The number of coronavirus patients at Harrogate District Hospital has tripled in the last week, a media briefing heard this morning.

Amanda Bloor, accountable officer at NHS North Yorkshire Clinical Commissioning Group, told North Yorkshire Local Resilience Forum the hospital was treating nine patients compared with three seven days ago.

However, the number remains well below the 67 patients the hospital was treating at the height of the second wave in February.

Ms Bloor added the increase has been mirrored across the county:

“Unfortunately the number of patients does continue to rise. As of yesterday, there were 136 patients across our hospitals in North Yorkshire and York.

“This is up from a figure of 112 this time last week – and 16 of those 136 patients are in intensive care.

“If the number of patients with covid does continue to rise, it could have an impact on our hospitals’ ability to carry out planned procedures.

“We are not seeing that significantly at the moment but we do just need to keep an eye on those numbers.”

A breakdown of the figures shows there are nine patients in both Harrogate and Scarborough hospitals, 26 in York and 92 in South Tees.

Read more:

• Harrogate district charities receive £45,000 from Local Fund
• Harrogate district records 31 covid cases as rate drops dramatically

There has not been a covid-related death at the Harrogate hospital in more than three months.

This is due to high levels of vaccine uptake but Ms Bloor said there was still work to do to ensure more people are protected, particularly the younger population.

She said: “The vaccination programme is now open to all age cohorts and is particularly focusing on the younger cohorts.

“With the easing of restrictions from July 19, it is potentially understandable that younger people may feel there is now no advantage of getting vaccinated but we are seeing some younger people in hospital with covid who are actually quite poorly.

“I would continue to urge everyone to come forward for their vaccination – it is the best method of protection.”

Infection rates falling

It comes as Harrogate’s weekly infection rate continues to fall. The rate reached a record high of 534 cases per 100,000 people on July 18 and now stands at 348.

Health officials believe the drop in cases across the country could be down to schools closing for the summer holidays and people meeting up outdoors due to the recent sunny weather.

What they have said for certain though is that the number of people being admitted to hospital with covid needs to start falling as well to show that the virus is really in decline.

Dr Victoria Turner, public health consultant at North Yorkshire County Council, said:

“The number of people in local hospitals with Covid over the last week has continued to increase, however, we do know that hospitalisation data does tend to lag a bit.

“If that starts to go down too, then we can start to be a bit happier that the decline in cases we are seeing at the moment is a real one.”

There was Olympic disappointment for Jack Laugher and his diving partner Daniel Goodfellow in Tokyo this morning as they finished out of the medals in seventh place.

Laugher, who was born and bred in the Ripon area, still has the opportunity of adding to the gold and silver medals he won in Rio when he competes in next week’s individual three-metre springboard event.

His mother Jackie, who watched with her husband, David, at their Littlethorpe home, told the Stray Ferret:

“From the start it didn’t look like it was going to be their day, but they are a relatively new team.

“I’m immensely proud of Jack, he’s a wonderful son, great sportsman and role model, but above all he’s a lovely person who will always call Littlethorpe his home.”

Jack Laugher (left) and Daniel Goodfellow making their opening dive

Family friend Helen Mackenzie, who was in Rio with Jackie to see Jack’s gold and silver medal performances in 2016, said:

“It is testimony to their determination and mental toughness that, following five below par dives, he and Daniel achieved their best score in the final one which, with a tariff of 3.9, is  the world’s most difficult dive.

“This bodes well for next week, when Jack takes part in the individual event.”

Read more:

• Ripon ready to rock
• City council wants to keep its hands on Ripon assets

Gemma Williams, who like Jackie and Helen is a member of Ripon City Netball Club, said:

“I love and feel pride by proxy, seeing Jack and Dan compete – not the result they would want, but still an amazing achievement.”

Leanne Jalland, chair of Harrogate District Diving Club, where Jack used to train, also spoke of its pride in the pair despite today’s outcome.

“It was a high standard competition but unfortunately it was not their day today. That’s diving as a sport for you, anything can happen and it all comes down to the dives on the day.

“That last dive showed a glimpse of what they are capable of and we are confident that both Jack and Dan have got the strength of character to come back stronger from this.”

The Harrogate district’s historical buildings, churches and graveyards will open to the public for free again in September as part of a national scheme to encourage people to explore history on their doorstep.

Heritage Open Days, which is billed as England’s largest festival of history and culture, will run from September 10 to 19.

Harrogate Civic Society and the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, which maintains Stonefall cemetery, are among those leading the initiative locally.

The civic society has arranged for numerous churches and other landmarks to open for free guided tours. The Gothic revival chapel at Rudding Park, built in 1874, will be included for the first time.

Another new feature this year will be walking tours around places such as Valley Drive and the civic centre. The civic society has organised these in case covid restrictions are in place.

Free guided tours of the Commonwealth War Graves at Stonefall cemetery will also be available.

The civic society will release the full Heritage Open Days programme in the weeks ahead.

Read more:

• Malcolm Neesam History: Harrogate’s gas-powered buses
• Malcolm Neesam History: Bring the Harrogate Park Drag back home

A controversial plan to build 217 homes on Kingsley Drive in Harrogate has been recommended for refusal.

Harrogate Borough Council‘s planning committee will make a decision on Tuesday next week. But council officers have recommended the scheme be rejected.

The council received 388 objections to the scheme and no responses in favour.

The current application, submitted by Persimmon Homes, has seen the number of properties planned on the site reduced from 244 to 217.

The Kingsley ward area will eventually see more than 600 homes built, including developments at Granby Farm and 149 homes on Kingsley Road.

However, residents have raised a number of concerns over Persimmon’s plan, including overdevelopment and traffic congestion.

Officer concerns

Council officers have recommended that councillors on the committee reject the application next week.

Although the site is allocated for housing under the council’s Harrogate district Local Plan 2014-35, which outlines development in the district until 2035, officers have concerns about overdevelopment and inadequate information on surface water drainage and noise.

Read more:

• New housing contributing to ‘nightmare’ traffic on Knaresborough Road
• Government overturns council decision to refuse 149 homes in Harrogate
• Harrogate residents: ‘Act before someone is killed’

Under the plans, a total of 86 homes would be allocated as affordable housing with the rest being market value homes.

It would see a mixture of one, two, three and four-bedroom homes built.

But an officer report due before councillors says:

“Although overall [the plan] would contribute towards maintaining housing supply within the district, the density of the development and its scale and layout would result in overdevelopment of the site.

“The quantum of dwellings, their resultant layout, extent of frontage parking, private drives and lack of adequate cycle parking along with inappropriate drainage arrangements, inadequate air quality and noise assessments and lack of a number of documents are such that the proposal is clearly contrary to the terms of the development plan.”

The council added that the planned number of homes for the site was 173. The current application, when combined with the nearby Stonebridge Homes development, would see a total of 313 houses built if it was approved.

In a planning statement submitted to the council last month, Persimmon Homes said it had sought to address the authority’s concerns and had completed a “comprehensive re-assessment of the scheme”.

It said of the reduction to 217 homes:

“These changes were necessary to accommodate the level of open space, landscaping and space between dwellings so as to create an effective and coherent urban realm.”

“Nightmare” development

One of the residents who objected to the development was John Hansard, of the Kingsley Ward Action Group.

In a letter to the borough council, Mr Hansard said the area would not be able to cope with another development.

He said:

“We now find ourselves faced with the nightmare of a possible fifth development of another 217 houses from Persimmon. 

“This, in an area which simply does not have the infrastructure, road network, amenities, schools to cope with at least another possible 1,000 extra residents and another possible 500 cars. We have had enough and wish this urban sprawl to stop.”

Another resident, Anthony Buck, told the council that the development would “take away our last remaining open space”.

Sarah Knapper, a resident of Kingsley Park, said:

“This area of Harrogate has already been grossly overdeveloped. 

“This has led to a huge increase traffic and pollution. It has led to a loss of habitat for wildlife and reduction in the quality of life for local residents. The local road infrastructure is already overwhelmed.”

Traffic congestion

Hundreds of residents raised concerns that traffic caused by the development would lead to problems.

They said that the Kingsley area does not have the infrastructure to cope with more cars and that another development would cause congestion issues on nearby Knaresborough Road.

A lorry collided with a car in the Kingsley area this year. There are also concerns about the volume of traffic.

In May, residents called for urgent road safety action after a lorry hit a car in the area.

In an email to the county council, residents said they had “repeatedly” said Kingsley Road was not suitable for construction traffic.

They also objected to a one-way system proposed by developers Persimmon, which would stop traffic entering Kingsley Drive or Wreaks Road from Kingsley Road.

Mr Hansard added in his letter of objection:

“The road network is not capable of supporting the extra number of vehicles likely to impinge on our daily life.”

Puss the cat, who escaped from the Great Yorkshire Show after sneaking into a Scottish farmer’s sheep trailer, was reunited with her tearful and relieved owners this morning.

Farmer David Mitchell and his wife Annette drove 200 miles from East Ayrshire to collect the intrepid moggy who they feared was lost forever.

Mr Mitchell arrived at the showground on Wednesday last week to show sheep. When he opened the trailer, Puss bolted and disappeared. He then had to return to Scotland to tend to his farm.

When news broke that the cat was missing, The Stray Ferret appealed for information to find Puss.

David’s wife Annette even came back to Harrogate last week to look for her but had no success.

Read more:

• Harrogate district cat owners ‘heartbroken’ after deaths linked to food

• Cat from Scotland hitches a ride to Great Yorkshire Show and goes missing

Puss found refuge, and food, at a house in the Crimple Valley a few days ago. The cuddly and friendly feline was well looked after during her Harrogate sojourn,

The Mitchells drove south this morning to collect Puss, who was purring on the lap of Helen McCallum, a volunteer at Harrogate Cat Rescue.

When the couple arrived, there were tears and thanks to the people of Harrogate for looking after their treasured family pet.

Ms Mitchell said:

“It’s just amazing, so it is. It’s a great team of folk down here looking out for other people’s animals.”

A vegan restaurant chain with three sites in Manchester is set to open a fourth site in Harrogate.

Vertigo, which describes itself as a plant-based eatery, has started to fit out the former Stevie’s Bar unit under the Everyman Cinema on Station Parade.

It is unclear exactly when the restaurant will open but the company has said it will be “very soon”.

Although many restaurants have vegan options in Harrogate, it is believed this will be the only dedicated vegan restaurant in town.

Read more:

• Vandals may force Harrogate shop to remove iconic bears
• Harrogate’s first Lidl set to be given go-ahead

The new venue will have 55 seats and be open for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Other Vertigo restaurants serve burgers, bao buns, jackfruit and blackbeen chilli, sweet potato dhal, falafel bowls and more.

The Harrogate menu will also include coffee, cakes and natural wines.

A Harrogate children’s clothing shop may be forced to remove its iconic bears after they became the target of vandals.

Milk and Honey of Harrogate, on Cheltenham Parade, has displayed the bears outside for five years but in the last couple of months they have suffered a lot of damage.

Sarah Elizabeth Wood, the shop manager, takes in the smaller bears overnight and locks the largest bear with a chain locked but even this is not enough to deter troublemakers.

Following the latest attack, which happened just after 3am on Sunday morning, Mrs Wood is considering whether the bears should remain.

CCTV footage from the night showed three people, believed to be teenage boys, attack the bear with a stick before pulling it to the floor and jumping on it.

Read more:

• North Yorkshire highways boss ‘confident’ in bid for £1.5m active travel projects
• Harrogate Cricket Club cruises to Addison Cup triumph in Knaresborough

Mrs Wood told the Stray Ferret:

“I do think the red carpet and the bears help us get customers because it makes us stand out.

“Everyone who walks past at least comments on the bears or takes a photo with them. So it would just be really sad if we have to take them away.

“I don’t think the bears can take anymore. One more weekend of them being ravaged like that and they will have to go.”

Mrs Wood has tried to repair the broken feet and ears of the bears but she fears that if they are damaged again they may become unstable and fall on people.

She put out a post on Facebook yesterday evening warning that the bears days may be numbered.

The post has had hundreds of reactions, with many people sharing stories of their time with the bears.

Ripon’s Jack Laugher goes for gold at the Olympics tomorrow — but the diving boards at the Harrogate Hydro pool where he used to train have been out of use for eight months.

Laugher began his career with Harrogate District Diving Club, as did Oliver Dingley, who represents Ireland in the Olympic diving tomorrow.

The top club has seen an increase in the number of young people interested in taking up the sport since the Tokyo games began.

But the diving boards at the Hydro, which is owed by Harrogate Borough Council, have been out of action since November last year after cracks were found in the concrete supports.

It means local young divers who aspire to be the next Jack Laugher are having to make do with a mobile one-metre board or travel to another pool in West Yorkshire.

Families have expressed frustration at the apparent lack of urgency to resolve the matter.

Today Richard Cooper, the Conservative leader of Harrogate Borough Council, which owns the Hydro, described the situation as “concerning” and called for a report to be produced within weeks.

In an article on the Community News website run by Andrew Jones, the Conservative MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough, Cllr Cooper said:

“This is very concerning and I am hoping to see a further detailed report within the next few weeks with recommendations as to how we can move forward.

“Clearly the safety of customers is paramount and the boards cannot be opened until they are made safe.”

Read more:

• Here’s when our local athletes are competing in the Olympics
• Harrogate’s diving talent ready to represent their country at the Olympics

The Stray Ferret asked the council for an update on when the boards will be repaired.

A council spokesperson said there had been no update since its previous statement this month, which said:

“Unfortunately, during a routine inspection of the diving board platform at The Hydro in Harrogate, cracks in the concrete were discovered.

“A further independent survey was carried out to establish the stability, integrity and durability of the diving structure.

“Results show that the diving platform should not be used until work has been carried out.

“We are exploring possible options and will have an update in due course.”

A plan to open Harrogate’s first Lidl supermarket looks set to be given the green light.

Harrogate Borough Council officers have recommended the proposal for Knaresborough Road is approved at a planning committee meeting on Tuesday next week.

If councillors ratify this, it would pave the way for the store to be built on the former Lookers car dealership site.

The multi-million pound proposal includes a 1,263 square metre sales area, an in-store bakery, customer toilets and 94 parking spaces.

It would open from 8am to 10pm Monday to Saturday and 10am to 4pm on Sunday.

Read more:

• Bid to open Lidl in Ripon wins support of city council
• Lidl submits plan for new Ripon store

Lidl has also submitted plans for a new store in Ripon.

The German supermarket chain has lodged proposals for a store at St Michael’s Retail Park in the city.

Earlier this month, the application won the support of Ripon City Council.

Cllr Andrew Williams, leader of the city council, said:

“It will bring 40 new jobs, increase choice for Ripon’s residents and also serve our growing population, with the new homes that we have coming on stream.”