Staff well-being and culture have rapidly risen up the priority list for many employers.  At the next Stray Ferret Business Club  we’ll hear from award winning employer, LCF Law, on how organisations can ensure their teams are productive and happy. 

The lunch event is lunch at Manahatta, on June 29th at 12.30pm. Get your tickets by clicking or tapping here.

Yorkshire and the Humber attracted fifty one foreign investment projects last year, up from a total of 40 in 2021, according to consultancy firm Ernst & Young.

EY’s ‘attractiveness survey’ showed the region was the UK’s sixth-best performing. Its share of UK FDI projects increased to 5.5% from 4.0%, despite the UK seeing a 6% fall in project numbers.

The survey analyses the attractiveness of a particular region or country as an investment destination. It is designed to help businesses make investment decisions and governments remove barriers to growth.

The region’s strong performance was driven by growth in key sectors, including machinery and equipment, utility supply, and health and social work. sales and business services, manufacturing and logistics.

Stephen Church, EY’s North Market Leader, said:

“Amid a strong year for the North on FDI, Yorkshire and the Humber’s results stand out as exceptional. After a few years of falling project numbers, it’s very encouraging to see the region deliver a significant increase in projects and a strong performance on investment attractiveness relative to the rest of the UK. A positive performance on FDI-supported jobs in 2022 suggests Yorkshire has been able to do well not just on project volume, but on project value too.

“With sustainability and climate change high on investors’ agendas, clean technology is an increasingly important investment focus, providing the UK with the opportunity to play to its regional strengths. Expertise in manufacturing and utilities – key sectors here in Yorkshire – will be crucial to any efforts by the UK to establish itself as a place where clean technology is not just deployed, but also developed and built too.”

Read More: 

• The Harrogate district business making a ‘once in a generation’ move
• Business Breakfast: Swinton Estate launches wild swimming lake

Vida Court, the third care home of Harrogate-based specialist dementia care provider Vida Healthcare, has been rated as Outstanding by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

All of Vida’s three specialist care homes have now been awarded an Outstanding rating.

The inspection highlighted the exceptional dementia care that is provided. Staff’s exceptional creativity when following best practice guidance was applauded. Person-centred care is prevalent throughout the service, and this includes how people wish to be cared for at the end of their lives and approaching difficult conversations.

Sharon Oldfield, Vida Court Home Manager at Vida Healthcare, said:

“We are extremely proud of the Vida Court team. It is a privilege to work with people who are so focused on enriching residents’ lives and providing the highest quality of care. We are delighted that our inclusive and open working environment, alongside the hard work and creativity of our team has been recognised by the CQC.

“We are committed to developing, promoting and implementing innovative methods of care to deliver an outstanding service to our residents”.

James Rycroft, Managing Director at Vida Healthcare, commented:

“The commitment of the team at Vida Court, highlighted in the inspection report, is what makes our service outstanding. Securing an Outstanding rating for all of our care homes is an incredible achievement, and really sets us apart from other care home operators in the UK. Our staff are our greatest asset and I would like to thank them all for their dedication. “

Vida Court has recently opened a specialist unit to support people living with Huntington’s disease.

Staff at Vida Court celebrate the homes CQC Outstanding status

The Conservative Party has selected its new candidate for the forthcoming Selby and Ainsty by-election following the shock withdrawal last week of its previous nominee. 

Claire Holmes, a barrister and East Riding of Yorkshire councillor, will contest the seat in place of Michael Naughton, who quit the race due to an “unforeseen family medical emergency”. 

Speaking to the BBC, Ms Holmes said:

“I know right now people want an MP who’ll only focus on improving our local communities across Selby and Ainsty – not on political point-scoring in Westminster. 

“That means I will work with Rishi Sunak and the government on our five clear priorities: halving inflation, growing the economy, reducing debt, cutting hospital waiting lists and stopping the boats.” 

The by-election was triggered by the resignation of MP Nigel Adams, who was first elected in 2010 and has since held several ministerial posts under prime ministers Theresa May and Boris Johnson. He was nominated by Mr Johnson for a peerage, but did not make the final list. 

Mr Adams had already said he would not contest the seat at the next election, but stepped down immediately after former Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced his resignation in the wake of the cross-party Privileges Committee report into the Partygate scandal that he had misled Parliament. 

The by-election in Selby and Ainsty will be held on Thursday, July 20, the same day as the by-election in Mr Johnson’s Uxbridge and South Ruislip constituency. 

The other candidates declared so far are: for the Green Party, Arnold Warneken, the councillor for Ouseburn on North Yorkshire Council; for the Labour Party, Keir Mather, a senior public affairs adviser for the Confederation of British Industry (CBI); and for the Yorkshire Party, Mike Jordan, whose defection from the Conservatives earlier this month lost the party its majority on North Yorkshire Council. 

The Liberal Democrats are due to announce their candidate this week, but are not expected to campaign heavily in the constituency ahead of the ballot, in order not to split the anti-Tory vote. In 2019 they only won 8.6% of the vote in the constituency, compared with Labour’s 24.6%. 

The Conservatives, however, won 60.3% of the vote, giving them a 20,137 majority, which means that Labour will need a huge swing of 18% to win, according to Sir John Curtice, professor of politics at the University of Strathclyde. 

Photo ID required to vote

In a statement, North Yorkshire Council said that anyone interested in becoming a candidate in the Selby and Ainsty by-election must submit a completed set of nomination forms before the deadline at 4pm this Friday (June 23).

Residents of the Selby and Ainsty constituency have until midnight on Tuesday, July 4, to register to vote and until 5pm on Wednesday, July 5, to apply for a postal vote. If someone is unable to vote in person or by post, they have until 5pm on Wednesday, July 12, to apply for a proxy vote.

Voters attending the polling station for the by-election will need to bring photographic identification, such as a UK photocard driving licence, a passport, or concessionary travel passes, such as an older person’s bus pass or blue badge.

Anyone without an accepted form of ID should apply for a free voter authority certificate by 5pm on Wednesday, July 12.

Read more:

• Selby and Ainsty MP resigns with immediate effect
• Andrew Jones MP to vote for Privileges Committee recommendations
• Labour names candidate for local by-election

Two men have been jailed for their part in stealing newly-installed boilers and other equipment worth £143,000 from housing developments in the Harrogate district.

Shaun Andrew Finley, 34, of Goldthorpe, Barnsley, and Stephen William Case, 43, of Dunscroft, Doncaster, targeted boilers, furniture and other equipment belonging to building companies and contractors.

They struck at homes in Harrogate, Knaresborough, Killinghall, Kirk Hammerton and Dishforth.

Finley was jailed for five years and Case for four years and two months when they were sentenced at York Crown Court on Friday.

The court heard that between June 1 and December 15 in 2020 they targeted prestigious new build developments 22 times.

According to a North Yorkshire Police press release today, officers identified a pattern in the burglaries which involved the same method of breaking into the properties and removing the items.

The press release added:

“They specifically targeted houses that were ready for occupation. This caused considerable disruption and upset to the homebuyers and added cost and inconvenience to the developers.

“Through detailed analysis of CCTV and automatic number plater recognition data, the investigation team were able to place the vans and cars they were using – often driving in convoy – in and around the new build locations that they burgled.

“They also uncovered that Finley and Case were actively avoiding detection by registering, and insuring, their vehicles in the names of innocent members of the public. They also used cloned registration plates. This resulted in the arrest of two men who had nothing to do with the crimes, as well as numerous speeding tickets.”

Read more:

• Burglars jailed for stealing £6,000 worth of goods from Starbeck Co-op
• Jail for drug dealers caught outside Harrogate’s Valley Gardens

At the sentencing, Judge Sean Morris commended the work of detective sergeant Steve Peachman, the now retired detective sergeant Marcus Dawson, and analyst Libby Edison for the effective investigation which secured the convictions.

The Judge said they were “a credit to North Yorkshire Police and the people of North Yorkshire”.

DS Steve Peachman, from the force’s operation expedite unit, said:

“The outcome of our investigation shows that if you choose to embark on conspiracies with organised crime groups, you can expect lengthy custodial sentences.

“We proved that Finley and Case were principal participants in committing crime in North Yorkshire.

“They used a high degree of sophistication, but it was not enough to escape justice.”

Great Ouseburn may be small but it showed yesterday it has some of the finest gardens in the Harrogate district.

Sixteen private gardens opened for the day as part of the village’s annual garden festival.

They included a wildflower meadow, quirky modern designs, cottage gardens and even one small courtyard garden that doesn’t get any sun for almost half the year.

The festival has grown to become about more than beautiful gardens: there were also concerts by the vocal ensemble Camerata Sonora in St Mary’s Church, a cookery demonstration, wine tasting, gardeners’ question time and displays of Morgan cars and alpacas on the village green.

With cricket on the playing fields and tea and cakes in the school, it made for a quintessentially English experience that even included a downpour, which fortunately did not take place until five minutes before the event was due to end.

Read more:

• Where to see Open Gardens in the Harrogate district
• Co-op submits plans for new store in Boroughbridge

The festival, which raises money for village causes, was the latest of many midsummer open gardens events taking place across the district.

Knaresborough and Marton-cum-Grafton are holding events this weekend.

For further details, click here.

Here are some photos from Great Ouseburn yesterday.

In April, King Charles III appointed Harrogate artist Clare Granger as High Sheriff of North Yorkshire.

The high sheriff — a role which dates back over 1,000 years — represents the monarch in matters relating to law and order.

It may seem incongruous that an artist with a studio in High Birstwith is rubbing shoulders with barristers and judges on behalf of the king.

But Ms Granger is well qualified for the role: she studied law at Cambridge University and briefly worked as a lawyer before swapping legal briefs for paint brushes and forging a successful career as an artist, with annual shows in London.

Her son and daughter-in-law are barristers so “the law has never really left me”, as she puts it.

Art and law may appear unlikely bedfellows but Ms Granger brings a stamp of colour and style to the role.

Among her aims is to use the 12-month appointment to promote art as therapy for offenders. The role also involves representing the voluntary sector and emergency services, and she has revamped a Dragon’s Den-style contest run by Two Ridings Community Foundation by getting charities bidding for funding to submit photographs illustrating what they do. She says:

“Art is a therapeutic tool. It’s such a joyful thing to do. It makes people feel really happy.”

Ms Granger says she’s “more or less” retired from portraits and is focusing more on the use of colour in her art, which she works on from 9am to 5pm at her home studio. She says:

“I love colour. I’m enjoying the freedom of painting whatever I like and if someone likes it they buy it.”

But ironically, being high sheriff has left little time for painting.  The role comes with few essential engagements but Ms Granger has thrown herself so enthusiastically into the role, clocking up hundreds of miles each week to attend engagements in North Yorkshire, she has barely any time left.

The day before our interview, she visited the coroner’s office in Northallerton. After our early morning interview she was due to drive to Scarborough for a lunch and then participate in a 10 kilometre evening walk in York.

Tomorrow featured a community event in Birstwith, followed the day after by a visit to Yorkshire Air Ambulance in Nostell and the day after that she was due to attend a rewilding event in Sharow and another community event.

That took her to the weekend, where her engagements included the Harrogate Army Foundation College parade through Harrogate town centre, a golden wedding and a trip to an Open Studios art event.

With Mark Dowie, chief executive of RNLI

The size of North Yorkshire doesn’t make life easy.

Moreover, the role isn’t paid: she self-funds her trips and even hosted a big coronation garden party at her own expense in a marquee that had already been erected for her son’s wedding.

She doubts whether anyone could combine being high sheriff with a full-time job.

“You don’t have to take a year off to do it but it does compromise you.”

The high sheriff has no formal powers but the invitations have piled up. Why does she think this is?

“The value of saying ‘thank-you’ is huge. People appreciate someone coming and listening to their concerns. I don’t have any powers but I have conversations and can bring people together.”

Ms Granger is a big supporter of the police and is putting particular emphasis on supporting them as part of her role. She says:

“All of us expect the police to be there when push comes to shove yet we are constantly knocking them and if we are not careful nobody will want to do the job.”

With Lady Justice King in York when she accepted the role.

For all the robes of office and archaic traditions, Ms Granger brings a warmth that is often lacking to the legal world. Her name will join a long list of high sheriffs at York Crown Court.

But although she has a lot of respect for the legal profession, she doesn’t take long to respond when asked if she regrets giving it up to become an artist:

“Not one single jot! I love the fact that law is still in my life but I’m relieved not to have to do it myself. Perhaps I wasn’t a solicitor long enough to enjoy it but I think I’d find it boring.”

Read more:

• Birstwith artist Clare Granger becomes High Sheriff of North Yorkshire
• Harrogate cyclist aiming to ride 1,000 km in 48 hours

Relocating businesses is a common sight with some upscaling and others downsizing.

But, for one Harrogate district firm, moving the company which has been based in the same place for half a century to the other side of the A1(M) is a once in a generation decision.

Northern Energy has operated from its headquarters in Hampsthwaite for 70 years.

It was founded by Ralph Robinson in 1932 when it supplied milk and coal before moving to its current base in the 1950s where the company stared to distribute agricultural and commercial oil.

These days, the firm has ambitions to shift into the renewable gas trade.

However, to do that it needed a bigger base.

‘Once in a generational spend’

James Illingworth, Ralph’s great-grandson and director of sales at Northern Energy, said they identified Marton-cum-Grafton as its new home some three years ago.

For him, he describes the project to relocate as a decision made only once in a generation.

He said:

“This is a once in a generational spend, if you want to put it that way.

“We have been at our current site for 70 years. This is gearing up for the next 50 years really. I’m fourth generation.

“We want to keep it as a family business and it’s one of those big spends that we’ve got to make for the future.”

Work being carried out on the new Northern Energy site.

The new headquarters will be based off Limebar Lane on the A168 and is 15 miles from the current home.

The company bought the land from WA Pick and Sons farm and started work on phase one at the start of June.

As part of the plans, 10,000 square feet of office space, a vehicle depot, LPG and oil storage tanks and a new car park will be built.

Mr Illingworth said much of the driving force behind moving the family-firm was the need for space in order to grow the company in the coming years.

“The site that we are currently at [in Hampsthwaite], we have been there since the 50s. We have basically run out of space and it is not fit for purpose anymore.

“The gas storage is what we really need to take our business to the next level and we can’t put it there. That was the main driver for moving sites.”

Read more:

• Northern Energy begins work on new Harrogate district headquarters
• Council approves Northern Energy plan to move from Hampsthwaite

The new site will be accessed via the A168, which runs parallel to the A1(M) near Boroughbridge.

Part of the reason for choosing the Limebar Lane site was to take advantage of the motorway system, says Mr Illingworth.

“The great thing about this new location is the access to the motorway, which will give us connectivity down to the refinery a lot better.

“It will reduce our journey times, which will mean we will get an extra shift in and extra load in from the refinery per day.

“It might not seem a lot, but we lose a lot of time going through Harrogate every day on Wetherby Road and Skipton Road. That time that we save will be really important from a logistics point of view.”

Completion of the first phase, which includes the 400,000 litres of gas storage and loading bays, is earmarked for completion in March 2024.

From there, the company hopes to construct the staff offices and begin trading more in renewable gas.

For Mr Illingworth, the site is the next step for Northern Energy in its evolution as a company.

“The site generally is more suited to the size of our business and for future growth.”

The Conservatives would retain Harrogate and Knaresborough while Labour could gain Selby and Ainsty if a general election were held tomorrow.

According to Electoral Calculus, a political forecasting company, Andrew Jones MP would win a fifth successive election in Harrogate.

Meanwhile, Labour would unseat the Tories in Selby and Ainsty, which includes areas of rural Harrogate, and Julian Smith, Skipton and Ripon MP, would retain his seat for the Conservatives but in a far closer contest.

Electoral Calculus uses past voting figures, polling trends and party support to predict the average outcome of seats in the House of Commons.

The chances of winning seats in Parliament has become particularly pertinent as a by-election looms in Selby and Ainsty next month and a general election is lined up for next year.

The Conservative campaign in Selby and Ainsty was thrown into disarray on Friday when its candidate, Michael Naughton, withdrew just days after being selected.

But with by-election fever mounting, we looked at the state of play locally according to Electoral Calculus.

Harrogate and Knaresborough

According to the political forecaster, Andrew Jones has a 67% chance of winning in Harrogate and Knaresborough.

Mr Jones, who has already confirmed he will stand at the next election, currently has a majority of 9,675.

The website says the Liberal Democrats have a 20% chance of winning while Labour, which has yet to name a candidate, is rated 13%.

The figures come as Tom Gordon, Liberal Democrat candidate for the seat, this week called for an election in light of three Conservative MPs resigning last weekend.

The predictions for Harrogate and Knaresborough, according to Electoral Calculus.

However, under an election scenario, the Lib Dems would pick up 28% of the vote – which is down on their 2019 figure of 35.6%.

Meanwhile, Mr Jones’ share would drop from 52.6% to 37%.

However, the increase in share of Labour from 9.6% to 24% suggests a split in the vote which paves the way for the Tories to retain the constituency.

Selby and Ainsty

The chances of the Conservatives holding onto Selby and Ainsty in the upcoming by-election look tight, according to Electoral Calculus.

Voters will head to the polls on July 20 after the resignation of Nigel Adams MP last weekend.

Labour announced 26-year-old Keir Mather will fight the by-election for the party.

Michael Naughton was picked to succeed Mr Adams for the Conservatives but withdrew on Friday and a replacement has yet to be named.

The Green Party has chosen Arnold Warneken, who represents Ouseburn on North Yorkshire Council, as its prospective parliamentary candidate.

The predictions for Selby and Ainsty, according to Electoral Calculus.

Electoral Calculus has the contest as a two-horse race, with Labour a 55% chance of winning and the Conservatives 45%.

Such a result would be dramatic given that Mr Adams, who was a former Foreign Office minister, had a majority of 20,137.

Under such a scenario, Labour would increase its vote share from 24.6% at the last election to 39.8%.

Meanwhile, the Tories would fall from 60.3% to 37.9%.

Skipton and Ripon

A similarly tight contest can be found in Skipton and Ripon.

Julian Smith, the former Northern Ireland secretary, currently holds the seat for the Conservatives with a majority of 23,694.

He’s predicted to have a 55% chance of retaining the seat for the party.

The predictions for Skipton and Ripon, according to Electoral Calculus.

Meanwhile, Labour has a 44% chance.

Despite a predicted drop in vote share from 59.5% to 37.5%, Mr Smith would be safe.

The figures, however, also forecast a hike in Labour’s share from 19.1% at the last election to 35.5%.

Read more:

• Tories and Greens name candidates as local by-election looms
• Selby and Ainsty MP resigns with immediate effect
• Labour names candidate for local by-election

Devolution in North Yorkshire has made local government an “incoherent mess” and “destroyed” democracy, a Liberal Democrat peer has claimed.

Harrogate Borough Council was one of seven district authorities, along with North Yorkshire County Council, abolished on March 31 to pave the way for the new North Yorkshire Council.

The single-tier system has vastly reduced the number of councillors in North Yorkshire from almost 400 to 90.

A combined authority for York and North Yorkshire is due to be created next year, led by an elected mayor, as part of the UK government’s devolution agenda.

Lord Wallace of Saltaire said in a speech in the House of Lords on Thursday the structure of local government across England was now “an incoherent mess” and accused the government of “imposing mayors on places that did not want them”.

He added:

“I find what has happened recently in North Yorkshire the most appalling, and when I heard someone assure me that no councillor in North Yorkshire would need more than two hours to drive from the ward they represent to council meetings, it showed me just how far we have gone.

“Decent places such as Harrogate, Scarborough, Richmond and Craven, which had working district authorities and which represented real places, have been dismantled and they are now trying to set up very large town councils for them.

“We have the prospect of a mayor, somehow, for North Yorkshire and, incidentally, one for East Yorkshire. That is the effective destruction of local government and I really do not understand the rationale for it.”

Read more:

• Councillors brand North Yorkshire devolution deal ‘York-centric’
• Double devolution could be ‘fundamental gamechanger’ for Knaresborough, says councillor

He contrasted the situation with Fenland District Council, where councillors represented far fewer people, and therefore had more time to deal with their issues.

Lord Saltaire said:

“After the next election, a reform of the way in which the governance of England is conducted at all levels is a vital part of what any new government must be. If we want to regain trust in politics and re-engage some of our citizens more, that is part of how we do it.

“Let us all recognise that we face a situation of deep popular disengagement and disillusionment with the democratic politics we have in this country.”

Old system ‘confusing and expensive’

Carl Les

Carl Les, the Conservative leader of North Yorkshire Council, described the old two-tier system as “confusing, inefficient and expensive”. He added:

“Over half of the country is governed by unitary local government now. Where Lord Saltaire lives has been unitary for years.

“Yes, we no longer have 390 local councillors. Some might say that’s a good thing.”

Cllr Les said the council’s plans for “double devolution”, whereby powers would be handed down to local level, would ensure it was “not only the largest geographic council in the country but also the most local as well”.

The Yorkshire Party candidate to be North Yorkshire mayor next year quit the party after a disagreement over a policy to hand out free chickens.

Keith Tordoff, who is from Pateley Bridge, pledged in an interview to give three chickens to 20,000 households in North Yorkshire.

But the policy had not been discussed in detail with the Yorkshire Party and thus Mr Tordoff will now seek election as an independent candidate.

He announced his resignation from the party this week.

Other disagreements included the Yorkshire Party’s website ‘not being up to date’ and there not being enough volunteers.

Mr Tordoff said:

 “They don’t like stories like the chicken story.

“They really tried to clamp down and said that shouldn’t have been released.

“I’ve been contacted by one of the largest egg producers in the country saying they want to offer help.

“It stimulated the imagination of people but the Yorkshire Party leadership didn’t think it was appropriate and would make the party look a bit foolish or silly.”

Read more:

• Pateley Bridge man resigns as Yorkshire Party mayoral candidate
• Yorkshire Party mayoral candidate promises free chickens if elected

Mr Tordoff also said he recorded a promotional song based on the lyric in Dire Straits’ Money For Nothing ‘your chicks for free’.

He said:

“They didn’t want me to release that.

“It’s not going to diminish anything but unfortunately they couldn’t quite see through it.

“I don’t think they quite have the drive, the vision, the imagination, or my appeal to people to work on projects.”

Although he wished the Yorkshire Party the best, Mr Todoff said its leadership “went over the top” on their crackdown of his policy.

He said:

“They couldn’t grasp it.”

Yorkshire Party co-leader Bob Buxton said: 

“Keith is used to being independent.

“He came up with the chicken story and that perhaps took away the emphasis from more substantial policies.

“I’m not saying it’s a bad policy but I would have liked to have fleshed it out a bit more.

“He’s very autonomous.

“It was all very polite but he felt and we felt it was best to part ways.”

The party will field a different candidate following the by-election in Selby and Ainsty triggered by Boris Johnson ally Nigel Adams.

Labour has selected 26-year-old Keir Mather to fight the Selby and Ainsty by-election, triggered by the resignation of Conservative MP Nigel Adams.

Oxford history and politics graduate Mr Mather is a former parliamentary researcher who works as a senior public affairs advisor at the Confederation of British Industry.

Mr Mather, who would become one of the youngest MPs, was born in Hull and grew up near Selby.

His candidacy was supported by the unions GMB and Unison.

Many villages close to Harrogate, Knaresborough and Boroughbridge, including Spofforth, Follifoot, Kirkby Overblow, Goldsborough, Little Ouseburn, Nun Monkton, Green Hammerton and Kirk Hammerton, will go to the polls on July 20.

The Conservatives, who will defend a 20,137 in the by-election on July 20, have named Michael Naughton as their candidate while the Greens have selected Arnold Warneken.

It is expected to be a close contest between the Tories and Labour, with political forecasting website Electoral Calculus predicting a 55% chance of Labour victory and a 45% chance of Conservative victory.

A by-election in Boris Johnson’s Uxbridge and South Ruislip constituency will also take place on the same date.

Mr Mather said:

“It is an honour to have been selected to fight to represent this brilliant constituency. Whilst the Conservatives are too distracted by their own chaos to deliver, the people of Selby and Ainsty have been left without a voice.

“We are facing the worst fall in living standards in a generation. Mortgages are up, our public services are broken, and the economy is stagnating.”

Read more:

• Tories and Greens name candidates as local by-election looms
• Selby and Ainsty MP resigns with immediate effect