The children’s paddling pool at Borrage Green Lane playground in Ripon is being refurbished, with funding from North Yorkshire Council.
City council leader Andrew Williams, who also represents the Ripon Minster and Moorside division as an Independent on North Yorkshire Council, told the Stray Ferret:
“The work on re-lining the pool is being carried out to prevent future leaks.
“The aim is to have it re-opened ahead of the school summer holidays. so that families can use it once more.”
A new concrete base has been put in place as part of the refurbishment.
In addition to the re-lining of the pool in time for the arrival of warmer weather, Ripon City Council is arranging for portable toilets to be put in place at the playground for the third consecutive summer.
Read more:
Ripon paddling pool to get toilets this summer
Ripon city councillors have voted unanimously to put portable toilets next to the paddling pool on Borrage Green Lane this summer.
The large pool, in its neatly-kept park setting just off Harrogate Road, is a popular venue on warm days.
But the Harrogate Borough Council-controlled pool and adjacent playground hasn’t had toilets for many years, which can deter people staying for long.
The safety sign at Ripon paddling pool.
City council leader Andrew Williams told Ripon City Council this week:
“I contacted the borough council and am pleased to report that they have agreed to us installing portable toilets for the duration of the summer holidays.
“Of necessity, many families will be staying in Ripon this summer because of the impact of covid and we want to ensure that they can get the most out of the public facilities that we have around the city.”
The search is now on for a suitable supplier, who can install the facility in time for the school summer holidays and keep it clean and safe.
Payment for the temporary toilets will come from Ripon City Council’s strategic investment fund.
Councillor Pauline McHardy, said:
“We need to do all that we can to help people with young children.
“It has been a very difficult time for them and many are priced out of being able to go on holiday this year.”
Mayor of Ripon, Councillor Eamon Parkin, raised concern about insurance, as liability will rest with the city council.
Cllr Parkin said:
“I’m fully in support of providing facilities for families, but remember that the last time we considered providing portable toilets here, the insurance cost alone was astronomical.”
Read more:
- Ripon student wins National Youth Theatre place
- Proposed sculpture for Ripon bypass roundabout raises concerns
It was agreed that the toilets will be temporarily added to the council’s insurance policy.
Councillor Stuart Martin added:
“I think we should have no problem in finding a local supplier who can provide what we need.”
Sat nav failure sees Leeds man stuck in ‘god-forsaken’ Ripon
A Leeds man suffered an embarrassing sat nav failure when his car got stuck on a tiny footpath on the outskirts of Ripon.
The driver, who told his rescuers he was an ex-army man trying to cross the River Skell to get to work, was marooned for an hour.
He went down Borrage Green Lane, which turns into a narrow footpath that leads to a tiny footbridge.
Although the route is clearly unsuitable for vehicles, and barely wide enough to navigate in his Citroen, he soldiered on until he somehow managed to reach the bridge.
Finally accepting it was impossible to cross, he attempted to turn only for the back end of his vehicle to get wedged in the banking.
Luckily mum Jo Allenby, who was feeding her alpacas at the time of the incident early on Saturday morning, saw the mayhem and called a local farmer to help.
The farmer’s vehicle was too wide to get down the footpath so he drove a farm vehicle across the field and, with the help of another passer-by, was eventually able to release the vehicle.
Read more:
The sheepish driver then reversed to a slightly wider area, did a three-point turn and drove off without saying a word. Ms Allenby said:
“There was no ‘thank you’ or ‘sorry to bother you’, he was off. He was probably too embarrassed.
“When I first saw him I said, ‘what on earth are you doing?’. He said, ‘I don’t know what I’m doing. My sat nav took me down here. I’m never coming to this god-forsaken place again’.
“But anyone with half a brain cell could see it was a footpath. Nobody has ever gone down there in the 10 years I’ve had my animals in the field. I didn’t realise there were people as stupid as that.”