A Ripon dad is hosting a charity Tractor Fest after his newborn son recently spent time in intensive care at Leeds General Infirmary with a life-threatening condition.

Tom Tate’s partner Sarah gave birth to their son, Freddie, three-and-a-half months ago.

But soon after he was born he was diagnosed with Atrial flutter, a type of abnormal heart rhythm that makes the heart beat too quickly.

Mr Tate said it was a frightening time for the family. He said:

“When he was born straight away we knew something wasn’t right. In a baby, Atrial flutter is life threatening.

“But after two weeks in intensive care at the LGI, they got him right, and they looked after me and Sarah.”

Freddie is thankfully now at home and fighting fit, but his dad said he wanted to repay the hospital by raising money for the LGI Neonatal Unit through the Leeds Hospitals Charity.

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Mr Tate is a member of West Yorkshire Tractor and Engine Club and around 80 vintage and modern tractors from the club will be attending F. Tate and Sons garden centre at Studley Road on September 24.

The charity tractor fest will also include a raffle with prizes up for grabs including an overnight stay at Grantley Hall. Entry is free but visitors are encouraged to make a donation.

Mr Tate added:

“We’re really pushing it to raise a lot of money for the charity. We definitely want to make it an annual thing.”

North Yorkshire has retained the dubious honour of being the UK’s worst blackspot for killing birds of prey – a grim title it has retained for a decade.

Birdcrime 2019, a report by the RSPB, said the county had the highest number of raptor persecution incidents in the UK. It was responsible for 15 of the 85 confirmed cases.

Many of the case studies the RSPB cited were recorded in Nidderdale.

In 2019, a hen harrier was found shot dead on a grouse moor in Nidderdale. The bird, named River, had a tracking device and had two pieces of shot lodged in its body.

In the same year a red kite was also found poisoned just outside of Pateley Bridge.

The killings have continued into 2020, with the shooting of a buzzard, the poisoning of a red kite and a dog all near the town.

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The report highlights how many birds of prey in the UK are shot, trapped or poisoned, despite it being a criminal offence.

The charity said there had been a spike in incidents since lockdown and called for stronger regulation, including a review of grouse shooting.

North Yorkshire Police has issued several appeals for information about the killings of birds of prey but have found it difficult to prosecute.

Since the beginning of lockdown, North Yorkshire’s rural taskforce has reported one confirmed and five suspected cases of bird poisonings in the Nidderdale area.

Local businessman Keith Tordoff has put forward a £5000 reward to encourage people to come forward with information.

The first case of poisoning was noted over 18 months ago when a red kite was poisoned, but in recent months the issue seems to have resurfaced.

The confirmed case was found by a couple after a buzzard fell into their garden from a tree at the beginning of lockdown.

The several suspected cases include two family dogs, both fell ill on a walk in Nidderdale in March.

It was suspected they had eaten some poisoned bait that was meant for the birds. The two spaniel breeds were taken to the vets, where one died following the incident.

Including these two dogs, there have been a further five suspected incidents of poisonings over the past three months. Inspector Matt Hagan, the head of the rural taskforce said:

“As well as the one confirmed poisoning of a buzzard a few months ago I have sent another five suspected incidents of poisonings to the labs. I am still awaiting results, but there may be other incidents I am unaware of from other teams in the surrounding areas. The bird breeds include peregrine falcons, buzzards and red kites”.

The lockdown has meant the lab reports are delayed however the team is dedicated to finding the person responsible.

Nidderdale is a tourist hotspot, but with a series of suspected bird poisonings it has become the centre of police enquiries.

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Keith Tordoff, a local business man and former Chair of the Chamber of Trade for Pateley Bridge, said:

“When I realised the severity of what was happening I decided to put up a reward of £5000 for information.  We got some information at the beginning but no-one was convicted. Then, in lockdown a buzzard fell out of a tree into a couple’s garden still alive, when it was taken to the vet it was confirmed as a poisoning. Tests found four chemicals, three of which are illegal.”

The cash reward is still active as no convictions have been made in this case.