About a thousand runners will take part in the Harrogate 10K on Sunday.
The event, organised by running club Harrogate Harriers, starts and finishes at Harrogate Sports and Fitness Club on Hookstone Road.
Olympic triathlon champion Jonny Brownlee will present medals to the winners of the adult races, which starts at 10am.
The adult event will be preceded by a fun run for children, which includes a 1.3 km route for children in school years 2-5 will and a 2.5 km course for those in years 6-9.
The event, sponsored again by Knaresborough renewable energy firm Harmony Energy, takes runners on around Crimple Valley, finishing with the notorious Crimple killer last uphill kilometre.
A total of 486 adults and 70 children took part last year. This year, more than 800 adults have already registered.
However, local running star Cal Mills, who set a men’s record of 33 minutes and 13 seconds last year, won’t be defending his title.
Cal Mills (green vest) on his way to victory last year.
The women’s race last year saw Emily Gibbins, of Ilkley Harriers, destroy the female record by more than four minutes in a winning time of 38 minutes and 15 seconds.
Entry for the 10k race can be done here https://racebest.com/races/375cy
Online entries, which can be booked here, close at 10am tomorrow. If places remain, you can enter on the day.
Read more:
- Sneak peek: Transformed Harrogate hotel to re-open on Monday
- Harrogate acting school student lands major role in CBBC series
Lack of special need provision in schools ‘failing children’, says Harrogate mother
A Harrogate mother has criticised special educational needs provision in North Yorkshire as “failing children” after her four-year-old was placed into a mainstream school.
Emily Mitchell, whose daughter Elsie is non-verbal, has been diagnosed with autism and of high need, said schools for special educational needs lacked funding and staff to cope with demand.
Ms Mitchell made the comments after she said her daughter’s needs were “disregarded” during a placement process.
Ahead of applying for schools last year, Elsie was given an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) which detailed her needs and was submitted to schools to consider.
Ms Mitchell, who runs a support group for neurodiverse children and their parents, said she was turned down by five mainstream schools and two specialist schools ahead of the school year starting in September.
The specialist schools, which included Springwater School in Starbeck, said they were up to capacity for pupils.
Meanwhile, the mainstream schools were unable to meet Elsie’s need.
Following the process, Ms Mitchell took North Yorkshire Council to mediation in May in order to resolve the issue.
Read more:
- New school for autistic children planned in Harrogate
- Council to explore ‘alternative educational uses’ for Woodfield school
However, despite assurances from professionals and Elsie’s pre-school that she would require specialist care, Ms Mitchell said the council decided to place her into a mainstream school.
Ms Mitchell said:
“After all that time and effort I get a phone call from the local authority to say because they can’t find anywhere to put Elsie, she will be placed in her local catchment mainstream school, who have already told the local authority they can’t meet need.
“But they have over ruled this and not given me any other choice.”
Emily playing with her daughter Elsie.
Ms Mitchell has since taken the decision to appeal and submitted a formal complaint.
She said she feels the provision for special educational needs in North Yorkshire is failing children and described it as “unfair”.
Ms Mitchell said:
“This is so ridiculously unfair on poor Elsie as they are just disregarding her needs.
“There are no spaces for special educational needs children in the schools, not enough funding, not enough staff and the whole system are failing these children.
“I know for a fact Elsie isn’t the only child that is suffering because of this. It’s going to be traumatising for Elsie, so I’m fighting and taking this further.”
The Stray Ferret has approached North Yorkshire Council for a response, but had not received one by the time of publication.
Increase in demand
The council said in its own reports that it has a shortage of places for special educational needs and disabilities pupils.
According to a report in May this year, the authority estimated that since 2016 the number of children and young people with SEND and an Education, Health and Care Plan has increased by more than 110% across the county.
Currently, there are 4,500 children with an EHCP in North Yorkshire and the council estimates it will need an additional 350 SEND school places over the next three to five years to meet demand.
In a report, it said:
“The growth in numbers of autistic children and other communication and interaction needs is the single largest area of growth and the local authority has a duty to have a range of provision to meet those needs including mainstream schools, resource bases and special schools.”
Last month, the council launched a consultation on converting the former Woodfield Primary School in Harrogate into a school for children with autism.
It also announced plans to expand Springwater School in Starbeck by an additional 45 places in February.
Headteachers unite to support 20mph speed limit near Harrogate schoolsThe leaders of 13 schools and education settings in Harrogate have called for councillors to commit to urgent road safety improvements when they meet on Tuesday
The road safety group, which also includes campaigners and local councillors, met yesterday at Ashville College as part of its ongoing bid to create safer streets for 9,000 pupils.
North Yorkshire Council will consider on Tuesday how to respond to a petition calling for a maximum speed of 20mph across south and west Harrogate — covering Oatlands and parts of Pannal, Stray, Hookstone and St Georges areas in Harrogate. The agenda for the meeting is here.
Councillors on the Harrogate and Knaresborough area constituency committee passed a motion supporting the measures last year. But it requires the support of the council’s ruling Conservative-controlled executive to proceed.
Cllr Keane Duncan, the Conservative executive councillor for highways, appeared to dampen hopes this week when he said the council planned to draw up a speed management strategy rather than agree to 20mph limits.
Cllr Pat Marsh, the Liberal Democrat chair of the area constituency committee, described the move as “kicking the can down the road”.
But school leaders and campaigners remain hopeful of a successful outcome. In a joint statement, they said:
“There is strong evidence from studies of the positive impacts of maximum speeds of 20mph, and we urge the members of the executive to approve the motion, so safer roads can be created for our schools and the wider community, with a clear programme and timeframe for delivery.
“A maximum speed of 20mph is a key foundation in creating a safer urban environment for all and it encourages healthy active travel choices, from door to destination, around the community. “
The road safety group added whatever the outcome, it will “continue to push for investment in the safety of the roads around our schools, including: maximum speeds of 20mph, upgraded crossings, better use of double yellow lines, and repairs to damaged or outdated pavements, barriers and kerbs”.
Campaigner Hazel Peacock handing the road safety petition to North Yorkshire Council in May.
Cllr John Mann, a Conservative who represents Oatlands and Pannal, said he welcomed the council’s recommendation “to undertake a series of planned speed limit reviews delivered over a period of time, which will generate a pipeline of schemes”.
He added:
“Given the tragic road accidents that have recently occurred near to schools in Oatlands this year, I am calling for my recent applications for 20mph limits for Yew Tree Lane, Green Lane and Hookstone Road to be given a high priority in the highways pipeline of schemes for the introduction of 20mph limits.”
Cllr Mann said he would allocate his £10,000 locality budget, which each councillor receives to spend on local initiatives, for road safety schemes.
The school leaders who attended yesterday’s meeting were:
- Richard Sheriff, chief executive, Red Kite Learning Trust
- Jane Goodwin, interim chief executive, Yorkshire Causeway Schools Trust
- Dave Thornton, interim headteacher and Iain Addison, deputy head at St Aidan’s CE School
- Neil Renton, headteacher, Harrogate Grammar School
- Tim Milburn, headteacher, Rossett School
- Rhiannon Wilkinson, headteacher and Richard Rooze, bursar at Ashville College
- Corrine Penhale, headteacher, Rossett Acre Primary School
- Tim Broad, headteacher, Western Primary School
- Zoe Anderson, headteacher, Oatlands Infant School
- Estelle Scarth, headteacher, Oatlands Junior School
- Steve Mort, headteacher, St John Fisher’s Catholic High School
- Dr Helen Davey, headteacher/Emma Mitchell, business manager, Willow Tree Primary
- Jane Turner, headteacher, Pannal Primary School
- Victoria Kirkman, executive headteacher, Admiral Long and Birstwith CE schools and interim executive headteacher, Ripley Endowed CE, Beckwithshaw & Kettlesing Schools
- Danny Wild, principal and Kate Herbert, performance and projects co-ordinator, Harrogate College
Campaigners who attended:
- Hazel Peacock and Dr Vicki Evans – Oatlands Road Safety and Active Travel Campaign
- Dr Jenny Marks and Ruth Lily – Pannal Ash Safe Streets
Read more:
- Harrogate school road safety petition handed in to council
- Stray Views: Drivers use Badger Hill as ‘speed track’
Pannal’s controversial ‘skyscraper’ begins to take shape
An apartment block that will replace the now-demolished Dunlopillo offices in Pannal is beginning to take shape.
Plans submitted by Echo Green Developments to build 38 flats on the site at Station Road were approved by Harrogate Borough Council in February 2022.
However, it will be two-storeys taller than the previous structure which led to ill feeling in the village. Pannal historian Anne Smith said residents would be lumbered with a “skyscraper-type building”.
The decision to approve the scheme was made at officer level and without a vote from councillors.
The frame of the new building.
This provoked Conservative MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough Andrew Jones to say the now-abolished council made a mistake with the process by not putting the application before the planning committee.
But the plans weren’t considered by councillors because the application was made under permitted development rights, which were brought in under the Conservative government and can be used by developers to fast track the redevelopment of disused offices.
Cllr Howard West, chairman of Pannal and Burn Bridge Parish Council, said at the time that planning officers “made errors” and that the parish council had written to the government about it.
Read more:
- Plans approved for 38 flats at ‘Pannal skyscraper’
- Harrogate council should have acted quicker on Dunlopillo housing plans, review finds
How the building will eventually look.
It ultimately led Harrogate Borough Council to launch an internal review into how it handled the application.
The review found it should have acted quicker and a “longer period of time than ideal” was spent on parts of the process.
It also said residents should have been consulted sooner and this could have allowed time for a vote from councillors. Despite this, the council concluded the plans were still “appropriately considered”.
The former Dunlopillo building
Dunlopillo – which makes pillows and bedding – moved out of the site in 2008 when the company went into administration and its former office building fell into disrepair, with residents describing it as a “monstrosity”.
Other parts of the vast site have or currently are being redeveloped, including the construction of the Vida Hall Care Home which opened in 2013 and a residential development by Bellway Homes.
Heather Parry steps down from top job at Harrogate’s Yorkshire Events CentreThe managing director of Harrogate’s Yorkshire Events Centre has stepped down after 30 years in post.
Heather Parry was credited with creating Fodder shop and cafe at the Great Yorkshire Showground in 2009 and overseeing the multi-million pound refurbishment of the events centre in 2016.
She joined the events centre after working in London at Earls Court Exhibition Centre.
Ms Parry was soon promoted to managing director of the commercial arm of the showground, overseeing the Pavilions of Harrogate and the Yorkshire Event Centre.
She also led the transformation of a disused area on the showground into what is now the Harrogate Caravan Park, with 67 pitches for caravans, motorhomes and tents.
On her decision to step down, she said:
“I am so proud of the things that have been achieved working with an amazing team. When I arrived the income from activities outside the Great Yorkshire Show was £40,000 so we have come a long way to the current £7m. There have been so many highs: from welcoming President Bill Clinton and Sir Elton John, among many others, to creating Fodder and building Hall 1.
“My career here has been wonderfully diverse; with people at the heart of it all; I feel so lucky to have worked with a myriad of clients, dedicated suppliers and a phenomenal team who have been a joy to nurture and develop. After 30 years it is now time to hand the baton on and seek new adventures.”
Allister Nixon, chief executive of the Yorkshire Events Centre, said:
“Heather has had a huge impact on the business, being instrumental in shaping and forming what we are today with vision and sheer hard work. Heather will leave an amazing legacy to be proud of.
“She has been part of the fabric of the society for so many years and I would like to take this opportunity to personally thank Heather for her hard work, dedication and significant contributions and wish her the very best in her future endeavours.”
Read more:
- New 5G mast at Harrogate’s Great Yorkshire Showground approved
- Harrogate’s Great Yorkshire Show set for sell-out
Business Breakfast: Harrogate care company launches new day centres
Staff well-being and culture have rapidly risen up the priority list for many employers. At the next Stray Ferret Business Club we’ll hear from award winning employer, LCF Law, on how organisations can ensure their teams are productive and happy.
The lunch event is lunch at Manahatta, on June 29th at 12.30pm. Get your tickets by clicking or tapping here.
A Harrogate care company has launched new day centres to help combat isolation and improve health and wellbeing.
Continued Care, which has offices in both Harrogate and Ripon, will run the centres from July 3 and offer a free taster session on first visit.
The sessions, which cost £80, will offer people a chance to socialise and make friends, learn new skills, take part in exercise and activities, and even have their hair cut. Two meals will also be provided.
Iona Novak, Continued Care’s social day club manager and wellbeing facilitator, said:
“Since the covid pandemic, we’ve seen an unmet need in the community for things like mobile hairdressers and chiropodists but also for somewhere that people can engage with others and take part in stimulating activities.
“Alongside that, there is a need among carers, who are often family members, for some respite, and they would be most welcome to attend as well.”
The day centres are open to all adults, regardless of whether they currently access care services. People can self-refer or be referred by a family member or healthcare professional.
The centres run every week from 10am to 3pm as follows: Mondays, Westcliffe Hall, Harrogate; Tuesdays, Ripon Community Hall; Wednesdays, Gracious Street Methodist Church, Knaresborough.
For more information, visit the Continued Care website here.
Harrogate beauty brand takes on Yorkshire Three Peaks
Staff at a Harrogate-based beauty brand have raised £2,900 for charity after completing the Yorkshire Three Peaks challenge.
Cloud Nine, which is based at Hornbeam Park, raised the money for The Little Princess Trust, a charity which provides free hair wigs to children undergoing treatment for cancer.
The Cloud Nine team at the Yorkshire Three Peaks.
Eight people took on the 25-mile hike on behalf of the company, with a further three offering welcome support to the group on the day.
Hamish Rae, e-marketplace coordinator at Cloud Nine, said:
“The team had an amazing day – it was a challenge both physically and mentally but knowing the amazing work done by The Little Princess Trust made it all worth it.”
Read more:
- Business Breakfast: Harrogate entrepreneur wins Pride award
- Cost of living crisis prompts Boroughbridge café to close
Toaster and alarm clock cause false alarms for firefighters
Firefighters in Harrogate responded to two unusual false alarms today.
At 8.46am, a crew from Harrogate responded to reports of a fire alarm sounding on Kings Road in the town.
North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service‘s incident report said:
“This was a false alarm caused by burnt toast.”
Shortly afterwards, the Harrogate crew was summoned to The Spinney in Knaresborough at 10.01am after another fire alarm went off. The incident report said:
“This was a false alarm, where an alarm clock had been mistaken for a fire alarm.”
It was the third strange false alarm in less than a day for the Harrogate firefighters, who responded to a house alarm going off at 5.04pm yesterday on Leeds Road.
Again, there was no fire — the cause this time was described “a faulty deaf alarm”.
Read more:
- Fire ravages home in Harrogate
- Knaresborough man launches crowdfunder to send fire engine to Ukraine
Police reopen Harrogate street after suspected explosive found
Police have re-opened a Harrogate street after a suspected First World War artillery shell was discovered this afternoon.
A cordon was put up after the discovery at Rossett Avenue in Harrogate.
North Yorkshire Police tweeted at 2.33pm this afternoon:
“Cordon in place after munition found in Harrogate.
“We’re at a location on Rossett Ave after the discovery of a suspected WW1 shell.
“A cordon is in place to keep everyone safe, so please avoid the area.”
But the road re-opened quickly after officers discovered it was a decommissioned shell filled with sand.
Police tweeted:
https://twitter.com/NYP_Harrogate/status/1674056849513934851
Read more:
- Chinook helicopter in near-miss collision over Harrogate
- Harrogate town council set to be formed as 66% back the idea
Chinook helicopter in near-miss collision over Harrogate
A military helicopter was involved in a near-miss collision with a model airplane over Harrogate.
The UK Airprox Board, which investigates the risk of aircraft collisions, has published a report into the incident, which happened on April 17 this year.
It involved a model aircraft flying directly towards a Chinook helicopter as it prepared to land.
The report said the pilot, who was 150ft above ground level, saw the model aircraft come into “close proximity”.
It said:
“A crewman spotted the model aircraft as it flew directly towards the [Chinook] from the nine o’clock position. As the model aircraft approached, it dived below the [Chinook] either by the force of the downwash or under the control of the remote operator.
“It was the flash of the change in the wing profile that made the aircraft visible as the wing cross-section increased.”
It added:
“Once on the ground at Harrogate, the crew discussed the event and elected to continue with the sortie as it was a model aircraft and had not interfered with the [Chinook].
“The model was described as a green/brown replica historic model aircraft without lights.
“The UK Airprox Board secretariat contacted the local scale-model flying club but efforts to trace the pilot were unsuccessful.”
Despite the crew reporting that the risk of crash was low, the board certified the incident as a B risk rating – the second highest rating.
Seven of 18 monthly incidents were given a B risk by Airprox — all the others were rated lower risk.
The board resolved that safety had been “much reduced” during the incident and had “not been assured”.
It added:
“The board considered that the pilot’s overall account of the incident portrayed a situation where safety had been much reduced below the norm to the extent that safety had not been assured.”
Read more:
- Vandalism causes extended closure of Ripon playground
- Ground stabilisation work underway at Ripon Leisure Centre
Harrogate village church dating back to 1904 to be sold
Hampsthwaite Methodist Church, which closed in October 2021, has been put up for sale for £175,000.
The church, which dates back to 1904, has been a feature of Hampsthwaite life for more than a century. It served as a Sunday school as well as a place of worship.
It is among a group of churches being sold by Nidd Valley Methodist Circuit in Harrogate. The asking price has not been revealed.
Rev Ben Clowes, superintendent minister of the circuit, said:
“Hampsthwaite chapel stood at the heart of the community for over 100 years and the work of the people there is remembered very fondly by many across the area.
“The time has come to sell this property as our mission to the village of Hampsthwaite continues from our other local churches.”
The single-storey building on Hollins Lane includes a main hall, two school rooms, a kitchen, toilets, a small basement and garden space at the front.
The organ was relocated to another Methodist church in Hebden Bridge by a specialist company from Norfolk, W & A Boggis, which dismantled it, transported the parts and then rebuilt it in situ in Hebden Bridge.
Read more:
- Hampsthwaite garage resubmits plan for new MOT building
- Harrogate village bridge set for lengthy closure
Commercial property consultants Lambert Smith Hampton, which has been instructed to find a buyer, has said the site has development potential for a variety of uses, subject to planning permissions and other consents.
Richard Corby, director at Lambert Smith Hampton, said:
“We are excited to be marketing this outstanding opportunity to acquire an important historical asset in the beautiful North Yorkshire village of Hampsthwaite, just 5 miles from Harrogate.
“Several individuals have already come forward with a wide range of proposed uses for the building, so we need to assess what will be the best outcome for the church.”