District residents will be able to get vaccinated without appointments at a number of pop-up coronavirus clinics this weekend.

The clinics will open in Harrogate, Knaresborough and Pateley Bridge tomorrow and Sunday, and are part of a final push to get younger people vaccinated.

First and second doses will be offered to anyone aged over 18, while any care workers and those aged over 50 who have not yet taken up the opportunity to get vaccinated are also being urged to come forward.

The Wesley Centre on Oxford Street, Harrogate will offer first doses of the Pfizer vaccine on Saturday between 10am to 4pm.

In Knaresborough, the Homecare Pharmacy Vaccination Centre at the former Lidl site on York Road will offer first doses of the Moderna jab on Saturday and Sunday between 9am and 5pm.

And in Pateley Bridge, both first and second doses of the Pfizer vaccine will be available at Bishopside and Bewerley Memorial Hall on Park Road on Saturday between 8am and 5.50pm.

Read more:

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Sue Peckitt, chief nurse at NHS North Yorkshire Clinical Commissioning Group, said:

“These walk-in clinics are aimed at those people who have not taken up the opportunity to book their vaccine via the NHS National Booking Service or NHS 119.”

Driven by the faster-spreading Delta variant, Harrogate’s weekly infection rate is approaching record levels with a current average of 416 cases per 100,000 people.

The highest rate on record was 497 at the beginning of January.

The rise in infections has been followed by a slight increase in hospital admissions with five patients in Harrogate on Wednesday, although the hospital has not recorded a Covid-related death in more than three months.

Louise Wallace, director of public health for North Yorkshire, said this was down to vaccines weakening the link between infections and serious illness, as she also urged people to make use of the pop-up clinics this weekend.

She said:

“Vaccination is the most effective way to reduce the risk of developing serious or life-threatening symptoms from coronavirus, as well as protecting others in the community.

“The vaccination programme in this country has been a huge success and the numbers of people becoming seriously ill, or dying, as a result of contracting the disease have fallen dramatically.

Hospitality bosses in Harrogate have said they are worried after staff are being forced to self-isolate due to rising covid cases.

Increasing covid rates in the district and across the country have seen thousands of people pinged by the NHS Test and Trace app just days before remaining lockdown measures are lifted.

Currently, the district’s seven-day covid rate stands at 416 cases per 100,000 people and infections have soared with 127 reported yesterday – the highest since January 11.

In Harrogate, hotels and restaurants have had to either close temporarily or offer a limited service as a result of staff being told to self-isolate.

Neil Mendoza, general manager at The Studley Hotel and Orchid Restaurant, told the Stray Ferret that the current situation made it “twice as hard” to operate.

He said:

“It is indeed a difficult time for our industry as with others. On top of current staffing shortage, this self-isolating and quarantining make it even twice as hard for us to operate.

“We are very worried with the current situation of cases going high and I am personally concerned that it might be a repeat of August 2020 when the government encouraged everyone to eat out.”

Mr Mendoza added that staff would continue to wear face masks and social distance in the hotel and restaurant after July 19 when restrictions are lifted.

Read more:

• Vaccine passports for nightclubs ‘impractical’, says Viper Rooms boss
• Sneak peek: The return of Ripon’s department store

Across England, 520,194 alerts were sent to NHS Covid-19 app users up to July 7 telling them they had been in close contact with someone who had tested positive for coronavirus and to self-isolate.

But, the rules on 10-day self-isolation for those who have received two jabs and people aged under 18 will not end until August 16.

Meanwhile, William and Victoria Restaurant in Harrogate has had to close temporarily due to staff being told to self-isolate.

Some of our team have been instructed to self isolate after coming into contact with a positive Covid-19 case. Rather than take unnecessary risk and continue without a full operational team, we have made the decision to close for a few days.

— William & Victoria (@Will_and_Vics) July 15, 2021

In a post on its social media yesterday, the restaurant said it did not want to “take unnecessary risk and continue without a full operational team”.

Instead, it will reopen on Tuesday July 20.

Elsewhere in the town, Baltzersen’s cafe on Oxford Street posted on Facebook and Twitter that it would be operating a limited service due to staff being forced to self-isolate.

WE'RE SORRY
One of our team has had a positive lateral flow test and so much of the team need to isolate.

WE ARE STILL OPEN with limited service (Paul has dusted off his apron!) & outside only, serving from the coffee shop window.

Please bear with us – safety of all is priority pic.twitter.com/jHJnMQQkZw

— Baltzersen's (@Baltzersens) July 16, 2021

The government has approved a controversial Starbucks drive-thru on Wetherby Road in Harrogate.

Planning inspector Helen Hockenhull gave the go-ahead for the development after an appeal by the developer Euro Garages Ltd.

The move comes despite fierce opposition from local residents, who warned that traffic on the road was already at “breaking point” and that such a development would adversely affect those who live next door.

Residents were forced to defend Harrogate Borough Council’s own reasons for refusal at the appeal hearing in June after the authority withdrew its objection.

Read more:

• Wetherby Road Starbucks drive-thru plan to go to appeal
• Harrogate councillors cave in over Starbucks drive-thru plans
• Controversial Wetherby Road Starbucks would ‘change our lives’, say residents

Among the concerns were highways safety, air quality and living conditions for those in neighbouring properties.

But Ms Hockenhull said in a decision notice that was published today:

“I recognise that my findings will be disappointing to the local residents and ward councillor who gave evidence at the hearing. 

“However, based on the technical evidence before me and all that I have seen and heard, with the proposed mitigation measures secured by planning conditions, I am not persuaded that the development would cause significant harm.”

Retail firm Euro Garages has spent almost a decade trying to win permission to open the coffee shop at the former 1st Dental surgery on Wetherby Road, Harrogate, but has been refused three times by councillors and once by a government inspector.

The approval means the former dental surgery will be demolished to make way for a drive-thru coffee shop with 19 car parking spaces. This would then be handed over to Starbucks to operate.

The Stray Ferret has approached Euro Garages for comment.

Two Harrogate district companies have paid tribute to Captain Sir Tom Moore at a newly unveiled memorial.

Horticultural services provider Ray Skelton (Harrogate) and Johnsons of Whixley, a nursery, both sponsored the walkway, which was opened at the Army Foundation College in Harrogate this month.

Captain Sir Tom’s daughter Hannah Ingram-Moore, her husband and children, visited the college on Pennypot Lane to cut a ribbon and unveil a plaque that includes details of his life.

Ray Skelton (Harrogate) commissioned Kris Elvidge, a local stone mason, to engrave the stones that can be found at the front and back of the college headquarters.

Meanwhile, Johnsons donated two Magnolia ‘Double Diamond’ 200-250 110L trees and 50 Hydrangea arborescens ‘Annabelle’ worth a total of £765 to the memorial.

Read more:

• Trees planted to honour Captain Tom at Harrogate’s army college

• Harrogate pupils plant roses in memory of Captain Tom

• Captain Tom memorial walkway opens at Army Foundation College

Stuart Skelton, director of Ray Skelton (Harrogate), said: 

“It has been an honour and a privilege to be involved in the Capt Sir Tom Moore Memorial. Hopefully, this will continue to inspire future generations of junior soldiers”

Eleanor Richardson, Johnsons of Whixley’s marketing manager, said: 

“We were delighted to be part of this fitting tribute to Capt Sir Tom Moore, who was a true inspiration. 

“The donation is particularly fitting as the magnolia is native to Asia, where he served during World War Two.”

Captain Sir Tom was made an honorary colonel of the Army Foundation College in Harrogate last year.

He later visited the college to speak to junior soldiers and was invited back for their graduation in September.

He raised almost £33m for NHS Charities Together by walking lengths of his garden in Bedfordshire, hitting the headlines in the process. He died aged 100 in February this year.

Police told a court yesterday there had been “extensive difficulties” at two homes in Starbeck due to drugs and anti-social behaviour.

North Yorkshire Police and Harrogate Borough Council jointly applied to Leeds Magistrates Court for closure orders on 19 and 31 Avenue Grove, Starbeck.

The court granted three-month partial closure orders on the properties, let by landlord John Willis, which means only Mr Willis and one person at each property can enter the premises until midnight on October 12.

Mr Willis was in court for the hearing.

Simon Mallett, a barrister acting for North Yorkshire Police, told the court there had been “a considerable amount of disorder in Avenue Grove” and drugs had been found in the two properties.

He added:

“There have been extensive difficulties arising from people in the properties or visiting the properties.

“We have received a very considerable number of complaints from residents about anti-social behaviour and drug use emanating from both properties.”

The court heard that all the tenants had left the properties except the two men allowed to stay.

Read more:

• Police and council bid to close two Starbeck houses over crime
• Mayfield Grove: house at centre of crime concerns allowed to re-open

Julia Stack, community safety and CCTV manager at Harrogate Borough Council, said in a statement afterwards:

“This outcome should act as a reminder that we will not tolerate this type of anti-social behaviour.

“I want to reassure local residents that we will continue to monitor the situation and take further action if necessary.

Inspector Nicola Colbourne of North Yorkshire Police said in a statement afterwards:

“This action once again demonstrates our commitment to ensuring Harrogate remains one of the safest towns to live in.”

North Yorkshire Police and Harrogate Borough Council successfully applied for a three-month closure order on 38 Mayfield Grove, Harrogate, another property let by Mr Willis, in March. This order expired last month.

A man bit a police officer during a disturbance at Harrogate railway station that was so severe an armed response unit had to be sent out.

Thomas Spedding, 33, sunk his teeth into the officer’s arm after the victim, who was off duty, spotted what appeared to be a “family dispute”, York Crown Court heard.

Prosecutor Charles Blatchford said the victim tried to break up the disturbance and told Spedding he was a police officer.

During the ensuing struggle on the station platform, the off-duty constable was bitten on the forearm which broke the skin, leaving an 8cm mark and bruising.

The train guard tried to intervene, but it needed armed-response officers to subdue Spedding, who had serious mental-health problems and a record for attacking police vehicles.

Read more:

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The victim, who was named in court but we have chosen not to reveal his identity, was taken to Harrogate District Hospital for blood tests and precautionary vaccinations and had to be monitored for 24 weeks to ensure there was no infection.

Spedding, of no fixed abode, was arrested and charged with assaulting an emergency worker following the incident on March 1, 2019. 

26 offences to police vehicles

He was bailed pending further enquiries but four months later he was arrested again for 26 offences of damaging police vehicles, which resulted in a 10-month jail sentence in August 2019. 

Such was his mental state that after Spedding completed that sentence he remained in custody for the following two years while he received help for his mental health and psychiatrists assessed his fitness to face court proceedings on the assault charge. 

A trial of the facts had to be held in Spedding’s absence, which found that he did the act alleged and on Thursday he pleaded guilty to the offence after psychiatrists judged him fit to face the court following a vast improvement in his mental health during his time in prison.

Read more:

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Mr Blatchford said the off-duty officer had just been on a course and was returning to Harrogate on the train when the disturbance occurred at the station. 

The court heard that Spedding’s two previous convictions for 26 offences all related to just two incidents of damaging property in June and July 2019.

Mental disorder

Timothy Jacobs, for Spedding, said his client had effectively been on custodial remand for two years and that his mental-health issues had “caused considerable concern in the past”.

He added:

“He is now responding to treatment and voluntarily co-operating with those who are trying to help him.”

Judge Simon Hickey said the off-duty officer would have felt “extreme concern” about the risk of infection following the bite to his arm.

He told Spedding: 

“Ordinarily, this would have been an immediate custodial sentence (but) you were labouring under a mental disorder at the time.

“You have served well over that sentence (already) and society is best served, and you are best served, by rehabilitation.”

Imposing a two-year community order, the judge said Spedding had made “great strides” in his rehabilitation while in prison.

The order includes a nine-month drug-rehabilitation programme and intervention by a community mental-health team.  

Police are investigating a burglary in which an 18-carat gold, sapphire, emerald and diamond ring along with World War Two medals were stolen from a Harrogate home.

North Yorkshire Police said the valuables, as well as a silver hip flask, a gold locket and silver fern earrings were taken from a house on Woodlands Drive on May 29 this year.

Almost two months on, it is now appealing to the public to come forward if they have been offered the ring for sale.

Read more:

• Harrogate ‘Walter Mitty’ character jailed for stealing thousands from 94-year-old father
• Bishop speaks out after more vandalism in Ripon

Officers are also appealing for information on a man seen leaving the house.

A police statement said:

“Officers also want to trace a man seen leaving the house who is described as young, white, approximately 5ft 7in and wearing a high-visibility jacket with a grey hood.

“Anyone who has information about the ring or has any other information is asked to contact North Yorkshire Police by email 000740@northyorkshire.police.uk

“If you wish to remain anonymous, you can pass information to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Please quote the North Yorkshire Police reference number 12210127985.”

More roadworks are coming to Harrogate after Yorkshire Water announced it will carry out essential work on Jenny Field Drive next month.

The work will begin on August 2 and last until the 29th — the day before the August bank holiday Monday.

Delays are likely as the company carries out work to construct new pipework.

A short diversion will be in place on the area of Jenny Field Drive, close to the playground, to allow engineers to complete the project.

The full extent of the road closures isn’t yet known.

A Yorkshire Water spokesperson said:

“We are making investments in the local water network to ensure that we can continue to provide high quality drinking water to our customers.

“In order to carry out the work, we will need to temporarily close part of Jenny Field Drive to ensure that our contractors can work safely.”

Read more:

• Local campaigners have urged the county council to look at the benefits of 20mph limits
• County council looks set to bid for more funding to develop cycling and walking projects

The Stray Ferret is running a live blog of the Great Yorkshire Show brought to you by Lister Haigh. We will keep updating this page with stories from the showground throughout the event. 

The second day of the Great Yorkshire Show saw another day of glorious weather. Here’s a look at the highlights.

George Eustice MP arrived this morning as secretary of state for environment, food and rural affairs to answer your questions. Read what he had to say below.

This year’s show will run for an extended period until Friday. It will mean that the maximum capacity of 26,000 a day can spread out for social distancing.

Visitors are encouraged to take a lateral flow test before they arrive to prevent the spread of the virus.

4.45pm – A proposal to remember

It was a special day for Ben Atkinson and Georgia Jackson today in the main ring as Ben proposed to his girlfriend.

Ben popped the question following today’s performance by Atkinson Action Horses.

https://twitter.com/greatyorkshow/status/1415312848792825861?s=20

4.22pm – Plenty of horsing around at this year’s show

This afternoon saw show jumping horses presented for visitors at this year’s show.

4pm – The people trying to keep a 2,000-year-old tradition alive

The Dry Stone Walling Association was at the Show today. The wallers passion for the skill was clear to see.

Watch our interview with waller Brian Hartley.

1.40pm – George Eustice MP answers your questions

George Eustice MP visited the Great Yorkshire Show today and took out time to answer questions at a press briefing. The secretary of state for environment, food and rural affairs said:

“I do think the government is doing enough on climate change. We are working on some plans about how we can achieve net zero and obviously agriculture has a role to play in that.

“There are a number of interesting technologies such as new feed additives that can cut methane gases from livestock by about 30%.

“We were the first country to set a legally binding target of achieving net zero by 2050 and a number of other countries are following us.

We asked local farmers what they would like to ask the cabinet minister earlier today. Their main concern was the impact of setting aside land for eco-friendly projects on those with a small amount of land. He said:

“The key thing is, while farmers have always been the recipients of the so-called area-based subsidy, they have not been the only beneficiary or even the main beneficiary.

“Once we start to unravel that we will see a number of those things come back into order. What we want to do alongside that is make sure there is a profit margin in what we pay farmers to do for the environment.

“We have increased the payment rates by about 30% on what the old EU payments were. For the work we want farmers to do for the environment, we are going to pay to more generously than anyone before.”

1.20pm – Pigeons show off their good side for the camera

It’s not just farm animals at the Great Yorkshire Show, over 350 colourful and distinctive pigeons are on display. These include …

Modena pigeon

Indian faint tail pigeon

Old Dutch Capuchine pigeon

12.40pm – Hats for a hot day at the show

For £10 you can pick up a proper Yorkshire hat. There are lots of visitors looking very dapper wearing them across the site.

Do you fancy trying on a Yorkshire Show Hat?

10.15am – What is the weather going to be like for the rest of the show?

After a couple of weeks of unsettled weather the sun is set to shine down on the rest of the Great Yorkshire Show.

The Met Office has predicted both today and tomorrow will be partly cloudy with temperatures reaching highs of 23 degrees and 20 degrees respectively.

Friday is set to be the hottest day of the show. Forecasters have predicted clear skies with the temperature hitting a high of 25 degrees.

The pollen count is also set to be very high in Harrogate today and on Friday and high on Thursday.

9.30am – Photo gallery from morning of day two at Great Yorkshire Show

8.40am – Send in your questions for cabinet minister George Eustice

George Eustice MP is expected to visit the Great Yorkshire Show today. The Stray Ferret will send down a reporter to ask him your questions.

Are you a farmer from the Harrogate district? Then send in your questions for the cabinet minister by clicking or tapping here.

George Eustice MP, Secretary of State for Environment.

Harrogate weightlifter Jack Dobson has become British champion and put himself in pole position for a place at next year’s Commonwealth Games.

Jack, 27, who went to Starbeck Primary Academy and Harrogate High School, achieved a 310kg total at the British Weightlifting Championships in Twickenham, London — 15 kg more than the runner-up.

It means he is currently British Weightlifting’s top pick for the England men’s 96 kg class at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham but there are two more qualifying events at which rival lifters will have the opportunity to better his total and win selection.

In his first competition for two years because of covid, Jack hoisted 138 kg in the snatch and 172 kg in the clean and jerk, which are both slightly below his personal bests.

Jack Dobson (centre) winning the British Championships.

He said:

“I wasn’t happy with my performance. Because it was my first competition back, me and my coach decided to be a bit conservative with the totals we aimed for.”

Jack’s ambition is to represent his country internationally. He missed the chance to do so in Georgia in 2018 because of lack of funding. UK Sport does not currently fund weightlifting, which means Jack has to pay for his trips.

To make ends meet, he works as a coach at Black Wolf Fitness in Knaresborough and also works as a personal trainer, sports masseuse and as a staff member of the parks an environmental services department at Harrogate Borough Council. He says:

“It hasn’t been an easy road but you have to take it on the chin and drive on. I just love Olympic weightlifting.”

Read more:

• Injury ends Harrogate man’s Strongest Man dream
• Harrogate teen wins bronze at Para Powerlifting World Cup

Jack sometimes trains with fellow Starbuck man Luke Richardson, who has twice competed at the World’s Strongest Man.

Many people mistake weightlifting for strongman, powerlifting or bodybuilding.

Weightlifting consists of two lifts: snatch and clean and jerk, with the winner achieving the highest overall total. It’s an Olympic sport but only three British athletes — Zoe Smith, Emily Campbell and Sarah Davies — achieved the qualifying standard for this month’s Tokyo Olympics.

Jack invested in some weights at home a few years ago so when gyms closed during covid he was able to improvise at home by adapting some wooden planks into a lifting platform.

Now he hopes the years of hard work will pay off with a place among the sporting elite at Birmingham 2022.