Excellence deserves to be recognised and celebrated. The 2024 Stray Ferret Business Awards is the event to put your business, people or great initiative in the spotlight!

Make the most of your efforts by reading our top 10 tips for writing your submission for success.

Entries close on January 19, 2024.

The contract to build 37 affordable homes at the Old Goods Yard on Hutton Bank in Ripon has been awarded to a York company.

Yorkshire Housing has appointed York Science Park-based NuSpace Homes to construct the mixed-tenure homes on the site, which was previously home to warehouses used by companies such as Millennium Windows and Power Plastics.

The scheme will provide 37 homes for rent, rent to buy and shared ownership and is being supported by grant funding from Homes England.

Yorkshire Housing is the biggest housing association based solely in Yorkshire, and owns and manages around 20,000 homes across the region, including older people’s accommodation and homes for low-cost rent.

Outline planning permission for the Hutton Bank site was granted in 2021 by Harrogate Borough Council, which was replaced by North Yorkshire Council in April this year.

The site is in an area that is deemed as having high housing demand, and at the time outline planning was approved Harrogate Borough Council said the proposed development would help “regenerate a gateway site in one of the District’s main settlements”.

Demolition of the existing vacant buildings is set to start soon, and construction of the homes is due to start early in the new year.

Sian Webster, director of development at Yorkshire Housing, said:

“We’re really pleased to be working alongside NuSpace Homes to deliver these quality new homes.

“This development will regenerate a disused brownfield site and give more people the chance to have a place they’re proud to call home.

“There’s a need for more affordable homes across Yorkshire, and this scheme takes us a step closer to reaching our target of building 8,000 new homes across the county.”

It is hoped that the first homes will be ready to move into early in 2025, and the site will be completed by December the same year.

Charity given cash from financial services profits

A charity based in Harrogate has received a £1,000 Christmas gift from the Benefact Group.

The British Thyroid Foundation, which is based at Hornbeam Park, was nominated to win a share of £120,000 by members of the public as part of the Benefact Group’s annual 12 days of giving Christmas campaign.

Founded in 1887, the Gloucester-based Benefact Group is an international group of financial services businesses that gives all available profits to charities and good causes.

The British Thyroid Foundation, which supports people to live better with thyroid disease, was one of two causes chosen for Benefact Group awards in North Yorkshire; the other was Fulford St Oswald’s C E Primary School Parent Teacher Association.

Mark Hews, group chief executive of Benefact Group, said:

“We are thrilled to be giving £120,000 to 120 fantastic charitable causes across the country and I’d like to thank every single North Yorkshire resident that took the time to nominate a charity close to their hearts. We know that £1,000 can make a huge difference to the incredible work that charities do and we’re looking forward to seeing how this financial boost will change lives for the better.

“Benefact Group is the third largest corporate donor in the UK and has an ambition to be the biggest. Owned by a charity, Benefact Trust, all of its available profits go to good causes, and the more the Group grows, the more the Group can give.”

Read more:

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• Business Breakfast: Boroughbridge man named AA Patrol of the Year
• Business Breakfast: Growth hub hosts business support event at Ripon Cathedral

Are you booked into our Stray Ferret Business Club’s breakfast event this Thursday at Banyan in Harrogate between 8-10am? 

The Business Club provides monthly opportunities to network, make new connections and hear local success stories. Get your tickets now by clicking or tapping here.

One of Harrogate’s oldest accountancy firms has expanded its apprenticeship programme.

A quarter of Lithgow Perkins’ twenty strong team now comprises of trainees at different stages of their accountancy career.

Partner Tom Rhodes, who began as an apprentice at Lithgow Perkins 11 years ago, said:

“Having a strong apprenticeship programme that gives young people the opportunity to develop their careers with us is vital not just for their future, but for ours too.”

Mr Rhodes added:

“As a small, independent firm, we can be flexible in creating opportunities for our trainees to work across a range of disciplines, supported by various specialists from our team.

“It’s not just a case of developing accountancy expertise; it’s also about building confidence in the ‘softer’ skills that are so important when dealing directly with clients.”

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A decision on controversial plans for houses near a busy road in south Harrogate has been delayed.

North Yorkshire Council had set a target date of yesterday for determining the plans for 17 homes in the Crimple Valley.

However, it has now confirmed the decision will not be made this week.

The council’s assistant director for planning, Trevor Watson, said:

“Our consideration of this application remains ongoing and will not be resolved in time to determine it this week.

“We are nevertheless committed to issuing a decision on the application as soon as is practicable and have informed the applicant of this.”

The plans for seven affordable homes and 10 self-build plots have attracted more than 350 objections from residents.

They focused on the location of the site in the Crimple Valley special landscape area, as well as access to the new homes from the A61 at the bottom of Almsford Bank.

The council’s highways department has also raised concerns about the applicant’s proposal to reduce the speed limit to 40mph between Pannal and Harrogate.

A previous application for 35 homes on the land was rejected by Harrogate Borough Council, whose local plan guiding development in the area did not include the site.

Plans submitted in 2019 for 35 homes were withdrawn, as was a scheme for 65 houses put forward in 2018.

Read more:

• Hundreds object to Crimple Valley housing plans as decision looms
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The last ever meeting of Harrogate Borough Council‘s planning committee will see it asked to give permission for a new home on its own land in Huby.

A report to the committee proposes the plans for a two-bedroom house are approved, subject to conditions including providing electric vehicle charging points at the property.

The council’s proposal would see the house added to the council’s affordable rental homes, which will be transferred to North Yorkshire Council from April 1.

Describing the proposal for land between 20 and 22 Kingsway in the village, a report for the committee by planning officer Arthama Lakhanpall says:

“Since the site is not currently used for any purpose, and is maintained as underused grassed land, the proposed plans are supported by the housing team who wish to see more social housing in the area to meet identified need. This site will help address that need.

“The housing team has confirmed that there are currently 2,199 households registered on the council’s waiting list for affordable rented accommodation across the district. There are currently 169 households registered for two-bed social rented housing within this sub-area.”

Since the plans were submitted, objections have been received from three neighbours. They raised concerns over the new property overlooking the existing homes, as well as the impact on what they said was an already busy road, often used for parking by people travelling by train from the nearby Weeton station.

Residents also said there was a lack of facilities in the village, forcing residents to drive elsewhere. They said the new house would have an impact on sunlight to other houses, as well as drainage and water supplies, which residents said were already problematic.

However, neither Yorkshire Water nor North Yorkshire County Council had any objections to the scheme, and Weeton Parish Council did not oppose the plans.

Read more:

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• Residents frustrated after Harrogate district planning portal goes down

The report to the planning committee said the proposed house did not have any side windows and that those at the front and rear of the property would not add to the way in which nearby houses already overlook each other.

The plans include a driveway large enough for two vehicles. The report added:

“The site is currently vacant from built development. It is accepted that the proposed dwelling would have some impact on the openness and spatial quality.

“The proposal however would be well confined within the site and read in relation to the scale, bulk and massing of the neighbouring dwellings within the street. It includes hardstanding and soft landscaping that would help preserve a state of openness.

“For that reason, the scale and massing of the proposed dwelling would not be visually dominant in this landscape. The impact on the openness of the green belt therefore would be limited.”

The planning meeting will be held at Harrogate Borough Council’s civic centre on St Luke’s Mount, Harrogate, on Tuesday, March 28 from 2pm. It will also be broadcast live via the council’s YouTube page.

A group behind an ambitious project in Masham hopes it will become an example in how to keep young people living in rural communities.

MPs published a report last year found that rural economies can struggle due to a lack of affordable housing for young people.

It said the government’s definition of affordable housing was misleading with new builds often out of reach for many.

According to the report, this has resulted in young people moving away in their droves from the places they grew up in — taking their money with them, too.

To help tackle the problem, a not-for-profit company called Peacock and Verity Community Spaces (P&VCS) hopes to offer four genuinely affordable homes that will only be available to people with links to Masham.

However,  housing is just one element of the unique project. It will also include an Edwardian-style tea room, a grocery, a post office and a heritage centre.

P&VCS has already secured full planning permission to refurbish 15 Silver Street, a building with a long and storied history.

As reported in January, the project has won £222,000 in funding from Harrogate Borough Council and has also been supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund with a £71,000 grant.

Read More:

• Affordable housing scheme in Masham wins £150,000 funding
• Post office to return to Masham in £1.5m heritage scheme

The group’s chair Alan Hodges told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that the project will have many benefits for Masham. 

He said:

“[If housing is unaffordable] it means you lose young labour out of the rural community but by providing four low-cost self-contained units we will be able  to keep people in.”

P&VCS’ mission statement states the homes in Masham will only be available to people with family, work or historic links to the area.

This means there’s no chance that the apartments could be rented out as holiday homes or be sold on for a profit.

Mr Hodges added:

“Our housing association, Karbon, will control the allocation policy. We’re very clear. The homes will go to local people who are already here. It’s something we’ll guard against.”

Storied history

Mr Hodges said the project will provide six full-time jobs and learning opportunities for residents and visitors.

The ground floor will be restored into a Victorian grocers from when the building was in its heyday and there will be an Edwardian-style tearoom inspired by the cafe that was part of the building in the 1900s.

An Illustration Of What Peacock & Verity Will Look Like Once Complete C Peacock & Verity.

It will also bring a Post Office counter back to Masham and create a new heritage centre celebrating the story of the town and the area.

It’s a back-to-the-future approach to development that Mr Hodges believes will show similar towns how community-led projects can grow rural economies.

And to give the project an even more local touch, it will tap into Masham’s rich  sheep-farming heritage by using wool to insulate the building with help from Leeds Beckett University. 

Mr Hodges added:

“Local farmers get less for sheep wool than it costs to shear. This creates an alternative use that’s both ecological and effective.

“We’re looking to the future and hope it will be seen as an exemplar project of how to do things.”

The Dragon Road car park in Harrogate could be used to create affordable flats or extra care housing if a proposal is approved next week.

Harrogate Borough Council‘s cabinet is set to decide on Wednesday whether to take the next steps in planning for the site’s redevelopment.

The project could see 72 apartments created, including 40% affordable homes, and part of the site could be used to create an extra care facility.

However, officers presenting a report for the cabinet have said the use of the car park to support events at Harrogate Convention Centre will take precedence over any development. They said:

“Given the current HCC investment project, it may be more appropriate to keep the site available for that facility until the full details of the HCC project are finalised. However this needs to be balanced with the development opportunity…

“During the course of the masterplanning study and in response to the market-led challenges, housing officers have expressed an interest in the site.

“They are in the early stages of looking at plans to develop the rear part of the site for either extra care (for which there is an identified shortfall in the district) or affordable housing. This provides an opportunity to maximise grant funding to improve viability.

“Officers recommend further discussions are held with housing colleagues to explore this registered provider led opportunity and consider whether this can be achieved without compromising HIC parking requirements. Officers note that adequate parking for HCC associated vehicles takes primacy over site redevelopment.”

Read more:

• 62 homes set to be built at council’s Harlow Nursery
• Campaigners launch petition to save Bilton’s Knox Lane from housing

The report suggests development of the site would be an opportunity to improve the Nidderdale Greenway entrance to the town centre:

“The masterplan illustrates how a high quality urban residential development could be accommodated within the site. The masterplan proposes three apartment blocks of three storeys that will enhance the character of the site to provide an attractive setting for living and an enhanced gateway to the Nidderdale Greenway.

“The entrance to the site is enclosed by an ‘L’ shaped block to follow the grain of Dragon Road and enclose the route into the site. This is followed by a more regular shaped block, which reinforces the building line and defines the second edge to a green courtyard through which the Nidderdale Greenway passes.

“A third block positioned along the line of the railway replicates the terraced form of adjacent street and creates a buffer to the railway with apartments facing eastward to overlook the greenway.”

It recommends council officers should draw up plans and find a contractor for the work, as well as reporting back on costs and potential sources of funding for the improvements. It also suggests speaking to providers of affordable housing and extra care facilities about the potential of developing the site.

The report recommends speaking to providers about the feasibility of maintaining HCC use of the site for service vehicles during events if it were developed, noting again that adequate parking “takes primacy” over any development.

The proposal suggests access through the site for deliveries to the neighbouring Asda supermarket and to the railway for maintenance would be maintained.

The site is allocated for mixed use in the local plan, but the latest report suggests it is unlikely to be suitable for business development. It said:

“Employment use on this site was discounted early on in the study due to viability constraints and lack of market demand for this location. The masterplan reflects the sustainable, edge of town centre location with a high density apartment scheme.

“[Seventy-two] units are shown including 40% affordable housing. Improvements to the Nidderdale Greenway within the site will provide a welcome entry into Harrogate, much improved from the current provision.

“Access for Asda service lorries is retained through the centre of the site as well as Network Rail access to the railway line. The masterplan assumes the current use of the site as a public and HCC car park is ended, as per the local plan allocation.”

The council’s seven-man cabinet will decide whether to proceed with officers’ recommendations when it meets next Wednesday at 5.30pm. The meeting at the civic centre is open to the public, as well as being live streamed on YouTube.