Harrogate Borough Council confirmed today that an artisan market will go ahead in Valley Gardens as part of the town’s festive offering.

The market, which will be held on December 4 and 5 between 10am and 3pm, will be one of two Christmas markets in Harrogate.

The council said it had approved an event management plan submitted by market organisers Little Bird Made.

It had previously failed to approve an event management plan for the traditional Christmas market on Montpellier submitted by Harrogate Christmas Market Ltd, meaning it will not take place.

Sixty local and regional traders and producers will sell festive arts and crafts, clothing, homeware and jewellery, as well as food and drink, at the Valley Gardens event.

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Kirsty Stewart, parks and grounds maintenance manager at the council, said:

“The market will showcase some fantastic home-grown traders and producers and what better setting than Valley Gardens.”

Jackie Crozier, owner of Little Bird Made, said she was delighted by the news and urged anyone interested in having a stall to get in touch. She added:

“Our markets showcase some of Yorkshire’s finest small businesses and are a great opportunity to bring some festive cheer and buy that special gift for the holidays.”

The market will accompany a separate council-approved event called Harrogate Christmas Market, which will take place on Cambridge Street, Market Place, Station Square and Cambridge Crescent in Harrogate town centre between December 3 and 12. This event will be run by Market Place Europe.

A ferris wheel, Victorian carousel, helter skelter and road train will also be part the council’s Harrogate’s festive package.

The festivities will last from November 15 to the first week of January.

Food safety standards at some Harrogate businesses have “deteriorated significantly” during the covid pandemic, a report has revealed.

Inspections by food safety officers resumed in July after being halted earlier in the pandemic and there has since been three voluntary closures of businesses and two emergency hygiene prohibition orders issued – more than the two previous years combined.

That is according to a new report from Harrogate Borough Council, which said “standards have deteriorated significantly” and that staff were now working through a backlog of inspections.

The report said: 

“Since recommencing full on-site food hygiene inspections in July 2021 it appears that standards have deteriorated significantly in some premises.

“This seems to be partly due to changes in food business operators during the lockdowns whilst we were unable to carry out full on-site inspections.

“However, some existing traders have just let standards slip.”

While the council carried out inspections at all ‘high risk’ food establishments, just 16% of new businesses were inspected against a target of 90% in 2020/21.

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During the same period, 24% of ‘lower risk’ businesses were inspected against a target of 95%.

The report said this was “entirely due to the impact of the covid pandemic” during which staff focused their efforts on infection control, advice and enforcement.

Rodent infestation in pub

One business which was served an emergency hygiene prohibition order was the Black Swan Inn in Fearby near Masham which was found to have a rodent infestation and dirty kitchen during a routine inspection.

The order was served in August by the council which said the pub was “dirty throughout” and that staff were unable to wash their hands after handling raw food.

Speaking at the time, Cllr Mike Chambers, cabinet member for housing and safer communities at the council, said: 

“It is imperative that food businesses maintain hygiene and food safety at all times, even more so during the current covid pandemic.

“The council’s environmental health officers work hard to provide guidance and advice to businesses in ensuring that they can operate safely.

“Any business failing to heed and act on such advice – which then subsequently fails an inspection which identifies a risk to public health – needs to understand that we will, when necessary, not hesitate to take formal action which could well result in prosecution.”

At a meeting on Tuesday, Cllr Chambers approved a food service recovery plan which details the work to be carried out by inspectors over the coming year.

This includes inspecting the average 200 new food establishments that register each year, targeting efforts towards ‘high risk’ businesses and managing food safety standards at the increasing number of events and festivals.

The plan said:

“The overall aim will be for the local authority to choose the most appropriate action to be taken to drive up levels of compliance by food establishments with food law.”

Plans for 36 homes in Goldsborough have been approved despite fears the development will “tear up” the historic village’s conservation area.

Stonebridge Homes was granted final approval by Harrogate Borough Council yesterday at the third time of asking.

The housing company was previously told to rethink its Station Road scheme and hold a meeting with councillors and residents.

This meeting was held in August but it was followed only by complaints that the developers “weren’t willing to shift” on issues including the density and design of the homes.

Speaking at a meeting of the council’s planning committee, councillor Andrew Paraskos, a Conservative who represents Spofforth with Lower Wharfedale, said:

“A meeting did take place but there was no movement from the developers at all.

“Residents understand that there will be something on this plot, but they would just like something that is more in keeping with the village.

“We have deferred this plan twice and I think it is now time to refuse it.”

‘Conservation area is a sham’

Resident Noel Evans also said the plans appeared to be “set in stone with no bridge for improvements” and that the development would amount to a “public tearing up of the Goldsborough conservation area”.

The conservation area sits adjacent to the site and was introduced in 2008 as an area of architectural and historical interest, including much of the village.

Mr Evans said:

“The tallest buildings proposed on this site will be amongst the highest buildings in Goldsborough – higher than the church and Goldsborough Hall.

“This will irretrievably destroy the historic skyline. This site needs an entirely fresh and appropriate set of plans.

“The conservation area is a sham and has no reason to exist with this council.”

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In its latest proposals, Stonebridge Homes included additional tree planting and information relating to materials.

The developers also argued the plans met national requirements and had received the backing of council officers three times with recommendations of approval.

Becky Lomas, an agent for Stonebridge Homes, told the meeting:

“The proposal before you today creates a well designed scheme, which is able to meet national requirements.

“This is a position which has been supported by council officers three times now at planning committee and the proposal of 36 dwellings is not considered to be in conflict with the development plan.”

The plans – which include a mix of one to five-bedroom properties – received 39 objections from residents and no letters of support.

The application was approved by councillors on the planning committee with six votes for, three against and one abstention.

A housebuilding company has been awarded an £89.5 million contract to build 390 homes in Ripon.

Homes England, the government’s housing agency, has commissioned Taylor Wimpey to build the scheme off West Lane in the city.

The contract is due to start in November and finish in October 2027.

Homes England bought the site in February, along with two other developments in Harrogate.

The proposal for Ripon already has outline permission after a government planning inspector approved the development following an appeal in 2018.

It includes plans for 156 of the homes to be designated as affordable housing along with a mixture of one, two and three-bedroom homes.

Read more:

• Homes England submits final plans for 390 homes near Ripon
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Homes England submitted final plans for design and layout of the site in June. Harrogate Borough Council has yet to make a decision on the application.

A spokesperson for Homes England said:

“We intervened to buy West Lane in Ripon to unlock this stalled housing site.

“We’re really pleased that Taylor Wimpey have been selected as our preferred developer, to take on the mantle of providing quality new homes, including 40% affordable provision – that’s 156 affordable homes in an area where they are most needed.”

A spokesperson for Taylor Wimpey said:

“We are delighted to have been selected as preferred developer to deliver in partnership with Homes England a high-quality scheme of 390 homes on the West Lane site in Ripon.

“We have taken a landscape-led design approach to develop a residential masterplan that will enhance the character and identity of the site. We are providing significant areas of open space to allow new residents and visitors to enjoy a high-quality living environment with an attractive outlook. The development will include locally-equipped play facilities and attractive biodiverse landscape features.

“The development will create jobs and employment opportunities in the local community during the construction phase. We expect to start work on site in spring 2022.”

History of West Lane site

In 2018, Harrogate Borough Council granted permission to Barratt Homes on appeal for the development.

It was previously rejected in 2017 for being a “substantial intrusion into the open countryside” and because of its impact on nearby Studley Royal and Fountains Abbey.

The site layout for the West Lane development, as submitted to Harrogate Borough Council.

However, Barratt Homes pulled out of the scheme in July last year.

The developer told The Stray Ferret the decision was not related to the lockdown but in a year-end trading update, the company announced revenue had fallen by 30% due to the coronavirus pandemic.

It means Homes England now has a major presence in the Harrogate district.

The developer already has plans submitted with the council for 200 homes at a former police training centre on Yew Tree Lane, Harrogate, and is working on a 1,300 home scheme at Ripon barracks.

Homes England also bought the 450-home Bluecoat Park site off Otley Road in Harrogate at the same time as it purchased the West Lane site.

It said the two developments had stalled for various reasons, including the “associated enabling costs” and that their planning permissions were due to lapse imminently.

A Boroughbridge company plans to build a heat and power plant to produce “greener” and “cost-effective” energy at its headquarters.

Reed Boardall, which stores and delivers frozen food to UK supermarkets, employs 800 staff at its site off Bar Lane and operates a fleet of 196 vehicles 24 hours a day.

The company has submitted plans for a combined heat and power plant, which would be built on its site and generate electricity.

According to documents lodged with Harrogate Borough Council, the plant would work by “igniting air and natural gas to produce hot, high-pressure gases”.

The gas would then be fed through a turbine to drive an electrical generator and produce electricity.

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The company added that the energy would be used to power its headquarters in Boroughbridge. Any excess energy would be exported back to the local electricity network.

Greener alternative

Andrew Baldwin, managing director of Reed Boardall’s cold storage division, told the Stray Ferret: 

“We’re investing in a new combined heat and power system as a way of protecting the energy needs of our business for the future. 

“It is more cost-effective than buying power from the National Grid and is generally considered to be a greener alternative. We expect it to be fully operational by the end of the year.”

If approved, construction of the plant is expected to take place over three months.

Once up and running, the plant would run for 24 hours a day, seven days a week. However, it would be unmanned and operated remotely.

Harrogate Borough Council will make a decision on the proposal at a later date.

The plan follows a multi-million expansion of Reed Boardall’s Boroughbridge site.

In May, the company announced it had finished a 110,000 square foot expansion to one of its cold storage units at its 55-acre site in Boroughbridge, which will help it meet increased customer demand.

Harrogate Borough Council has approved plans for eight new commercial units at the former Dunlopillo factory site in Pannal.

York-based Echo Green Developments has lodged the application, which will see the units based to the northern part of the site on Thirkill Drive.

It will also include 28 car parking spaces, 10 cycle spaces and two motorcycle spaces.

The developer said in planning documents that the scheme would “deliver much needed economic development” and that the site was earmarked as employment land by the council.

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The former Dunlopillo site has undergone considerable redevelopment already.

Councillors gave permission to change the site into a mixed-use development back in 2015. Much of the site has already been demolished and replaced by housing as well as the Vida Grange care home.

Approval has also been granted to demolish the former Dunlopillo office block and build 48 apartments.

Harrogate Borough Council has awarded a £270,846 contract to Claywood Construction Ltd to refurbish Harrogate’s Sun Pavilion.

The pavilion, which has an art deco glass dome and overlooks Valley Gardens, hosts weddings and can accommodate up to 200 guests. But it has been run down for some time.

The Leeds-based company will be tasked with reconstructing the floor, installing underfloor heating. replacing the heating system, refurbishing the toilets and repairing the leaky roof.

In a report, the council said refurbishment and maintenance of the building would protect “the value and prolonging the life of the asset” and ensure “the health and safety of building users”.

Completed in the 1930s, the venue on Cornwall Road was restored to its original state in 1998 and reopened by the queen.

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The government has approved controversial plans for 72 homes in Spofforth. The approval will come as a bitter disappointment to many residents who fought the development.

Yorkshire Housing Ltd has challenged Harrogate Borough Council’s decision to refuse its proposal for the site on Massey Fold.

The developer already had outline permission to build on the site, but councillors turned down an application for appearance and landscaping in November 2020.

Siobhan Watson, a government planning inspector, has given the go-ahead for the proposal.

Ms Watson said in her decision report:

“I find some harm to the character and appearance of the countryside, however, I find the internal layout and detailed design of the proposed housing to be acceptable.”

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She also awarded costs against the council after finding that the authority “behaved unreasonably” and that its reasons for refusal were “vague and illogical”.

Ms Watson said:

“Given the site’s planning history, I find the council’s refusal of the application and subsequent defence of the case to be both vague and illogical. I consider that the development should have been clearly permitted and that the council produced vague and generalised assertions about the proposal’s impact which are unsupported by objective analysis. 

“The council has therefore behaved unreasonably, and thereby caused the party applying for the costs to incur unnecessary expense in the appeal process.”

The decision follows concerns from local residents over the design and that the housing would not be in keeping with the village.

More than 300 local people and organisations, including Natural England and Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, raised concerns about the scheme.

Shirley Fawcett, chairman of Spofforth with Stockeld Parish Council, wrote to Prime Minister Boris Johnson appealing for help in challenging the development.

She said in her letter that the village is “a very blue village but which is seeing red thanks to the government’s planning policies”.

Ms Fawcett added that it “will never be the same” if the appeal is allowed and that the “Sword of Damocles” hung over villagers.

The developer said the borough council had “unreasonably delayed development” at the site and that its case “does not contain any objective analysis that justifies the reason for refusal”.

Yorkshire Housing Ltd declined to comment at this stage.

The Harrogate district has been awarded £50,000 of government cash to bring forward housing on two underused garage sites.

The cash will be used by Harrogate Borough Council to cover infrastructure costs for five new homes at the sites on Woodfield Close, Harrogate and Park Row, Knaresborough.

Other councils received more funding – including City of York which got more than £2.5 million – but the borough council said it was still “delighted” with its allocation.

A council spokesperson said: 

“£50,000 is no small sum and the council tenants of Harrogate will be more than happy to see this cost met by the grant award and not from council rents.

“This is a fund specifically aimed at the cost of infrastructure requirements on council-owned land.

“By helping meet these costs, sites will become viable for development, either by the local authority directly or by private developers, enabling the site to be placed on the open market.”

The council has secured almost £4.5 million for such sites over the past few years.

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The latest allocation comes from the government’s £75 million Brownfield Land Release Fund which aims to bring forward affordable homes and get people on the property ladder.

Harrogate is one of the most unaffordable places to live in England, with average house prices around 11 times the median annual income of people who work in the district.

The council itself has admitted there is a “desperate” lack of affordable homes and has pledged to bring these properties forward through private developments, building social housing and bringing empty properties back into use.

Announcing the latest funding allocation, Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, MP Michael Gove said: 

“We are levelling up and backing home ownership in every corner of the country, delivering new high-quality, affordable homes and creating thriving places where people want to live, work and visit.

“Making the most of previously developed land is a government priority and it will help protect our cherished countryside and green spaces.”

Daniel Ainsley’s brutal stabbing of Mark Wolsey was the culmination of more than a decade of trouble at one of Harrogate’s most notorious crime hotspots.

Now, as Ainsley awaits his sentence, angry local residents want to know why North Yorkshire Police and Harrogate Borough Council failed to clamp down harder on activities at the house where the murder happened.

They also want to know why the council transferred thousands of pounds to landlord John Willis Properties Ltd to accommodate homeless people, and accuse the council of being complicit in the problems by funding the volatile situation in the property when it should have been taking action.

Numerous residents, whose campaign to make the area safer fell on deaf ears, have vented their frustration to the Stray Ferret. They want to know why so little was done to address longstanding problems at the house — and what is being done to prevent a repeat.

Mark Wolsey, who was murdered at 38 Mayfield Grove.

A recipe for trouble

38 Mayfield Grove was branded the House from Hell in 2005 when a court granted a three-month closure order following a spate of crime, including a crossbow being held at a resident’s head.

The house, owned then and now by John Willis Properties Limited, of which the landlord John Willis is the sole director, has absorbed a huge amount of police time since then.

In this report we’ll hear the views of the local residents, Mr Willis, the council and the police. There is no suggestion of illegal activity by Mr Willis’ or John Willis Properties Limited’s behalf.

But the situation highlights how the system can fail to protect homeless people.

Flowers outside the home after the murder. The closure notice is pinned to the door.

255 police reports about 38 Mayfield Grove

A Freedom of Information request by the Stray Ferret revealed that between April 2008 and July this year, the public reported 38 Mayfield Grove 255 times to North Yorkshire Police. This averages almost two reports a month over 13 years.

The house is divided into six privately let bedsits and tenants often have guests. Ainsley was staying in Mr Wolsey’s bedsit when he killed him. Many tenants over the years have had multiple issues, such as drug and alcohol addictions and mental health problems, as well as backgrounds of homelessness and crime.

Local residents told us it’s difficult to think of a more dangerous scenario than housing people with multiple needs together in a terraced home on a busy street, and this problem should have been identified and tackled.

Daniel Neill, who until recently lived on Nydd Vale Terrace, a street parallel to Mayfield Grove that has other properties let by Mr Willis’ company, has been at the forefront of the residents’ campaign for a safer neighbourhood. He said:

“The entire set-up is a recipe for trouble. It doesn’t take a genius to work it out. The worst thing you can do with addicts is put them alongside other addicts.

“For 15 years people knew that 38 Mayfield Grove was the place to go for drugs. It was an open secret. Police did regular drive-bys. Yet it just kept going on.”

£7,000 council payments to John Willis Properties Ltd

Yet despite longstanding concerns about 38 Mayfield Grove, the council transferred £2,112 in 2017 and £5,424 in 2018 to John Willis Properties Ltd.

The council says the payments were “for the benefit of our homeless customers and were not made as part of a contract or agreement with the landlord”. It adds:

“The money paid to John Willis Properties Ltd was transferred to help customers assessed as homeless or threatened with homelessness to access private rented accommodation.”

Taxpayers’ funds were transferred to John Willis Properties Ltd until as recently as December 2018.

Read more:

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While the council was paying John Willis Properties between March 2017 and December 2018, it received six housing complaints relating to seven properties let by the company and seven noise complaints relating to five properties.

Residents, who tried unsuccessfully to get a closure order against another of Mr Willis’ properties in the area in 2018, say the council not only failed to tackle problems going on inside the house but contributed to them by funding the landlord.

A letter from 45 residents to Richard Cooper, the leader of Harrogate Borough Council, sent after the murder, accused the council of oversight and complicity. It added:

“We don’t feel like valued members of the community. We don’t feel safe. We don’t feel like our voices are being heard.”

The letter also accused the council of “pulling the plug” on police and residents’ efforts to tackle issues at 38 Mayfield Grove.

Daniel Ainsley was staying in Mr Wolsey’s bedsit when he murdered him.

What could the council have done?

The council argues it has limited power to act but Mr Neill says the payments beggar belief considering the well-known problems associated with some of Mr Willis’ properties. The council, he says, was either blind or neglectful.

The options included adopting provisions in the Housing Act 2004, which give local authorities the power to use selective licensing to tackle anti-social behaviour, or introducing special interim management orders, which allow local authorities to take over the management of houses in multiple occupation.

The council’s private sector housing enforcement policy, which sets out its approach to complying with its statutory duties to ensure private sector residents live in good quality, safe accommodation, says the council will adopt ‘a positive prevention, intervention and enforcement approach’ to protect people from harm.

Three John Willis properties closed since murder

In the wake of the murder on March 5, the police and council moved swiftly to get a court order to close 38 Mayfield Grove for three months from March 22, which meant tenants had to find alternative accommodation.

On June 28, magistrates granted the police and council partial closure orders against two other properties let as bedsits by Mr Willis, at 19 and 31 Avenue Grove, Starbeck, due to crime concerns.

The police and council have also organised a residents’ summit and a community engagement drop-in session to discuss 38 Mayfield Grove and to reassure people that ‘the Harrogate district remains a safe place to live and any anti-social behaviour is taken very seriously’.

But residents say the recent flurry of activity contrasts sharply with years of inertia that allowed crime to scar the neighbourhood and blight residents’ lives. They also want to see action to prevent a repeat.

Mr Neill, who like many people in the area was concerned about the safety of his family, said:

“These problems have been going on for years.

“I don’t want individuals fired. I just want to make sure this doesn’t happen again, but I don’t get the impression the council is facing up to it.”

Mayfield Grove is close to Harrogate town centre.

Residents scared

Mr Neill says local police officers “have been nothing but helpful and straightforward” and share residents’ frustrations about the lack of council action.

But he was critical of a police initiative asking 120 homes to log anti-social behaviour, which attracted just three replies. The log obliged people to leave their names and addresses, which many residents were scared to do because it came shortly after a woman who was dragged down the street by her hair was threatened after going to the police

Another resident, who asked not to be named, said she had struggled to sell her house because of the area’s reputation. Another said:

“The amount of hassle caused by people in that house over the years is unbelievable.

“It’s almost like there are no lessons being learned. The same things happen again and again. I’m sick to my back teeth about it because nothing ever gets done.”

“I’m passionate about helping disadvantaged people”

The Stray Ferret put these accusations to John Willis. He said he was passionate about helping disadvantaged people, unlike many other housing providers, and did everything he reasonably could to protect them.

“Other landlords cherry pick the best tenants and sadly that leaves a disadvantaged group. Homeless hostels are full. I try to help them.”

Mr Willis said he lets 10 properties in Harrogate and the average age of his tenants is 50.

He said he’d taken many tenants from the council and partner agencies, such as Harrogate Homeless Project on Bower Street, close to Mayfield Grove, during his 31 years as a landlord. Some tenants, he said, had been with him throughout that time.

Asked whether housing people with multiple problems under one roof was a recipe for trouble, he said:

“Some have drug and alcohol addictions but they are mostly engaging with healthcare providers. Sometimes I’ve had to evict tenants but I have always had to work within the framework of the law.

“Sometimes you have to find likeminded people to live together. It can be difficult with tenants with challenging behaviours, that’s why it’s so important to engage with external agencies. But it can accentuate problems when you have them largely living under one roof.”

John Willis

Mr Willis said he offered to pay for a support worker to help tenants in his 10 Harrogate properties.

“I advertised for it and had 22 applications. But the council said it wasn’t a direction they wanted to go in because there was sufficient help already.”

The council, he said, had told him it had “paused” recommending tenants to him.

He said the 255 police reports about Mayfield Grove could include numerous cases of incidents merely being logged. But he added:

“There have been incidents and they have been followed up. Most tenants did have some healthcare professional or support worker. They were all on the radar.

“But it’s not 24/7 support and there’s only so much you can do.”

Mr Willis said he occasionally moved tenants between properties if they didn’t settle.

“Some tenants want to move and this is discussed with external agencies.”

He said he was responsive to tenants’ needs and operated legally.

“I’m not an absent landlord. It’s just unfortunate that there has been this incident.”

He said he and police had met Mr Wolsey a month before his death to discuss ways of helping him.

“He was a jovial character and I was very sad about what happened but at the end of the day there’s only so much a landlord can do.”

Forensic officers at the scene after the murder.

Police and council joint statement

The Stray Ferret asked Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire Police a series of specific questions about why they hadn’t done more to address concerns at 38 Mayfield Grove and their relationship with Mr Willis. It also asked what actions were being taken to prevent further problems.

The two organisations issued a joint statement after the murder verdict. It said:

“Anti-social behaviour can blight the lives of residents and shatter local communities and we are absolutely committed to taking a multi-agency partnership approach to deal with any issues in Harrogate in both the short and long term via a range of strategies.

“In relation to 38 Mayfield Grove, extensive work has been undertaken over the years to ensure that a robust plan is in place to respond to concerns about crime, drug use and anti-social behaviour at the property and improve the quality of life for those living in the area.

“This has included undertaking a full options appraisal to consider the best use of available legislation and powers; progressing the use of a closure order at the property; and meeting with the landlord to specifically discuss the management of the property including the vetting and letting of perspective tenants. Further to this, a number of online meetings have taken place with community representatives; a community engagement event took place in June 2021 with representatives from both the police and council and residents have been sent several updates via letter.

“Since 2008, North Yorkshire Police has received 255 reports connected to the address – an average of around 20 reports a year – which has enabled authorities to respond and deal with issues quickly and effectively. The local community are our eyes and ears, and we would urge neighbours and residents to continue reporting matters and intelligence to us and we will continue to take the necessary action. If people commit criminal acts then they will be held to account for their actions.”