Harrogate Archives - Page 329 of 778

Scammers fail to spoil another successful Knaresborough tractor run

Thousands of people turned out across the Harrogate district today to support the Knaresborough tractor run.

The event, which is believed to be Britain’s biggest tractor run, has become one of the district’s most popular annual events.

Almost 400 tractors, including some vintage open station models with hardy drivers braving the elements, tooted their horns, waved and revved their engines to the delight of the crowds.

Organised by Knaresborough Young Farmers, the event raises money for Yorkshire Air Ambulance.

Tractors set off just after 9am from the Great Yorkshire Showground in Harrogate and headed to Ripley and Knaresborough.

Today’s start at the showground.

The convoy then passed Staveley, Burton Leonard and Markington, Bishop Thornton and Glasshouses before stopping in Pateley Bridge for lunch.

The drivers and passengers then continued to Bewerley, Dacre, Darley, Birstwith and Hampsthwaite before finishing in Knaresborough late this afternoon.

The organisers arranged live tracking of the front and back tractors for the first time, which led to some scammers posting a link online asking people to give bank details to follow a live stream.

Some people reported losses before the organisers deleted the links and issued warnings not to use them.

The number of tractors taking part and the sum raised has yet to be confirmed but the event appears to have been another big success.

Stray Views: North Yorkshire rural transport ‘desperately inefficient’

Stray Views is a weekly column giving you the chance to have your say on issues affecting the Harrogate district. It is an opinion column and does not reflect the views of the Stray Ferret. Send your views to letters@thestrayferret.co.uk.

Hats off to North Yorkshire County Council for being open about the cost of Demand Responsive Transport (DRT) schemes. The reason that DRT is expensive in rural areas is because it is desperately inefficient.

DRT is supposed to be the answer where demand for timetabled services has dropped to uneconomic levels. But DRT actually makes the problem worse – if the only timetabled bus leaves at 10.30, it may well carry me (who would prefer to leave at 09.30) and my neighbour (who might prefer to leave at 11.30).

But DRT asks us each when we want to travel, and if we are both lucky enough to bag a ride, then the bus will come to our village twice, carrying just one of us each time. And because the schedule is built in random order, as requests come in, the vehicles end up with wasteful gaps when there isn’t enough time to fit in an extra trip, and lots of “dead mileage” as the vehicles zoom around empty from one drop off to the next pickup.

I live in a part of rural Derbyshire that is likely to lose timetabled services soon, and I wanted to see if my fears were borne out by data. Finding no published information on loadings for DRT buses, I made a FOI request to NYCC for detailed information on the Yorbus service around Ripon.

The data, for February, March and April 2022 shows the two minibuses carrying passengers for just a third of their operating time and when they did have passengers, it was rarely more than three. Normal taxis could have been used instead (with far lower costs and emissions) for over 97% of the operating hours. These figures will have improved, a bit, as ridership has increased in the last year, but Yorbus will still be running as what is in effect a badly-scheduled taxi service using vastly oversized vehicles.

Even if you don’t worry about the cost, DRT isn’t even a good replacement for a timetabled service. The marketing materials may talk about flexibility, but for the user that means uncertainty.

NYCC have reported that Yorbus has been unable to meet about 20% of the requests for a ride.

Failure may be OK if you were planning to go shopping: perhaps you will be luckier tomorrow. But what if you had wanted to use Yorbus to get to work? Or to an appointment with a hospital consultant?

John Geddes, Winster, Derbyshire

‘Disgust’ at North Yorkshire County Council view

I read with disgust but no real surprise in the Stray Ferret the view of the North Yorkshire Tory council expressed by the opposition concerning the behaviour of the council.

They describe the behaviour as something like a “Putinesque regime” amongst other descriptors. They then go on to describe actions that are nothing short of abuses of power.

It irks me that this dire council has managed to wriggle out of it’s responsibility to face elections till 2027 as a result of the re-organisation of local government.

Let’s face it, it is likely that the forthcoming local elections are likely to see the Tories, deservedly, wiped off the the face of the electoral map in much of the country. North Yorkshire however remains lumbered with this dismal bunch for another four years.

This thoroughly depressing and damaging state of affairs should not be allowed to stand.

Nick Hudson, Harrogate

Do you have an opinion on the Harrogate district? Email us at letters@thestrayferret.co.uk. Please include your name and approximate location details. Limit your letters to 350 words. We reserve the right to edit letters.

Start your engines: it’s time for Knaresborough tractor run

About 400 vehicles are expected to take part in tomorrow’s 25-mile Knaresborough Tractor Run.

The tractors are due to set off from the Great Yorkshire Showground in Harrogate at 9am before snaking around the district.

The spectacular convoy will head to Ripley and Knaresborough before travelling to Staveley, Burton Leonard and Markington, Bishop Thornton and Glasshouses.

tractor run 2023

It is expected to arrive in Pateley Bridge at midday for a hog roast and then continue to Bewerley, Dacre, Darley, Birstwith and Hampsthwaite before finishing in Knaresborough at 4pm.

The number taken part won’t be known until tomorrow as drivers can turn up on the day.

Participation costs £20 and an extra £10 for each passenger. You can enter here or turn up at the showground.

All proceeds are donated to Yorkshire Air Ambulance — a cause close to the hearts of many farmers taking part because of the way it helps people in remote and rural areas.

Last year, a total if 383 tractors took part and the event raised £21,000.for Yorkshire Air Ambulance.

Although the route uses some minor roads, the convoy takes about an hour to file by and traffic delays are possible for vehicles caught up in the event.

The route snakes around Nidderdale

Tractor Run committee chairman and Ramsgill farmer Steven Brown urged anyone with a tractor, farmer or otherwise, to take part, and anyone without one to turn out to support the event. He said:

“Come along and join in the fun. We reckon it’s the biggest tractor run in the UK, so the chances of seeing anything similar elsewhere are slim.”

Prizes will be awarded for tractors in three categories: vintage, classics, and modern.

Harrogate man to skateboard 300 miles to support seriously ill mother

A Harrogate plasterer is set to skateboard to his former home in Barry Island to raise money to help his mother.

Daniel Katchi’s mum, who is 50, was diagnosed with motor neurone disease last October after experiencing speech problems and loss of mobility in her arm.

Her son hopes to raise money to fund a speech machine controlled by eye movement and a stair lift for his parents’ home in Barry Island, near Cardiff.

Daniel, 32, moved to Harrogate from Barry Island three years ago and plans to complete the 300-mile route with a fellow skateboarder who lost his mother to motor neurone disease.

As a young boy, Daniel was gifted a skateboard by his neighbour in South Wales and fell in love with the sport immediately. He has represented the UK nationally and internationally in skateboarding.

Daniel said:

“I am determined to complete this journey.

“It’s a case of me feeling helpless and all I want to do is help my mum.”

Setting off on Wednesday, May 4, the pair aim to cover around 50 miles per day and anticipate the journey will take 5 days. They hope to cross the finish line on Sunday, May 7, and will be greeted by his family.

The two skateboarders will ride over to Leeds from Harrogate, where the journey will officially start. They aim to stop in Sheffield, Birmingham, Cheltenham and Bristol before completing their journey in Barry.

Daniel established a route that will predominantly follow bike paths and some pavements.

They have encouraged fellow skateboarders to join a leg of their journey and free merchandise will be given to those who do.

To follow Daniel’s progress, visit his GoFundMe page.

Harrogate pair offer to help parents become calm and confident

Two Harrogate parents are uniting to help children navigate the challenges of the modern world.

But rather than speak to the children themselves, Alison Stubbs and Andrea Edmondson are focusing their efforts on the parents.

They established ParentSmart Learning based on their belief that giving parents the tools to deal with their children’s behaviour would deliver the most benefit to families.

Both women have dealt with challenges in their own children, including dyslexia and autism, as well as being trained teachers.

Alison, who is a primary school teacher, said:

“I’ve got two children who are dyslexic.

“As a teacher, I felt the school system was trying to get children like mine to do things they can’t.

“I was thinking, ‘my child is going to school every day, failing, and then on sports day, when they could do well, they aren’t allowed to win because it’s not competitive.

“‘How can we empower these children to feel better about themselves, and the parents too?'”

Alison considered doing a cognitive behavioural therapy course to enable children to feel more empowered in dealing with challenges they faced. However, she said:

“I quickly realised you’ve got to empower the parent because they can empower the children.”

Meanwhile, fellow teacher Andrea experienced her own difficulties when raising her four children in the United States. She said:

“Even though I had all the training, things weren’t always easy. I felt lonely and confused and I didn’t know what to do.”

Andrea decided to undertake research and training in child development, focusing on how children deal with stress and how they can be helped to live with it more easily in the modern world, before moving back to the UK.

A chance conversation between Andrea and Alison at a friend’s house in 2021 led the pair to realise they had similar views and aims.

After sharing their own experiences and ideas, they begin looking at ways to give parents more confidence in supporting their children.

They tested some of their theories with communities around the Harrogate district, running monthly workshops in a room they were given free at the Pickled Sprout restaurant in the Yorkshire Hotel.

After receiving “excellent” feedback from the participants, Alison and Andrea began working on pilot projects with schools.

However, with budgets already stretched, the pair found many schools were unable to commit to paying for help – even when it might reduce many of the challenges they faced in the classroom.

They said even “very intelligent, caring parents” often struggle to know how to handle their children’s behaviour at home, leading to more issues being brought into schools.

The covid pandemic exacerbated this, with many children missing out on key periods of social development and not having been supported to catch up since.

Andrea said:

“One of the biggest things is the people raising children now were raised in a very different time than we’re now in. The ways people were raised don’t align to the environment we now operate in: 24/7 media, screens, a lot of bad food, a lot of time inside.

“There’s a mismatch between the biology of kids and the environment, and then the skills and understanding of the parents.

“When you’re under stress, you revert to script and the script was developed when you were young.”

Outside perspective

The pair have developed a short online course, Confused to Confident, to help parents develop a better understanding of their children’s behaviour and its causes, as well as ways to respond that will restore calm.

They said the course is suitable for parents whose children are any age, from pre-school through to adult. The parents may be dealing with conflict with their children, concerned about their mental health or potential neurodiversity, preparing for school transitions or exams, or simply wanting to feel more confident in their parenting strategies.

ParentSmart Learning is also partnering with community organisations and businesses to deliver workshops and courses

Alison said modern, busy lives often leave people without opportunities to share their concerns and get advice from other parents. The course is designed to fill that gap, with expertise and distance.

She added:

“You get bogged down and dragged in with your own child and you’ve got to take a step back and not be reactive.

“Sometimes, you need someone to help you process something – that outside perspective to help us take a step back.”

Liberal Democrat announced as chair of Harrogate and Knaresborough planning committee

Harrogate councillor Pat Marsh will chair the new Harrogate & Knaresborough planning committee on North Yorkshire Council, it has been confirmed.

The Liberal Democrat member for the Stray, Woodlands & Hookstone division on the new council has been a councillor in Harrogate for over 30 years and sits on the current Harrogate Borough Council planning committee.

Because the Liberal Democrats is now the largest party within the Harrogate & Knaresborough constituency area it gets to pick the chair of the new planning committee.

The vice-chair will be Conservative councillor for Bilton & Nidd Gorge, Paul Haslam.

The committee’s other members will be Chris Aldred (Liberal Democrat), Philip Broadbank (Liberal Democrat), Hannah Gostlow (Liberal Democrat), John Mann (Conservative) and Robert Windass (Conservative).

The committee will meet every month and will have the final say over large or significant planning applications in Harrogate & Knaresborough. It’s first meeting is on April 25.

Upcoming schemes include the 770-home Windmill Farm development on Otley Road and the controversial expansion of Harrogate Spring Water’s bottling plant on Harlow Moor Road.

Cllr Marsh told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that she feels “very honoured” to have been asked to take on the role.

She said:

“I am keen to make sure Harrogate and Knaresborough get the right planning decisions.

“It is about having local knowledge that can make all the difference. I have done 33 years of planning none stop and been involved in formulating four Local Plans.

“I have never chaired a planning committee but I think I have a few years’ experience to bring to the role and I am looking forward to that new role.”

A separate planning committee will be formed for Skipton and Ripon which will be chaired by Conservative councillor for Washburn & Birstwith, Nathan Hull.

Harrogate Borough Council’s planning committee is chaired by Conservative member for Harlow & St Georges, Rebecca Burnett. It has one more meeting on Marsh 28 before the authority is abolished on March 31.

New permanent headteacher chosen for St Aidan’s in Harrogate

A new headteacher has been selected to lead St Aidan’s High School from September.

The Harrogate school has appointed Siân Dover to the role, from her current post of principal of Oasis Academy Lister Park in Bradford.

She was previously part of the leadership team that saw Nidderdale High School ranked within the top 100 schools in the country for securing outstanding GCSE outcomes.

Mrs Dover said:

“With the exception of my most recent school, I have always worked in schools in North Yorkshire. It is not only my home county, but also an area that I feel a strong affinity with.”

“My reason for applying to St Aidan’s, however, was much deeper than that. This is a school with a strong identity, a fantastic heritage and a community of students, staff and families that I felt it would be a real privilege to be part of.

“It is also abundantly clear that there is a huge amount for this school to be proud of, but I wouldn’t be a headteacher if I didn’t have a strong belief that I can help build on all of these strengths to help the school develop further in the future. The world that awaits our students is constantly evolving, and it is important that the education that we offer meets those needs.

“That is why leading the school is such a genuinely exciting prospect, and just like in my previous two jobs, I plan to be here for the long term.”

It will be the first time the school has been led on a permanent basis by a woman since its founding headteacher, Miss Hindmarsh, who was appointed in 1966.

Chair of governors Joanne Wicks said:

“Not only does Siân have the expertise and experience to build on all of St Aidan’s strengths, but her Christian values and commitment to providing a nurturing and caring environment for every young person made her the perfect fit for our community.”

In a letter to parents, Mrs Wicks and Jane Goodwin, interim CEO of Yorkshire Causeway Schools Trust, said the new head would bring “significant senior leadership experience and knowledge of the current education landscape”.

They added:

“The committee is confident that Mrs Dover has the skills and experience needed to successfully lead St Aidan’s as the school begins a new chapter in its history.”

The school said candidates from across the country applied for the role of headteacher when it was advertised in January.

Geography and PE graduate Mrs Dover was selected through a two-day assessment by its governing body and board of trustees, as well as the Diocese of Leeds. Pupils, members of the school leadership team, and other headteachers in the Yorkshire Causeway Schools Trust (YCST) were also involved.

Mrs Wicks and Jane Goodwin, interim CEO of YCST, said she would bring “significant senior leadership experience and knowledge of the current education landscape”.

St Aidan’s has been without a permanent head since December 2021, when Chris Burt left through ill health. He was replaced by Chris Ives as acting headteacher, before David Thornton was appointed last summer on an interim basis.

In recruiting for the role, St Aidan’s acknowledged it had faced a “challenging” time over the last 18 months.

The school was rated inadequate in an Ofsted report published last January, following a visit by inspectors more than three months earlier. The report found four out of five areas to be ‘good’ but because the leadership and management were ‘inadequate’, the overall rating was also brought down.

However, a monitoring visit in May led Ofsted to return for a full inspection just two days later. The report, published in June, concluded the school was ‘good’, with pupil behaviour and its sixth form both rated ‘outstanding’.

Mrs Goodwin said the school was in “excellent hands” under Mr Thornton until September, and thanked him for his leadership while St Aidan’s waited for the “right moment” to recruit its new head.

Harrogate’s spectacular Egyptian artefacts go on loan to Swansea University

The Royal Pump Room Museum in Harrogate has sent more than 700 of its finest historical artefacts to Swansea University in a collaboration which should provide deep insights into ancient Egyptian history.

The collection, which has not been fully researched for over a decade, is on loan for three years and will now be studied by experts at Swansea’s award-winning Egypt Centre. Swansea University is one of only a handful of UK universities to offer degrees in Egyptology.

May Catt, visitor and cultural services manager at Destination Harrogate, said:

“This is a fantastic chance for us to be able to learn important information about our Egyptian collection and where it came from. We look forward to being able to share this with visitors of all ages, both digitally and through new exhibitions and displays.

“We are fortunate to have such rare and exciting antiquities at the Royal Pump Room Museum and our project with Swansea University offers us a wonderful opportunity to showcase our museum’s cultural significance on an international platform.

“We are particularly pleased to be involved with this exciting project this year, which marks the 70th birthday of the museum in Harrogate.”

Harrogate’s Egyptian collection includes a spectacular coffin from the Third Intermediate Period (c. 1000-700 BC); stone stelae; a large collection of pottery; amulets and shabtis (figurines used in ancient Egyptian funerary practices), as well as a renowned Anubis mask, which is the only one of its kind in the world. There are also several Etruscan mirrors and a large collection of cuneiform tablets, bricks, and cylinder seals.

Ken Griffin of Swansea University's Egypt Centre looking at a spectacular coffin from the Third Intermediate Period (c. 1000-700 BC).

Ken Griffin of Swansea University’s Egypt Centre inspects a spectacular coffin from Egypt’s Third Intermediate Period (ca. 1000-700 BC).

The loan also offers an opportunity to learn more about the origins of Harrogate’s Egyptian antiquities, whilst raising the profile of the Royal Pump Room Museum. The objects were donated by two local collectors, Benjamin Kent and Harrogate jeweller James Roberts Ogden, whose great-great-grandsons still run Ogden of Harrogate on James Street.

While Kent purchased his at auction, Ogden appears to have obtained his items straight from the source – he acted as an adviser to Howard Carter, who famously discovered the tomb of King Tutankhamun in the Valley of the Kings in 1922, creating a worldwide sensation.

Egypt Centre curator Ken Griffin said the project, called Rediscovering Egypt, would provide an ideal opportunity for the collection to become better known to researchers.

Dr Griffin said:

“The Harrogate loan is a major coup and reflects Swansea University’s position as a leading institution for Egyptological research. Having the collection here will allow us to refresh the Egypt Centre’s displays, while also making the objects available to researchers from across the globe.

“And, in the year that the Egypt Centre celebrates its 25th anniversary, it is rather fitting that this loan is taking place now.”

Three shabtis (figurine used in ancient Egyptian funerary practices) of Seti I, including a faience example believed to be among the finest ever produced, are included in the loan from Harrogate to Swansea.

Three shabtis (funerary figurines) of Seti I, including a faience example believed to be among the finest ever produced, are included in the artefacts on loan.

The collection held permanently by Swansea University’s Egypt Centre is currently on public display online, and Harrogate’s Egyptian collection will be added to the site later this year, with photos and 3D models of the objects, to enable visitors, university students and staff to view the rare Egyptian items, while discoveries about the relics are made and shared.

Inquest opens for Harrogate woman who went missing for two weeks

The inquest of Harrogate woman Judith Holliday, who died after going missing for two weeks last summer, was opened today.

Ms Holliday was 73 when she left her care home in Harrogate on a Saturday morning last September.

When she did not return, her family alerted the police and a search began. Over the following days, the search involved mountain rescue services and the use of drones to try to locate her.

Her family made repeated appeals to try to trace her movements, and sightings were confirmed at Harrogate bus station and on the way to North Rigton.

However, after two weeks of searching, Ms Holliday’s body was found adjacent to the level crossing on Dunkeswick Lane, Weeton.

North Yorkshire assistant coroner Alison Norton opened the hearing in Northallerton this morning.

She confirmed Ms Holliday was born in Zimbabwe in July 1949, and died in Weeton on September 10, 2022.

The coroner said a post mortem found the cause of death was unexplained. The inquest was adjourned to a date to be confirmed.

Harrogate council to write-off £83,000 of ‘irrecoverable’ debt

Harrogate Borough Council will write-off over £83,000 of debt it’s owed from businesses, residents and housing tenants.

Cllr Graham Swift, the council’s cabinet member for resources, enterprise and economic development, approved two reports that said the debts would be “uneconomic to pursue further.”

The first report includes details of £44,167 worth of miscellaneous debt with the largest being two Harrogate Convention Centre invoices from Kerrison Craft Exhibitions Ltd worth £19,940.

The report says the exhibitions firm has been wound up and “there is little hope of any remuneration”.

The company was due to organise The British Craft Trade Fair (BCTF) and British Craft & Design Fair at the convention centre until 2025.

A Harrogate Borough Council spokesperson said the event owner affiliated to Kerrison Craft Exhibitions Ltd has died.

Paula Lorimer, director of Harrogate Convention Centre, said:

“We are deeply saddened by the untimely death of the event organiser. We are hopeful the event will be purchased by an alternative organiser in the future.”

The Local Democracy Reporting Service contacted the company’s liquidator, Opus LLP but it declined to make a comment.

Of the £44,167, there is also £3,717 worth of debt related to planning and £3,854 to waste and recycling.

The council will be able to recover £6,460.94 in VAT.

The report explains why HBC has decided not to pursue these debts any further:

“The costs involved are too great, the probability of success is too slim or there are simply no further legal options available.”

Meanwhile, a second report was approved by Cllr Swift related to writing-off £39,059.11 from former council housing tenants.

However, it says the ‘substantial majority’ of this sum will be written-off because the tenant has died.

Although the report adds that some debts are from tenants who “abandoned their homes and remain untraceable.”

Read more:

Read more:

‘Disgust’ at North Yorkshire County Council view

Read more:

Read more:

Read more:

Outside perspective

Read more:

Read more:

Read more:

Read more:

Read more: