Another 150 covid cases in Harrogate district as rate reaches 734

A further 150 people have tested positive for coronavirus in the Harrogate district in the last 24 hours, according to the latest Public Health England figures.

It brings Harrogate’s total number of cases to 19,271 since the start of the pandemic. The district has a seven-day infection rate of 734 per 100,000 people.

The rate in the Harrogate district is the highest in Yorkshire and the eleventh highest in England.

Public health officials said today school pupils were driving the rapid increase in infections in the Harrogate district.

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Headteachers have been urged to bring back face masks and postpone after-school activities.

Despite the rise in infections, deaths and hospitalisations remain lower than previous waves with 15 covid-positive patients at Harrogate District Hospital on Monday.

According to the latest NHS data, the hospital in Harrogate has not reported any new coronavirus deaths today.

No driver shortage for winter gritting in North Yorkshire

North Yorkshire County Council reassured people today that it has enough drivers to operate a full complement of gritters this winter.

The council, which spends between £6m and £10m each winter on gritting, has spent £2.2m on 18 new vehicles to replace some of the 80 in its gritting fleet.

The fleet, which is on call 24 hours a day, is complemented by more than 100 farm contractors.

County Councillor Don Mackenzie, executive member for access, said:

“People may recently have seen media reports suggesting the risk of a shortage of drivers in parts of the country. We can reassure people that in North Yorkshire we have sufficient drivers and robust systems in place to ensure we can operate our full complement of gritters.

“Our salt stores are well stocked, with 55,000 tonnes of salt – enough to fill 21 Olympic-size swimming pools – plus about 8,000 grit heaps and bins, and we have a strong relationship with a local supplier.”

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The council recently announced it would save up to £120,000 by improving the efficiency of its gritting operation, which led to concerns that the service would be cut back. But Cllr Mackenzie said:

“This change is in no way a reduction in our services and will not compromise the safety of our roads. It enables us to use our resources to maximum effect.

“We remain committed to maintaining the level of service that sees us routinely treat a greater proportion of our network than any other council in England.”

NY Highways formed

The new vehicles join NY Highways, which is one of numerous new companies formed by the council to bring back services in house. NY Highways took over the council’s £40 million a year contract with Ringway to maintain North Yorkshire’s roads.

Ross Bullerwell, managing director of NY Highways, said it was “well prepared” to “ensure we deliver a successful winter programme to keep the roads safe and clear for users”.

The council is also providing travel information to road users from 10 new weather stations on some of the highest and most exposed roads in the county.

Further information about when and where gritting takes place, grit bins and access to live road cameras images can be found here.

Urgent meeting to tackle Harrogate district’s soaring covid rate

Public health officials are to hold an urgent press conference tomorrow to discuss soaring coronavirus rates in the Harrogate district.

The district’s seven-day rate is currently 723 per 100,000 population, which is far higher than the current England average of 436.

North Yorkshire County Council will host the virtual meeting tomorrow from 10.30am until 11am, when health officials will brief the media on the situation.

Richard Webb, the corporate director for health and adult services at the council, has urged people in the Harrogate district to think about hygiene. He said:

“Harrogate currently has amongst the highest levels of coronavirus in England. Please keep safe.

“And yes, wash your hands. Wear your face mask to protect others. Think about space and ventilation.”

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Covid case rates in the Harrogate district have been rising since mid September, when the rate was 372.

However, although the number of cases has risen sharply the number of coronavirus patients at Harrogate District Hospital has not risen in the same manner.

As of last Thursday, the hospital was treating 14 covid patients – well below last winter’s peak of 67.

No further details of tomorrow’s meeting have been made available.

Harrogate district covid rate soars above 700

The Harrogate district’s seven-day covid rate of infection has risen above 700 per 100,000 for the first time.

Public Health England recorded another 174 cases today, which elevated the rate from 682 yesterday to 723 today.

The North Yorkshire rate is 528 and the England rate is 436.

Harrogate west and Pannal Ash is the current covid hotspot, with 97 infections in the last seven days.

Dishforth, Baldersby and Markington have recorded the fewest cases, with just 25.

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In depth: Bleak future for Harrogate district rural schools?

Since the turn of the year, it has been announced that two primary schools in the Harrogate district will close.

Both schools — Kell Bank near Masham and Baldersby St James between Ripon and Thirsk — are in rural areas.

Kell Bank closed in summer and if Baldersby’s closure goes ahead as planned, it will be the first academy in North Yorkshire to shut.

Both decisions were attributed to low pupil numbers. But a closer look at the issue reveals a deeper problem in rural communities in our district.

Drop in pupil numbers

North Yorkshire is home to 356 state schools — of which 303 are primary, 43 are secondary and 10 are special schools.

Although most schools in the Harrogate district are in towns and cities, such as Ripon, Harrogate, Knaresborough, Boroughbridge, Pateley Bridge and Masham, some are in more remote parts.

Declining pupil numbers in these rural areas has led to questions about the ongoing viability of schools.

Kell Bank, which was run by North Yorkshire County Council, closed in August.

Pupil numbers at Kell Bank Primary School before its closure. Data: NYCC.

Pupil numbers at Kell Bank Primary School before its closure. Data: NYCC.

The school, which was celebrating 200 years of education at the time, had capacity to teach 50 pupils but just six on the register. Three year groups had no children in them.

The number of pupils had declined from 39 in 2014.

By comparison, nearby Masham Church of England School in Masham town centre had 121 pupils, some of which were out of its catchment area.

It’s a similar picture at Baldersby, which has only 22 pupils.

Hope Sentamu Learning Trust, the academy trust in charge, says numbers “show no prospect of improving for many years ahead” and the school should therefore close.

The figures for Baldersby St James since 2015. The 2021 number has since dropped to 22. Data: NYCC.

The figures for Baldersby St James since 2015. The 2021 number has since dropped to 22. Data: NYCC.

Pupil numbers at Baldersby have fluctuated and recovered to 46 in 2017 before declining again.

In both cases, the schools have been victims of changes to population demographics that have seen rural areas become less busy while more people live in towns and cities.

This raises difficult issues for families in rural areas thinking about where to educate their children.

‘A highly charged political issue’

A report by North Yorkshire County Council’s Rural Commission this year laid bare the problems facing rural schools.

According to the paper, eight schools have closed in the county over the past three years – most of which were in rural areas.

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The commission said the “continuing fall” in the rural population was the “fundamental challenge” facing small rural schools.

It said:

“While the number of elderly people living in the county continues to increase, the number of working-age families, with young children, continues to fall.

“This results in a significant surplus capacity in many of the small rural schools because there are simply not enough families with primary aged children living in rural communities.

“The cost of the rural housing market discourages young families from living in rural areas.”

The challenge in attracting younger families is compounded by the fact that parents are also thinking more carefully about where to send their children to school.

Department for Education guidance says a primary school aged child should be sent to a school no longer than 45 minutes away from home.

The rural commission report said parents were choosing not to send their children to a local school and instead opting for one further away “because it offers a better-quality education”.

It said:

“An expert on the subject noted that sometimes journey times are longer because children are going to schools other than their local one because of parental preference.”

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The sentiment was echoed by Jacqui Palmer, executive headteacher at Sharow Church of England Primary School.

She said:

“Over many years rural life has become different.

“In our village, there is no pub and the post office is only open on a morning.”

Ms Palmer added that it had become difficult for villages to attract younger families.

Impact on communities

The closure of rural schools runs deep in communities.

As noted by the rural commission, the decision to shut a village schools often prompts campaigns to save them.

This occurred in the Harrogate district when within days of the academy trust’s announcement, a group of parents and villagers set up the Save Baldersby St James Primary School campaign.

The group has set up a social media account to help the fight and called on Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi to reconsider the decision.

For the group, the closure would see an end to a school which has served the community since 1850.

Sally Muir, a spokesperson for Save Baldersby St James Primary School, said in a statement: 

“In an era where running costs are elevated above all other criteria, it is a shame that a school with both history and potential that has long served the community is now earmarked for closure.”

In response to the difficulties facing schools, the rural commission has called for the Department for Education to revise its national funding formula to support rural schools, in particular spare secondary schools.

It also believes that the formula needs to take into account “the quality of rural roads as well as distance”.

The commission has also backed a “rural stipend” for teachers salaries in order to encourage more teachers into rural schools, but also to bring more younger families into those areas.

But time will tell whether there is the will to act, or whether more cherished schools in remote parts of England’s largest county face uncertain futures.

199 more covid cases recorded today in Harrogate district

The Harrogate district has reported a further 199 cases today, Public Health England has confirmed.

Yesterday saw a record high since the start of the pandemic when 202 cases were reported.

The district’s seven-day covid rate continues to rise sharply and currently stands at 682 per 100,000.

The North Yorkshire average is 509 and the England rate stands at 406.

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No further covid deaths have been reported at Harrogate District Hospital, according to latest NHS England figures.

Harrogate District Hospital is currently treating 18 covid patients — the most since March this year when the hospital was recovering from its busiest coronavirus period

Council accused of ‘whitewash’ over investigation into ‘massaged’ planning report

Campaigners who spent 25 years fighting plans for a motorway service station have accused Harrogate Borough Council of a “whitewash” after it published its findings into an investigation.

The council launched the probe after it emerged a planning officer sent emails saying he “massaged” a key report on the A1(M) service station near Kirby Hill which was approved at appeal in April despite seven previous refusals since 1997.

A council statement previously said the investigation concluded “no irregularities” took place – and the findings have now been revealed in full to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The findings say the reference to “massaging” was “simply a poor choice of wording” and was in the context that the officer had amended the landscaping report to ensure it was “acceptable”.

However, the two planning officers involved in the emails were not interviewed as they had left the council and their previous messages were also deleted as “standard practice” to manage storage limits.

‘Deeply suspicious and disturbing’

Gareth Owens, chairman of campaign group Kirby Hill RAMS (Residents Against Motorway Services), said: 

“This so-called investigation and report amounts to a council whitewash of a deeply suspicious and disturbing episode in the planning department.

“This was not an independent investigation therefore – it was the planning department investigating itself.

“Little wonder, then, that the report concludes there were ‘no irregularities’.

“We now need a thorough, independent investigation of this matter and I call on the council to instigate one.”

The landscape report presented to councillors is significant because it said the impact of the service station on the area was “not substantive”.

This assessment was described by campaigners as a “complete U-turn” from a previous council report which warned the plans would cause “significant harm”.

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Despite a recommendation of approval from officers, members of the council’s planning committee still rejected the service station in November 2019.

However, campaigners believe the officer’s recommendation and “massaged” landscaping report still had a major impact on the outcome of the appeal which followed.

Mr Owens said:

“Members of the planning committee should remain very concerned about officers’ behaviour in this matter, particularly since the inspector at the public inquiry went along with the ‘massaged’ recommendation.”

Mr Ownes also raised questions over a verbal statement made by the planning officer to councillors.

The investigation findings state it was “unclear” whether the officer said “two landscape officers have judged the proposal and the proposal did not consider it caused significant harm” as this was not recorded in a transcript.

Gareth Owens, chair of the Kirby Hill RAMS, speaking against the application at Harrogate Borough Council’s planning committee in 2019. Picture: Kirby Hill RAMS

However, an audio recording of the meeting shared by Mr Owens reveals the officer did say those words.

Mr Owens said: 

“The evidence of this recording shows that the planning committee was misled.

“We feel that the investigator owes Kirby Hill RAMS an apology for trying to cover this up by stating as fact in their report that ‘the transcript has not accurately recorded the statement’ when they had not even listened to the recording.

“This concern could of course have been discussed with us during the investigation. It was not.”

‘Poor choice of wording’

The investigation was headed by Kathryn Daly, head of place shaping and economic growth at the council, who concluded:

“The use of the word ‘massaged’ in the email sent by the principal landscape officer to the planning officer is far from ideal, but my conclusion is that this was simply a poor choice of wording.

“For completeness, it would have been helpful to see whether there were additional emails between the two officers. However, corporate restrictions on Outlook storage mean that it is standard practice to delete historic emails.

“If this deletion is not done, the email account quickly goes above the storage limit and cannot be used.”

A council statement also previously said: 

“We can confirm that, following allegations that a report was ‘massaged’, an investigation was carried out.

“This investigation found no irregularities in the preparation of the officer report for the planning committee.

“As was stated at the time, officer recommendations are fair and impartial, and carefully considered against local and national planning policy, case law, consultation and anything else considered to be ‘material’ to the decision.”

Most daily covid infections ever in Harrogate district

The Harrogate district has reported another record high for daily covid cases.

A further 202 cases were confirmed today by Public Health England. The figure surpasses the previous high of 191 on October 11.

The district’s seven-day covid rate now stands at 637 per 100,000.

The North Yorkshire average is 504 and the England rate stands at 395.

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No further covid deaths have been reported at Harrogate District Hospital, according to latest NHS England figures.

Harrogate District Hospital is currently treating 18 covid patients — the most since March this year when the hospital was recovering from its busiest coronavirus period

Live: Harrogate district traffic and travel

Happy Thursday and good morning. It’s Connor with you for the final time this week on the traffic and travel desk to help with your commute.

There are a few road closures and temporary lights in place across the district, make sure you check our lists in case you need to leave a few minutes earlier.

Give me a call on 01423 276197 or get in touch on social media if you spot anything on the roads or are waiting for a delayed bus or train.

The morning blogs are brought to you by The HACS Group.

9am – Full Update 

That is all from me this week on the traffic and travel desk. I am heading over to the news desk now. Leah will be back with you tomorrow from 6.30am.

Roads

The roads are starting to become quite busy this morning as people drive through Harrogate and Knaresborough to get to work and school. Look out for these areas:

Road closures:

Temporary lights:

Trains

Buses

8.30am – Full Update 

Roads

The roads are starting to become quite busy this morning as people drive through Harrogate and Knaresborough to get to work and school. Look out for these areas:

Road closures:

Temporary lights:

Trains

Buses

8am – Full Update 

Roads

The roads are starting to become quite busy this morning as people drive through Harrogate and Knaresborough to get to work and school. Look out for these areas:

Road closures:

Temporary lights:

Trains

Buses

7.30am – Full Update 

Roads

The roads are looking quiet so far this morning, with no hotspots just yet. Spotted something? Give me a call.

Road closures:

Temporary lights:

Trains

Buses

7am – Full Update 

Roads

The roads are looking quiet so far this morning, with no hotspots just yet. Spotted something? Give me a call.

Road closures:

Temporary lights:

Trains

Buses

6.30am – Full Update 

Roads

The roads are looking quiet so far this morning, with no hotspots just yet. Spotted something? Give me a call.

Road closures:

Temporary lights:

Trains

Buses

10,000 Harrogate district children took part in Walk to School Day

Over 10,000 children across the Harrogate District did not travel to school by car on Friday for the second-ever Harrogate District Walk to School Day.

Instead of their usual drive to school, pupils were encouraged to walk, cycle, scoot or take public transport.

Zero Carbon Harrogate, the charity that coordinated the day, said 44 primary and secondary schools signed up to take their stand against the climate emergency.

This is a 42% increase in uptake since the first Walk to School Day in June this year.

Birstwith Church of England Primary School was the district’s ‘Zero Hero’ primary school winners with 91% of children taking part.

Harrogate High School won the secondary school prize, with 85% participation.

Find the full results table here: https://www.zerocarbonharrogate.org.uk/school-leaderboard.

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Jill Collins, headteacher of St. Robert’s Catholic Primary School said:

“The children and families in school are good walkers anyway, but when it comes to Walk to School Day they always make an extra effort walking, scooting, biking, even jogging in and the dog sometimes comes too.

“The children are so enthusiastic about helping the environment and know that we can all make a difference, even by taking simple steps such as walking to school.”

Fiona Jones, events manager for Zero Carbon Harrogate, added:

“This is the first Walk to School event exclusively for our district’s community and it has had a huge impact from being a co-ordinated effort – streets were noticeably quieter during the school run on Friday. The enthusiasm and positivity from schools, especially the children, has been fantastic.

“As regular half-termly events, these are not just about a single day in time, but about building positive transport habits that become a daily occurrence. These are the significant changes that will really make a difference.”