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...

Stray Views: Harrogate Spring Water plans a ‘total tree wash’
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 [email protected]. Harrogate Spring Water state...

EXCLUSIVE: Stray Ferret reveals not a single litter fine in Harrogate district for past three years
There has not been a single fine for littering in the Harrogate district over the past three financial years. The figure was revealed by North Yorkshire Council following a Freedom of Information request by the Stray Ferret after repeated coverage of residents'...

Council silent on claims it ignored safety warnings on collapsed Knaresborough wall
North Yorkshire Council has failed to respond to claims it ignored warnings about the state of a wall that collapsed in Knaresborough. The stone wall on Briggate fell onto the highway on September 14 this year. Fortunately, nobody was injured on what is one of the...

Plans submitted to convert Harrogate Debenhams into 34 flats
Fresh plans have been lodged to convert the former Debenhams building in Harrogate into 34 apartments. Wetherby-based Stirling Prescient No. 1 Limited has tabled the proposal to North Yorkshire Council for the site on Parliament Street. The building has been home to...

Yorkshire Water’s £1m pay-out to charities branded ‘pathetic’
News of Yorkshire Water’s record £1 million payout to environmental charities to atone for polluting Hookstone Beck in Harrogate has met with mixed reactions, with one local politician branding it “pathetic”. As we reported yesterday, the utility company polluted...

Residents urge government to reject Bishop Monkton 23-home appeal
Residents have urged the government to reject an appeal to build 23 homes in Bishop Monkton. Kebbell Development Ltd tabled a plan to build the houses on Knaresborough Road in the village. At a meeting of the Skipon and Ripon area constituency planning committee in...

Campaigners protest outside Harrogate Spring Water consultation event
A group of protesters demonstrated outside Harrogate Spring Water’s public consultation event this evening in opposition to the company's latest expansion plans Members of the Save Rotary Wood Again group stood outside the Crown Hotel, in Harrogate, to campaign...

Yorkshire Water begins £19m works in bid to improve River Nidd quality
Yorkshire Water has started work on a £19m project to improve the River Nidd’s water quality. The scheme, which is taking place at the Killinghall wastewater treatment works on Crag Hill Lane, will see new technologies introduced to remove phosphorus from treated...

Yorkshire Water pays record £1m to charities after polluting Harrogate beck
Yorkshire Water has paid a record £1 million to environmental and wildlife charities after polluting a Harrogate river, following an investigation by the Environment Agency. The utility company polluted Hookstone Beck with an unauthorised sewage discharge from...

Council approves multi-million pound Bewerley Park upgrade
Senior councillors have given the go-ahead for a major investment in its outdoor learning centres at Bewerley Park and East Barnby. North Yorkshire Council’s executive yesterday approved spending £4.2m on an 84-bed accommodation block at Bewerley Park, near Pateley...

Local politicians give views on Harrogate Spring Water expansion plans
The Liberal Democrat candidate aiming to be Harrogate and Knaresborough's next MP has said he opposes the latest expansion plans by Harrogate Spring Water. However, the current Conservative MP Andrew Jones has not given an explicit indication of whether he supports or...

Farmers urged not to leave mud on North Yorkshire roads
Farmers and lorry drivers in North Yorkshire are being urged not to leave mud on the roads. North Yorkshire Council said today people have been in touch reporting muddy roads following the recent wet spell. It prompted the council to call on drivers of agricultural...