football but for spectator sport in general.”

Read more:

• Harrogate Town’s ground renamed ‘EnviroVent Stadium’

• Harrogate Town sign defender Dan Jones and keeper Melvin Minter

Mr Johnson told MPs it would not be possible for fans to return to stadiums from 1 October. He added:

“I recognise the implications for our sports clubs, which are the life and soul of our communities.

“The Chancellor and the Culture Secretary are working urgently on what we can do now to support them.”

The Prime Minister added the restrictions could remain in place for six months.

Shrewsbury Town were among those to take part in a pilot last weekend with 1,000 supporters present for the first time since March.

Harrogate Town Football Club has closes its player development centre for two weeks following a positive case of coronavirus.

The player development centre works with children aged between four and 15 to offer football coaching and support. The club was told yesterday one of its members had tested positive.

The club has confirmed only the development centre has been affected and its first team’s game against Notts County tonight is unaffected.

In a statement, Harrogate Town, said:

“Yesterday we received formal confirmation that one member of our Player Development Centre has tested positive for Covid-19.

“All players and staff in attendance who may have come into contact with the player have been informed, and appropriate government guidance followed. As a precautionary measure we have decided to close the PDC for 14 days. There have been no other confirmed cases within the PDC or any area of the club.”

Read more:

• The total cases within Harrogate, since March, has now reached 926. 
• Hotel closes after staff test positive for covid. 

Yesterday, a further seven cases of coronavirus were reported in the district.

In the past week, the Stray Ferret has reported five schools in Harrogate have confirmed cases of coronavirus.

Today the Prime Minister announced that indoor team sport would be banned in an attempt to avoid a full lockdown.

Police arrested three people after reports of an altercation involving a group of teenagers in central Harrogate last night.

Officers were called to Montpellier Parade at 7.40pm on Monday, with several vehicles rushing to the scene.

A witness told the Stray Ferret that officers pulled over and made arrests on Beech Grove, near its junction with West Park.

Officers stopped on Beech Grove to deal with reports of an altercation involving a group of teenagers

However, after making enquiries at the scene, police released all three suspects. North Yorkshire Police said this morning that enquiries into the incident are continuing.

Information can be reported to the force by calling 101 and using reference 12200166372.

The NHS Spitfire is due to fly over Harrogate District Hospital at 11.51am this morning.

The aircraft was scheduled to pass over the town last week but its mission was aborted due to bad weather.

With the weather set fair, today’s journey will hopefully go ahead.

The aircraft, which has the words ‘Thank U NHS’ on its undercarriage, has so far raised more than £90,000 from its flypasts for NHS Charities, which is a federation of 250 charities that support the NHS.

Donors can nominate a name to be written on the aircraft’s airframe. There is room for 80,000 names.

Read more:

• Eyes to the skies as spitfire flies over Harrogate hospital
• Mission aborted: No Harrogate hospital NHS Spitfire flypast

The aircraft was due to have left Duxford Airfield in Cambridgeshire at 10am today.

From there it was scheduled to fly over hospitals in Wakefield, Leeds and Bradford before arriving in Harrogate and then head on to York, Northallerton, Darlington and Teesside.

Alcoholics Anonymous in Harrogate has reported a surge in enquiries since lockdown began — and one member has urged local people struggling to overcome addiction to attend a meeting.

Known for its 12-step programme for dealing with addiction, AA meetings provide a safe space to discuss experiences. The only attendance requirement is a desire to stop drinking.

Harrogate, which has long had a reputation as a drinking town, has twice as many AA meetings per capita than York and four times as many as Leeds.

The Harrogate district has 16 weekly AA meetings, including in Knaresborough and Ripon.

In-person meetings recently resumed after taking place for most of the year on Zoom. Public Health England has confirmed that AA meetings are exempt from the government’s “rule of six”.

Michael, which is not his real name, told the Stray Ferret he had been attending meetings for almost two years.

He said alcoholism often went “under the radar” in affluent Harrogate. Many people with problems were often functioning in highly paid and pressurised jobs rather than conforming to the stereotype of being asleep on a park bench, he added.

Read more:

• Coach and Horses alcohol licence revoked

• Pub’s old cupboard becomes new venture in Bilton

Indeed Michael said he made a lot of money during a successful business career but pain inside caused him to drink. He explained:

“To the outside world I had the ideal life. But there was something that wasn’t right inside and my drinking escalated over 20 years.

Michael started rehab for a month in January 2019 and has stayed sober ever since. He credits AA with helping turn his life around.

Public Health England figures published last week revealed there are 8.4 million high risk drinkers in the UK, a figure that has almost doubled since February.

Many people drank alone at home when pubs closed during lockdown. But Michael said self-isolation is not unusual for people in the depths of alcoholism. After socialising with friends at the pub he would regularly carry on drinking at home with a bottle of wine or some beers.

Michael said when he first went to an AA meeting he was surprised it wasn’t all “doom and gloom”.

He added:

“My preconception was they would be depressing environments. It surprises people that you find people laughing and are happy. It’s not doom or gloom, it’s warm, caring and supporting. That can come as a shock to people.”

For a full list of AA meetings in the district visit this website.

This is your chance to tell us what you really think…

The Stray Ferret has launched a major survey on the future of Harrogate town centre.

To get people talking, we went out onto the streets of Harrogate to find out why people visit, how they travel and what problems they think are facing our town. Watch the video to see what they had to say.

Do you agree? Make sure your voice is heard by completing our short survey. Everyone who takes part will be entered into a prize draw for some great free gifts – a Stray Ferret umbrella or a 12 pack of special Stray Ferret beer brewed by Harrogate-based Roosters. Participants must be aged 18 or over.

Click here to have a say on the future of Harrogate. The survey results, which will be published on our website, will help shape future debate.

Read more:

• Is the future of Harrogate town centre more homes, less shopping?
• The Stray Ferret launches a big survey

Bilton Working Men’s Club is filing a claim for loss of earnings caused by the long-running roadworks outside its premises on Skipton Road.

Northern Gas Networks began work replacing metal pipes with plastic pipes beneath the road on 13 July.

Four-way traffic lights in the area have caused tailbacks not only on Skipton Road but also on adjoining King’s Road and Woodfield Road.

Alan Huddart, the club treasurer, said the work had made it more difficult for people to get to the club, which reopened after lockdown on 4 July, and some had assumed it was closed. Mr Huddart added:

“We have received a compensation pack and will be submitting a claim. The roadworks have had a dire impact.

“They’ve probably reduced our takings by 20 per cent.”

The roadworks immediately outside Bilton Working Men’s Club.

Chris Reed, site manager at Northern Gas Networks, said:

“We want to apologise to Bilton Working Men’s Club for any impact that our works have had as the project progresses. We will work with them to resolve any compensation claim.”

Mr Reed said the project had been delayed because the old pipes, some of which were 70 years old, were deeper than the plans indicated.

Read more:

• Coronavirus backlog sees roadworks double in Harrogate district
• Tea shop plans for former tanning salon in Bilton

The roadworks are now expected to finish by the end of November but the worst delays could be over.

Richard White, business operations lead for Northern Gas Networks, said:

“The temporary traffic lights have been removed at the junctions of Skipton Road with Woodfield Road, and of Skipton Road with King’s Road.

“There are two-way traffic lights still in place on Skipton Road, and these are now away from the junction and are near Jewson builders’ merchants. We expect these two-way, and three-way temporary traffic lights at junctions with side roads, to move along Skipton Road as the project progresses.”

With a rise in cases across the district and nationwide tighter restrictions looming, are people feeling concerned? Is another lockdown necessary?

The Stray Ferret has been speaking to people in Harrogate ahead of the Cobra emergency committee meeting on Tuesday morning and a statement from the Prime Minister to the House of Commons later in the day.

It is expected that he will introduce tighter restrictions to try and curb the virus. During Monday’s Downing Street briefing, the government’s chief scientific adviser said that the UK could see 50,000 new cases per day if action was not taken.

Read more:

• Number of covid cases in the Harrogate district rises to 919
• District MPs decline to comment on “broken” covid testing system

Responses in Harrogate were mixed, with some saying they were happy to do whatever was needed to reduce the rise in cases, and others raising concerns about the economy.

So far, cases since the start of the pandemic have reached a total of 919 in the Harrogate district with 19 new infections over the weekend.

Last week, North Yorkshire declared a “major incident” amid an increase in coronavirus cases in the county.

Burglars stole a car from outside a house on Stonebeck Avenue after breaking in and taking the keys in the early hours of Sunday.

It happened between 1.30am and 2.30am, and the car was found abandoned with damage the following day.

A spokesman for North Yorkshire Police said:

“Officers are appealing to anyone who saw or heard any suspicious people or vehicles in the area on Saturday night or Sunday morning, and in particular are appealing to any residents who have CCTV or smart doorbells that might have captured the suspects on camera.”

Anyone with information should call North Yorkshire Police on 1010. select option two, and ask for Mark Nursey, or email mark.nursey@northyorkshire.pnn.police.uk.

To report information anonymously, call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. Quote North Yorkshire Police reference 12200165204.

Read more:

• Police appeal after spate of Harrogate burglaries
• Police arrest man after incident in Harrogate Town centre