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Mar 2020

Last Updated: 14/03/2020

Coronavirus Update: Tonight's Harrogate Town Football cancelled

by Tamsin O'Brien

| 13 Mar, 2020

Harrogate Town game is cancelled, the local elections postponed for year -- this afternoon has seen a succession of announcements as coronavirus cases rise in North Yorkshire

This afternoon has seen a succession of announcements as the coronavirus crisis deepens.

Public Health England announced that the number of people testing positive in North Yorkshire to coronavirus has risen to 4.

Harrogate Town’s match against Solihull Moors tonight has been called off after staff went into self isolation. The Club released a statement this afternoon:

We have four employees currently under self isolation and we have a duty of care for the health and wellbeing of players, staff and supporters.

Local and mayoral elections in England will be postponed for a year. The Police and Crime Commissioner elections in North Yorkshire to replace the existing Conservative, Julia Mulligan, were to be held in May.

Elkie Brooks’s appearance at the Royal Hall has also been called off after the singer had a sore throat during rehearsals and was advised to rest. This is not thought to be related to coronavirus.

Convention Centre Director to hold talks with local businesses

Meanwhile independent businesses are being invited to meet the director of Harrogate Convention Centre so the venue can support them through the coronavirus crisis.

Paula Lorimer, who has been in post for just over a year, said she feels a sense of responsibility for the town’s economy, which relies heavily on visitors to the centre.

She is sending out an invitation to independent retailers to visit and explain more about what they can offer to visitors, as well as hearing what the venue is doing to protect local businesses and jobs from the effects of coronavirus.

While it is currently business as usual at HCC, changing advice from the government is likely to mean fewer events go ahead over the coming weeks across the UK. However, Ms Lorimer is working with organisers to find new dates at the venue. She said:

“The biggest industry challenge is that there are only 365 days in the year and they have other events throughout the year. How do we get this big Rubix cube to squeeze in everybody else at a later time, in the autumn?”

So far, two HCC events have been postponed by organisers, though one had not got a full contract in place before changing its plans. The next major event in the calendar is the Conservative Party Spring Forum on 3rd and 4th April, though there are other concerts and single-date events before then.

Meanwhile, the International Association of Teachers of English as a Foreign Language has announced that its April conference in Manchester will instead be held in Harrogate next March. It will bring 3,000 delegates from 100 countries for its four-day programme.

While the short-term changes are keeping her busy, Ms Lorimer is also keen to ensure her plans to redevelop and build up the convention centre are not affected by the coronavirus outbreak.

“I’ve got to make sure this venue is in a fantastic place so, when we come out of this, we’re in a first-class position,” she said.