A survey of all police forces in England and Wales has revealed motorists in North Yorkshire are the third likeliest to record speeding offences.
The average number of speeding offences in the county is 4.54 per 1,000 residents, according to the research.
Only Lincolnshire, where the rate is 5.43 offences per 1,000 residents, and South Wales, where the figure is 5.23, are above it in the league table of 43 police force areas in England and Wales.
At the other end of the scale, Durham has the fewest speeding offences committed on average each year, with just 0.95 per 1,000 people.
Price comparison website Forbes Advisor compiled the latest speeding offence data from data.police.uk spanning 2010 to 2020 across each police force area in England and Wales to establish an annual average of speeding offences made.
This was cross referenced with population data from ONS to find the areas with the most speeding offences per 1,000 residents.
North Yorkshire was found to have an average of 3,774 speed limit offences per year from a population of 831,600.
Kevin Pratt, from Forbes Advisor, said:
“Get caught speeding and, if convicted, you’ll get points on your licence, and these will likely stick for four years.
“Rack up a total of 12 or more and you could be banned from driving. On top of that, you’ll need to declare your points when applying for or renewing your car insurance, with an increase of around 5% on the cards because you’re now perceived to be a riskier prospect.”
North Yorkshire Police today announced a two-week blitz on speeding motorists.
The constabulary said in a statement traffic officers will be targeting excess and inappropriate speed on county roads “over the next couple of weeks”. It added:
“Twenty-four-hour enforcement activity will take place across the county, with an aim of catching those who put other road users in danger.”
Today marks the start of a three-week nationwide speed enforcement operation, led by the National Police Chiefs’ Council, which represents British chief police officers.
The initiative, which includes National Safe Speed Day on October 19, highlights the risks of speeding and encourages motorists to slow down.
Between January 1 and December 31 last year, there were 85,610 speed violations captured by safety camera vans and safety camera bikes in North Yorkshire.
Expect to see more police speed vans over the next two weeks. Photo by Martin Dawes
The last speed enforcement campaign in January this year resulted in almost 5,200 speeding violations during that month alone.
Traffic Constable Ali Hoyle said:
“These figures show just how much of an issue speeding is here for us in North Yorkshire and this is not a huge surprise as we have a vast road network across the county including hundreds of miles of rural roads.
“The reason why we do these types of deployments is because we are trying to prevent serious collisions on our roads and make them as safe as they can possibly be.
“There are so many dangers associated with excessive speeding, not least because it’s a major cause of fatal road traffic collisions. By slowing down and making sure you drive to the conditions of the road, you have more time to react to other drivers and hazards.
Book collection launched across district to support teenagers’ mental health
Books that support the mental health of teenagers have been put in libraries across the Harrogate district.
The North Yorkshire’s library service initiative coincides with today’s World Mental Health Day.
The pandemic’s disruption to young people’s lives, alongside issues such as growing concern about global warming, has increased uncertainty about identity, position in society and future plans.
In 2020, almost half of young people said they did not feel in control of their lives and almost a third felt overwhelmed by feelings of panic and anxiety on a daily basis, according to North Yorkshire County Council.
The new books, which are recommended by health professionals as part of the Reading Well initiative, cover topics such as body image, bereavement, social anxiety, boosting confidence, surviving online, sexuality, gender identity and mental health.
They cater for a wide range of reading levels and formats to support less confident readers and encourage engagement.
North Yorkshire County Council’s executive member for libraries, Cllr Greg White, said:
“Our libraries have embraced the Reading Well scheme for some years, already focusing on mental health, dementia and issues facing young people.
“This latest collection adds another strand to the support that young people can find at their library, again showcasing their important role in maintaining the health and wellbeing of the communities they serve.”
Every library in North Yorkshire, including Harrogate, Knaresborough, Boroughbridge and Ripon, will be displaying titles from the new collection and any title which is unavailable can be requested and borrowed free of charge.
The Reading Well collection is curated by The Reading Agency in partnership with experts from organisations and professionals including NHS England, leading mental health charities and library staff.
More information about the Reading Well collection can be found here.
‘Theatre on your doorstep’ returns to communities across Harrogate districtA touring theatre company is making its return across the Harrogate district this autumn – and doing so on a scale it has never attempted before.
Badapple Theatre specialises in bringing shows to small venues and usually tours three shows a year, with a break between each.
But a “post-covid lag” has left the company putting on three productions almost at the same time.
Two one-hander shows, Yorkshire Kernel and The Land Girl, complete their tour in Harrogate next weekend, just after The Frozen Roman gets under way in Aldborough on Friday. Meanwhile, rehearsals continue for The Marvellous, Mystical, Musical Box, which runs throughout December.
The busy season aside, artistic director Kate Bramley said the company had managed to keep operating during the pandemic, when many arts organisations struggled.
“We have been very lucky, or perhaps enterprising, or both, over the last few years. We went outdoors when we did some filming, some podcasting, we brought the youth theatre back outdoors and then indoors when we could.
“We really had to think very hard about it. Very early on we had to cancel our big tour. The Arts Council have funded us for a long time, now through our projects and they were amazing with the level of understanding about what was happening.”
Kate Bramley of Badapple Theatre
As restrictions began to be relaxed, Badapple was able to respond quickly and take advantage of any change in regulations. It went from online work to outdoor performances to socially-distanced indoor theatre.
What was less possible was performing in its usual small venues: Badapple specialises in pop-up theatre in “your village hall or aircraft hangar or wherever”.
Now, with all restrictions lifted, its small teams of three actors and a stage manager can get back to the kind of venues they are used to. Village halls in Tockwith, North Stainley and Bishop Monkton, along with the Green Hut on Harrogate’s Harlow Avenue, are typical of the places to be visited by the upcoming tours.
Kate said:
“We went back to our theatre roots during covid and now we’re returning to the ‘theatre on your doorstep’ concept.
“I just really like going to places where people don’t expect us to be. It does tend to be a social event, more than a theatre event, and that breaks down some of those misconceptions people have about going to the theatre and how you have to behave and what you have to wear and so on.”
Alongside its performances, the team at Badapple did all they could to ensure the thriving youth theatre was kept alive through the pandemic. Having rehearsed outdoors for some time, its 35 members – all aged between seven and 14 – are now back to their usual weekly classes and ‘play in a week’ summer school.
Badapple’s thriving youth theatre
One of the appeals of the youth theatre is that it is treated with the same respect as a touring production. Full costumes, proper lighting and good set design are all on show when the youngsters put on their performances at Green Hammerton Village Hall.
There are no auditions or casting calls and it is open to all children, whether they are keen to be actors or want an encouraging space to boost their confidence.
The youth theatre may be back to full strength, but Kate said the wider theatre industry is still seeing audience numbers around 20% lower than before. With the company’s 25th anniversary to be marked next year, she is hopeful things will continue to improve.
A tour of Badapple’s popular show Eddie and the Gold Tops will begin in the spring to start the celebrations. Kate said:
Stray Views: why build Maltkiln when Flaxby would be better?“Beyond that, we’re just waiting to see. This autumn and winter season will help everyone figure out what’s best for community delivery and live events. Everyone’s coping with the cost of living and what if covid comes back.
“We just need to see what happens next. I’m hoping it’s a new, buoyant bubble, people keen to come out and have a life and enjoy themselves with friends. We’re low threat, as a theatre event. I’m cautiously optimistic.”
Stray Views is a weekly column giving you the chance to have your say on issues affecting the Harrogate district. It is an opinion column and does not reflect the views of the Stray Ferret. Send your views to letters@thestrayferret.co.uk.
In March, Harrogate Borough Council planning officer Kate Broadbank said the development would have a negative impact on the district’s natural environment as well as harming views from the nearby Temple of Victory, which is Grade II* listed.
Ms Broadbank wrote:
“The scale and layout are considered to have an unacceptable adverse impact upon the district’s natural and historic environment.
“In addition, the application site is not considered to be accessible to local services nor is it demonstrated that an acceptable connection to public utilities can be achieved.”
It begs the question what the council has against the development of Flaxby considering the incinerator can be used to provide heating and hot water to homes. Much better than using the development of Maltkiln to widen the A59 also trains do not go to the nearest significant shopping centre Clifton Moor.
Catherine Alderson, Harrogate
Do you have an opinion on the Harrogate district? Email us at letters@thestrayferret.co.uk. Please include your name and approximate location details. Limit your letters to 350 words. We reserve the right to edit letters.
Harrogate council spends £400,000 on bin worker overtime
Harrogate Borough Council has spent £408,000 on overtime for bin workers over the last three years.
The Stray Ferret sent a freedom of information request to the council after a refuse collector got in touch to express concerns about overtime spending.
The council spent £138,246 on overtime in 2019, £135,636 in 2020 and £134,196 in 2021. The figures do not include casual workers.
The council, which will be abolished in just under six months, employed 93 waste and recycling drivers and loaders in 2020, compared with 95 in 2021 and 100 in 2020.
David Houlgate, secretary of the Harrogate local government branch of public sector union Unison, said the council had been “in a recruitment and retention crisis for some time”, adding:
“There are a number of factors for this crisis but primary it is, in our view, because of pay freezes and below inflation pay rises for over a decade or more as a result of chronic under-funding from central government who do not appear to care about public services.
“Consequently, some services such as environmental services have endured staffing issues for a number of years. Your readers may have noticed on some occasions that their refuse or recycling collection has been late or not happened at all, as a result.
“Staff may have been asked to work overtime to alleviate the problem but more concerning is that there has been an over-reliance on agency workers to deliver some services.”
Mr Houlgate said Unison submitted a freedom of information request around the costs of agency workers in 2019 and later wrote to the council’s overview and scrutiny commission asking it to look into the “excessive” sums.
The committee agreed to undertake a review but this was delayed by covid and in July this year Unison was informed it was “unlikely that the agency workers piece of work will be undertaken”. Mr Houlgate said:
“The staffing situation has arisen because council staff have been underpaid and undervalued for well over a decade and the situation now with the cost of living crisis has reached a breaking point.”
The Stray Ferret asked the council what the overtime pay rate is for waste and recycling staff and whether it was able to manage the service better to reduce costs.
A council spokesperson said he didn’t have an answer for the pay rate but added:
“Our waste and recycling service has around 30 rounds out per day collecting household waste, recycling, garden waste and trade waste from the 500 square miles of the Harrogate district.
“There are a number of reasons why overtime is required to support the delivery of this service.
“On a day-to-day basis this could range from roadworks, delays or breakdowns leading to rounds finishing late and employees working over their contracted hours. Short or longer term driver and staff shortages also require additional time to be worked by employees to ensure the delivery of this service.
“It is fair and right that additional time worked by employees over contracted hours – that equates to less than five per cent of the overall delivery of the service – is paid at the appropriate rate in-line with our overtime policy. Equally, where hours are worked on bank holidays to ensure rounds are completed, overtime is rightly paid to employees.
“Without the good will and support from staff to work these additional hours we would struggle to deliver the existing quality of service that our residents and business customers expect to receive.”
Business Breakfast: 1,000 people attend Harrogate business conference
Business Breakfast is sponsored by Harrogate law firm Truth Legal.
More than 1,000 people attended a business conference in Harrogate yesterday.
Brand Yorkshire held its 12th annual business conference at Pavilions of Harrogate at the Great Yorkshire Showground. Nearly 60 businesses had stalls at the event.
Staff from companies all over the country networked at the event, which attracted many local firms.
Georgina Pogge-von Strandmann, solicitor and branch manager at Ison Harrison in Harrogate, told the Stray Ferret:
“The event has been great to attend. We’re here to explain all of the services we can offer at our new Harrogate branch as a full-service law firm. We’ve spoken to a lot of people, everyone is really friendly.”
Sally Bendtson, who owns Limelight HR, said:
“It’s been really good so far, there is a nice mixture of people we know and people we haven’t worked with yet. Last year we just had a stand but this year we’ve got a stand and I’m doing a talk.”
Brand Yorkshire has been holding business events for more than a decade. They are run by Richard and Mona Norman.
Ms Norman told the Stray Ferret:
“People are still wanting to meet people face to face, especially in Harrogate. We have more than a thousand booked to attend.
“What is music to my ears is when the stand holders come to me, even when the day hasn’t finished yet, to say they are already getting business from the event.”
The Crown Hotel
Boroughbridge Chamber of Trade is to stage business networking event on Tuesday next week.
The event will also feature a presentation from Kevin Charity, the new chief executive of The Coaching Inn Group, which recently bought the town’s Crown Hotel.
Coaching Inns took over the historic 37-bedroom hotel in February after its parent company, RedCat Pub Company, purchased the building from Best Western for an undisclosed fee. It is investing about £450,000 in refurbishing the site.
The event takes place at the Crown Hotel from 5.30pm to 7pm. Non-chamber members are welcome.
Ambulance workers in Harrogate district could be set to strike
Staff at Yorkshire Ambulance Service are set to vote on strike action over a government pay offer.
The service employs 7,200 staff and covers all of North Yorkshire, including the Harrogate district.
The GMB Union, which represents 1,500 ambulance workers, said it held a consultative ballot over strike action which saw 90% vote in favour of a walk-out.
Turnout for the vote was 80%.
It comes after the government offered staff a 4% pay increase.
Following the outcome on the consultative ballot, Unions are now set to move towards holding a formal vote on industrial action.
Deanne Ferguson, GMB organiser, said:
“Ambulance staff should not be worrying about how they’ll heat their homes this winter or feed their families, whilst carrying out a crucial service across our communities.
“The service is crumbling, and it is having an impact on everyone – it is only surviving because of the amazing workers holding it together, through goodwill.
“GMB members have had enough, they are angry – and that’s why they want to move to a formal ballot for strike action.
“They’ve made history with their turnout and vote.
“GMB Union will stand shoulder to shoulder with our members as we fight for an above inflation pay rise for our NHS heroes.”
Dates for the formal ballot will be announced in the “coming days”, the union said.
Harrogate council refuses to say if chief executive will get payout package
Harrogate Borough Council has refused to say whether its chief executive will receive a payout package when the authority is abolished in April.
Questions over possible payments to Wallace Sampson were raised after a proposed redundancy package of around £225,000 for Hambleton District Council’s chief executive was criticised by “dismayed and angry” union officials.
But when asked if its most senior officer would receive something similar, Harrogate Borough Council only provided the following statement:
“We respect the contractual rights of all our employees, and relevant employment law.
“This applies to all employees irrespective of their salary or position.”
Mr Sampson, who is paid a £118,447-a-year salary, will along with the other district council chiefs in North Yorkshire see his role scrapped when a new unitary authority covering the whole county launches in April.
County officials have repeatedly insisted that most staff will be transferred across to the new North Yorkshire Council.
However, there have been some uncertainties over job security which has led to an increase in staff quitting ahead of the eight existing councils merging into one.
Unison – which represents over 6,000 local government workers in North Yorkshire – said it was seeking clarity from the existing councils after Hambleton’s proposal which it said “will not go down well” with staff and taxpayers during the cost of living crisis.
The union said in a statement:
“We have already had contact from our members who work for Hambleton District Council to express their shock and disgust at this proposal.
“We will also be writing to the other district and borough councils across North Yorkshire to make sure they are not tempted to do the same.”
The comments come after Harrogate Borough Council was last year told to change its rules on payouts for departing staff after auditors raised concerns over what they described as “inappropriate expenditure”.
Figures published in the council’s annual statement of accounts showed £354,000 was paid out to 19 former employees in 2019/20.
This was an increase from the previous financial year when £278,000 was agreed for 15 staff.
The statement of accounts also showed one member of staff received a £62,000 exit package in 2019/2020, although it is not known what job title they had or how much they were earning before they left their role.
The only member of staff who was named was former director of community Paul Campbell who was paid £55,065 in compensation for loss of office.
It was later agreed that all payments – which can also include allowances and hardship cash – have to be approved by the borough council leader and chief executive, and reported on an annual basis.
Any payments over £100,000 now also require approval from full council.
Previously, the payments were signed off by a monitoring officer and only those made to senior staff were reported annually.
Meanwhile, North Yorkshire County Council’s chief executive Richard Flinton was earlier this year appointed to carry out the same role on the new unitary authority at a crucial time of change for the county.
He will earn up to £197,000 a year with responsibility for an annual budget of £1.4 billion and a workforce of 10,500 staff.
Harrogate district schools set to take part in Walk to School Day 2022Local environmental group, Zero Carbon Harrogate, is set to hold its annual Walk to School Day for 2022.
The event will be held on Friday (October 7) with a focus on “building good transport habits”.
A further five walk to school days will be held in November, February, March, May and June.
This year, Zero Carbon Harrogate has changed the format of the walk to focus on taking part and building good transport habits, rather than calculating winners.
A spokesperson for the group said:
“This year, our strategy is slightly different. Instead of calculating winners and announcing our leaderboard, the event simply focuses on taking part, building good transport habits – ideally on a daily basis – and spreading the word.
“At the end of the 2022-2023 school year, we will present gold, silver and bronze certificate awards to all participating schools in the area, depending on the number of events they took part in over the academic year.”
The 28 schools taking part in the event on Friday are: