The past 12 months have seen major decisions made on development across the Harrogate district.

However, there are some schemes which remain uncertain and 2024 may hold the answer as to whether they progress or continue to stall.

Maltkiln

The last 12 months have been a whirlwind for the new settlement project which promises up to 3,000 near Green Hammerton and Cattal.

However, in January, news broke that a landowner had pulled out of the project threatening the scheme’s existence.

The landowner owns fields around Cattal train station, making up around half of the proposed site.

Now, North Yorkshire Council, which took over responsibility for the major housing scheme in April, has threatened to compulsory purchase land as a “last resort” so the 4,000-home Maltkiln settlement can be built.

Whether the authority follows through on that pledge is a development to keep an eye out for in 2024.

Harrogate Convention Centre

Perhaps one of the biggest question going into the new year is what will happen to the long promised Harrogate Convention Centre redevelopment?

North Yorkshire Council inherited a £49 million refurbishment scheme for the convention centre on Kings Road from the now defunct Harrogate Borough Council in April.

However, it has yet to decide whether to progress with the project.

Harrogate Convention Centre.

A contractor has been appointed to draw up more detailed plans for the redevelopment and a final decision was expected this year.

The convention centre opened in 1982 with conferences providing a boost to the town’s bars, restaurants and hotels, however, it has struggled to turned a profit.

The council failed in bids to the government’s Levelling Up Fund for £20 million to help pay for the project – the latest of which was turned down in November.

A previous bid, which was rejected in January, received feedback from ministers stating that it lacked evidence and rationale and may have over-stated the economic benefits.

Government feedback on the bid, released following a freedom of information request by the Stray Ferret, revealed several areas of concerns with the bid.

This is despite the fact the council, which was abolished at the end of March, paid consultants £45,000 as part of its submission to ministers.

The whole saga leaves the future of the convention centre and its refurbishment uncertain and a decision on it being pushed into another year.

Ripon’s Clotherholme development

One of the last acts of Harrogate Borough Council before it was scrapped in April 2023 was to approve a major 1,300 housing scheme on a former Ripon barracks site.

Homes England, which has been developing the plans for several years alongside the Ministry of Defence, has earmarked the Clotherholme site for new homes and facilities.

It was approved in February 2023, just over a month before the council was scrapped.

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Since then, a total of £10 million has been budgeted to cover items in a Section 106 agreement for the project.

The money will fund a number of areas, including off-site highway adjustments and contributions towards primary and secondary education provision and primary healthcare.

Now, residents in Ripon and the wider district await for the news that spades will hit the ground.

Kirby Hill services

The 25-year saga which is Kirby Hill took another turn in 2023.

Dublin-based company Applegreen, which wants to build a motorway service station near the village, tabled final plans for the project.

The proposals were approved in September – however, campaigners threatened to take the decision to a judicial review.

Designs for the service station near Kirby Hill, as proposed by Applegreen.

Applegreen, which is based in Dublin, applied for amendments to the proposal, including an extension to the length of the slip roads and increasing the permissible height of the eastern dumbbell roundabout by up to 1.25 metres.

But, Gareth Owens, chair of the Kirby Hill RAMS, said the move amounted to “significant change” to the scheme and confirmed the campaign group would challenge the approval.

It seems the saga which has been a quarter of a century in the making may yet go on for another year.

Harrogate, Leeds and Sheffield have been named as the three places forecast to experience the region’s highest economic growth over the next two years.

The EY Regional Economic Forecast, compiled by accounting firm Ernst & Young, says Leeds’ economy is expected to grow by 2.1% per year on average over the course of 2024 to 2026.

Harrogate and Sheffield are predicted to have the joint-second fastest-growing economies across Yorkshire and the Humber over the same period, with both projected to see annual average growth of 1.9%. Hull fares worst, with forecasted growth of 1.2%.

The region’s overall forecasted average annual growth of 1.7% is the joint lowest in the UK — and well below London’s predicted 2.6%.

Stephen Church, Ernst & Young’s north market leader, said:

“The north is home to many of the UK’s most dynamic and innovative businesses and, while the next 12 months will be economically challenging, there are areas across the region where we can expect to see encouraging growth over the next few years.”

But Mr Church added “too many places are still expected to trail behind” and that regions “need their own clear strategies for growth, which reflect each region’s own strengths and unique attributes”.

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By 2026, Harrogate’s local economy is expected to be £0.2 billion larger than in 2022. The real estate activities and professional, scientific and technical sectors are expected to record the biggest absolute increases in growth over this period.

As well as expecting some of the fastest economic growth in the region from 2024 to 2026, Harrogate and Sheffield are also forecast to see their employment growth match the national growth rate over the same period, with annual average growth of 1.3% in both places.

The regional average is 1.1%.

Ernst & Young, one of the big four accounting firms, uses economic data to model future performance for the forecast.

Harrogate Borough Council has agreed to sell a plot of land next to Oak Beck retail park.

The land, a former quarry extending to a third of an acre, was put up for sale by the council in order to encourage economic development.

It sits next to the retail park off Skipton Road, where Aldi and B&Q are based.

Council officials said the authority received six offers for the site after it had been put on the market. Senior councillors agreed to the sale at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, though it was not revealed who the buyer is.

Cllr Graham Swift, cabinet member for resources at the borough council, said the cash received from the sale would help fund major projects, such as the planned redevelopment of Harrogate Convention Centre.

He told the meeting:

“This summarises the fact that in our asset management strategy, we have taken the opportunity to sell off small parcels of non-strategic land which enables us to then fund very considerable investments that viewers and residents will be hearing tonight around the HCC, leisure complexes and the significant investment we’re making in enhanced services.

“So it speaks such a lot of sense and it’s a very clear, fair market programme and I am very happy to move the project.”

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Economic growth in the Harrogate district has been slower than regional and national averages since the district took a £438 million hit during covid.

Gross Value Added (GVA) data published by Harrogate Borough Council shows the local economy contracted by 10% – or £438 million – during 2020 and that growth has lagged behind Yorkshire and the Humber and the UK.

GVA measures the value of goods and services produced in an area, and Harrogate’s figure was set to reach £4.3 billion before the pandemic struck.

It now stands at £3.87 billion – down from £4.26 billion in 2017/18.

A council report said economic performance has been “positive” given the impacts of covid and Brexit, but added there are “continuing challenges that need to be addressed” as experts forecast a gloomy outlook with a UK recession on the horizon.

The report said:

“Overall the performance has been positive but key factors that must be taken into account are that of the UK’s exit from the European Union and the covid-19 pandemic.

“Covid-19 in particular has had a significant impact on GVA with the district seeing a 10% reduction in the economy.

“Looking forward post pandemic, forecasts show that job numbers will not return to pre-covid levels and therefore increasing productivity becomes more of a priority than ever.”

Other figures show the total number of businesses registered in Harrogate increased by 4% between 2016 and 2021 – below both the regional and national averages of 8% and 13%.

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In more positive figures, unemployment is low at 3.1% and the council has been keen to highlight its support for businesses during covid when it handed out more than £96 million to firms which were severely impacted by lockdown restrictions.

The report to a cabinet meeting on Wednesday has recommended “closing down” the council’s covid recovery plan, whilst also providing a review of its economic growth strategy which was adopted in 2017.

At the time it was adopted, the strategy identified a low wage economy and high house prices leading to a “brain drain” of people moving out of Harrogate as key problems facing the district.

These issues are still very much prevalent with average salaries of £25,000 below the UK figure of £30,000 and Harrogate house prices averaging £338,786 this year.

The report added:

“Whilst positive progress has been made since the adoption of the economic growth strategy in 2017, there are continuing challenges that need to be addressed.

“In line with national and local strategies, the council will therefore continue to prioritise and support ‘good growth’ in the district, with an aim of embedding a more sustainable and resilient economy.”

Business Breakfast is sponsored by Harrogate law firm Truth Legal. 

Business workshop to take place in Harrogate

ActionCOACH Harrogate is hosting a free business workshop at Starling Independent Bar Cafe Kitchen next week.

It’s been designed for business owners who want “a more manageable, more profitable business that can work without them.”

Andrew Joy will talk business people through the ActionCOACH “6 Steps” model that’s used by many successful companies around the world.

The free morning of business coaching will include marketing concepts, sales promotion and profit-building systems that can be put into practice straight away.

To register visit here.

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Nidderdale to host events on how farmers can improve their businesses

Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) is hosting a series of events throughout August to help local farmers respond to current challenges.

This includes farmers who have taken on regenerative farming practices, or who have diversified into new enterprises, including artisan cheese production and the development of a Yorkshire barn wedding venue.

Speakers include a regenerative farming consultant, a Nuffield scholar veterinarian, and representatives from the Pasture Fed Livestock Association.

The events are hosted in locations across Nidderdale, including Middlesmoor, Grewelthorpe and Blubberhouses. For more information visit here.

Matthew Trevelyan, farming in protected landscapes officer at Nidderdale AONB, said:

“We want to help farmers respond to current challenges. It is likely that ‘business as usual’ won’t work for many of the AONB’s farmers in the future, especially as the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) is withdrawn.”

It’s now more than two years since a marketing drive to attract visitors and investors to Harrogate was launched with the backing of £45,000 in taxpayer’s money.

Think Harrogate set out to create a “brand” for the district and was supported by several businesses ready to sell Harrogate’s “story”.

But what has the project actually achieved?

That was a question put to Conservative councillor Graham Swift, deputy leader of Harrogate Borough Council, at a meeting on Wednesday.

Cllr Swift said it was “quite extensive” how much Harrogate has got for the “modest” amount of money spent on the project which has been led by Preston-based marketing firm Thinking Place.

Yet this was not a view shared by the Liberal Democrats whose councillor Chris Aldred said they had heard “very little” about Think Harrogate’s achievements.

Cllr Swift, who is also cabinet member for resources, enterprise and economic development, responded:

“A recent Ipsos survey looking into the UK’s economic recovery from covid identified Harrogate as the third best performing city or town.

“That is a direct impact of the work of our officers and covid recovery plan, and is also part of the whole environment of what Think Harrogate is about.”

He added:

“I’ve read a few Liberal Democrat leaflets recently that claim much of this work is not worthwhile.

“I suggest that’s because they ignore the data.”

Cllr Swift said branding material produced as part of Think Harrogate had created a “clear narrative” for the district and been used in shops and on road signs, as well as part of a ‘shop local, shop safe’ campaign earlier in the Covid pandemic.

He also said the branding had been used by Harrogate Convention Centre and in a new tourism strategy led by the council’s destination management organisation.

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But Cllr Aldred argued these marketing campaigns and strategies would have still gone ahead – even without Think Harrogate.

He said:

“We would have had the destination management organisation and we certainly had a tourism industry before the wonderful Think Harrogate came along.”

In the first phases of the project, around £42,000 was spent on research on how the Harrogate district is perceived by the public and how its offer can be improved to attract more visitors and investment.

This also included consultations with businesses and residents, as well as the creation of a steering group and branding material.

A further £14,400 was spent on the project launch, printing costs, and events and classes which councillor Swift said were “very welcomed by very large numbers of people.”

He also said a Think Harrogate leadership group had met six times during 2020.

And when questioned by councillor Aldred why they had not met more, Cllr Swift said:

“I don’t know if you’re aware but there is a thing called coronavirus which stopped a lot of meetings taking place.”

Cllr Swift added:

“The funds we have spent on supporting our £4 billion economy are modest, but they are cumulatively highly effective as demonstrated by the vibrancy of our town and the return to normal from coronavirus.

“There is also the marvellous work of our destination management organisation, the convention centre, our museums, leisure facilities and 1,100 staff – all of whom collectively add to the excellent product to ensure we all Think Harrogate.”

North Yorkshire’s economy is returning to pre-lockdown levels of productivity, according to a county council report.

An authority paper into the performance of the tourism and agriculture dominated area’s economy over the last 12 months underlines how the county’s service industries have bounced back despite facing a range of challenges, such as high inflation.

The study comes as officers work to develop a new economic growth plan for North Yorkshire, and in particular examine the opportunities to bring together the district councils’ roles as local agencies of development in the county’s new unitary authority, to support greater wellbeing and prosperity.

Economic growth officers said the latest data suggests that although the county experienced a greater percentage decline in productivity than the UK as a whole during the pandemic, the recovery in North Yorkshire has been stronger, with the hospitality sector’s resilience being “a key factor”.

The report states how at the height of the pandemic, some 32% of workers – 88,200 – across the county and some 40% in Scarborough district were furloughed, which was among the highest rates in the North of England.

However, it highlights how in January, following the end of furlough schemes, North Yorkshire’s unemployment claimant count stood at 2.5% compared with 4.7% across Yorkshire and Humber and 4.4% for the country.

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With just 1.8% of Richmondshire’s population aged 16 to 64 claiming unemployment-related benefits, the district has the lowest percentage claimant count on the UK mainland. Only the Orkney Islands and the Isle of Scilly have a lower rate.

The report states: 

“Constrained labour supply will be a limiting factor on future growth opportunities nationally, but particularly in North Yorkshire. Work is currently being undertaken in partnership with the University of York to understand the implications of this.”

Richmondshire District Council corporate board spokesman Richard Good welcomed the low number of unemployment claimants in the area, but said it could prove to be a double-edged sword for the area.

He said: 

“It is a slight problem because a lot of people, and in particular hospitality businesses, are struggling to find staff at the busy season. It could impact on businesses as they are certainly struggling to recruit.”

The report concludes a key outcome of the pandemic has been the change in workplace practices to more flexibility and the development of a working from home economy.

It states: 

“This has the ability to transform our rural economy, as there is less need to commute to a physical place of work for many people.

“The council’s support of digital connectivity has been invaluable in supporting North Yorkshire as a future place to live an excellent quality of life while being able to access a range of different work possibilities.”

The Stray Ferret is to launch a daily business news feature for the Harrogate district.

Business Breakfast will start tomorrow and be published every weekday at 5am. It will bring together all business information for the district including appointments, contracts, awards and financial performance news.

Later this week, The Stray Ferret will celebrate its second birthday – it launched just before the first lockdown in March 2020 at a time when local businesses were in turmoil as shops and venues closed and everyone left the office to work from home.

The Stray Ferret director Tamsin O’Brien says, as the district slowly returns to normality, now is the time to produce a comprehensive roundup of daily business news.

She said:

“During the first two years of our existence we were preoccupied with covering the covid pandemic in the best way we could for the district. We reported continually on how the crisis impacted on businesses and the local economy.

“Now that we’re coming out of covid, we wanted to create a daily round-up of all local business news that we hope will become a must-read before work.”

Since its launch the Stray Ferret has seen rapid growth. In January this year the website had 210,000 readers and more than a million pages were viewed. It has a highly engaged social media following of more than 23,000 people and in December The Stray Ferret app was launched which already has 3,000 regular users.

If you would like your businesses’ news to be included — send us the information to contact@thestrayferret.co.uk

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Harrogate and Knaresborough MP Andrew Jones has so far remained silent on the expected scrapping of plans to extend the HS2 line from Birmingham to Leeds.

The former rail minister has been a vocal advocate of the project. In February 2019, he said that it would be a “betrayal of the north” if it did not go ahead.

However, government sources briefed national media outlets over the weekend about the decision ahead of an expected announcement on Thursday.

Just two months ago Mr Jones reiterated his support for HS2 at the annual Transport for the North conference in Leeds. He said:

“I hope that we do not see any compromise on our desire for big investment in our infrastructure. We have failed spectacularly to invest enough in our infrastructure.

“This has meant it is now too expensive and too difficult to move people and goods around the country. So I do not support the argument that we need to abandon longer term infrastructure investment.”

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At a previous Transport for the North conference in February 2019, Mr Jones went further and criticised media outlets for reporting speculation over the future of the HS2 Birmingham to Leeds line.

“We have all probably seen some media reports claiming that the northern stages of HS2 might not be built. They are nonsense.

“HS2 was conceived, developed and is now being delivered as a national railway. But in particular to improve links for our area.

“So our commitment to the full network of HS2 is undiminished. To cancel anything would be a betrayal of the north.”

The Stray Ferret asked Mr Jones for his thoughts this morning. However, he did not reply to our request for comment by the time of publication.

The average salary of jobs advertised in the Harrogate district from January to March 2021 rose by 28% compared with the same three-month period last year, according to a report by Harrogate borough council.

The quarterly economic overview of the Harrogate district says that the average salary for jobs advertised in the first quarter of this year was £32,000 – up from £25,000 in 2020.

The five sectors providing the largest number of employment opportunities were human health and social work; education; professional, scientific and technical; wholesale and retail trade; and accommodation and food services.

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However, the number of vacancies in the care and hospitality industries in particular are causing headaches.

It was reported this week that around 500 care workers in North Yorkshire could be forced out of their jobs when compulsory vaccines come into force in November.

Mike Padgham, chair of the non-profit organisation Independent Care Group, which provides care services in North Yorkshire and York, told the local democracy reporting service about the scale of the crisis. He said: 

“The staffing crisis is now so bad that providers are battling day-to-day to cover shifts both in homes and in looking after people in their own home.

“Many say it is the worst they have known in more than 30 years and so we need urgent action now before the added pressures of winter turn this into a total meltdown.”

EU nationals in the Harrogate district

Meanwhile, the number of national insurance number (NINO) registrations by EU nationals has decreased year-on-year by 64%.

Between January and March 2020, there were 67 NINO EU registrations.

In the same period this year, there were only 24 NINO EU registrations in total.

There are some signs that this may change though. Last month, the branch manager of Travail Employment Group, which recruits front-of-house and catering positions across the district, spoke to the Stray Ferret about the impact of Brexit on hospitality recruitment.

Lisa Headford believed it’s overly simplistic to blame Brexit on the recruitment crisis in hospitality. She said:

“It’s not definitive. We’ve had a number of people come back to Harrogate from Poland as during the lockdown they didn’t have a permanent job, and they wouldn’t have got furlough. They are now gravitating back.”

Good news for the high street

The council report also shows an improving picture for the town centre, with the retail vacancy rate decreasing from 8.6% in January-March 2020 to 6.8% in 2021.

Councillor Graham Swift, Harrogate Borough Council’s deputy leader and cabinet member for economic development, said:

“It is really encouraging to see that the economy is recovering well across the Harrogate district. Especially with shop vacancy rates reducing.

“As the district starts to exit coronavirus lockdowns and returns to a more normalised ways of living, we are keen to ensure that key investment projects are pushed ahead to ensure the local economy recovers and thrives.

“We will also not want to do this alone, and have already been working proactively with a wide range of people and organisations and will continue to work in collaboration with our partners to share ideas and maximise resources we have available to us.”