A Harrogate-based employment law firm has expanded its offices to London.
Boardside in London is close to St Paul’s Cathedral and the Bank of England. The location will mean it is easily accessible for clients in the city.
The company now has branches in three different regions, with its headquarters in Harrogate.
The firm wrote in its newsletter:
“Almost five years after launching our niche employment law practice in Yorkshire, we are delighted to announce that we now have a presence in the capital.
“We believe that by having offices in the two biggest legal centres (Leeds and London) in the country, it will be easier for us to meet clients from across the UK.”
Boardside is run by owners Richard Port and Nadine Martson.
Support for Ripon businesses
Ripon’s Business Improvement District has appointed the Place Support Partnership to help firm in Ripon save on running costs.
PSP will visit BID businesses to support and advise them on reducing costs associated with utility and trading bills.
Lilla Bathurst, manager of the BID, said:
“The Place Support Partnership offers various services and acts as a savings scheme to support businesses.
“During the consultation process, businesses identified that they would like 10% of their levy to go on business support.”
Ripon BID says it has also worked to make businesses aware of the Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant.
OHLG grants totally £141,342 were distributed to hospitality businesses in Ripon which were negatively affected by the pandemic.
Harrogate BID provided a business grant of up to £750 last month, for qualifying businesses to improve paintwork, signage and accessibility.
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Improved Harrogate to London train service delayed
Concerns over infrastructure and rolling stock have delayed the introduction of improved direct train services between Harrogate and London.
A new timetable, with an earlier direct service to London King’s Cross, was due to be implemented in May 2022.
The shake-up was announced by LNER in June last year as part of wider changes to services on the east coast main line.
LNER said times between Harrogate and London would be about 10 minutes faster as part of the new timetable, which included:
- A service to leave Harrogate earlier, at 6.35am rather than 7.34am.
- A new seventh daily train would leave Harrogate at 6.35pm. On the current schedule, the last train departs at 5.36pm.
In the opposite direction, from London direct to Harrogate:
- Trains would start almost an hour earlier (6.40am rather than 7.33am).
- The final service back would also be earlier, at 4.39pm rather than 5.33pm.
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However, the improved services will now not be introduced after Network Rail recommended that the Department for Transport, which has the final decision on the timetable, delays the implementation.
The organisation said it had “concerns around infrastructure, rolling stock and performance and stakeholder feedback” with the changes.
Simon Leyshon, industry programme director for Network Rail’s east coast route, said it hoped to implement the changes as soon as possible.
He said:
“Postponing the new timetable change for the east coast main line allows us to dedicate more time to considering the views passengers and stakeholders shared with us during the consultation process last year.
“We’re now working closely with train operating companies and the wider rail industry to develop a timetable that meets passenger’s changing travel patterns and makes the most of the increased capacity on the East Coast main line following the £1.2 billion East Coast upgrade.”
Network Rail also pointed out that Harrogate had already seen an additional Northern service introduced on the Leeds to York line in December 2021.
LNER has resumed its direct train service from Harrogate to London.
From today, the operator will run six trains in each direction from Monday to Friday as demand rises due to the easing of lockdown restrictions.
Services on the weekend will remain limited.
Passengers must make reservations ahead of travelling and will be allocated a socially distanced seat. LNER also recommend that they wear face coverings in stations and trains.
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Onboard ventilation systems will provide a “continuous supply of fresh air” with the air cycled every six minutes on every train.
The company said extra cleaning is taking place both on stations and onboard trains, with teams using disinfectant and long-lasting virucidal fog.