It’s time to join the Stray Ferret Business Club. The fourth in our series of networking events, with Banyan Bar & Kitchen, is a breakfast event on April 27 from 8am.

Don’t miss out on this chance to network with businesses from across the Harrogate district. Get your tickets by clicking or tapping here.

A Harrogate dementia care provider is celebrating its 10th anniversary.

Vida Healthcare was set up in 2013 and now employs 550 staff and cares for 230 residents across its care homes.

The company currently has homes in Starbeck, Pannal and Harlow Carr.

As part of the milestone, Vida held an awards ceremony and tea party for its staff.

James Rycroft, managing director of Vida Healthcare, said:

“My father and I established Vida to transform the care available to people living with dementia. It was clear at the time that many traditional residential care homes simply didn’t have the resources or expertise to fully support their residents who were living with dementia.

“We set about challenging perceptions and practices in dementia care, with an emphasis on reducing the use of medications and instead providing bespoke environments and alternative therapies. I’m extremely proud of how far Vida has come since we opened the doors to our first care home back in 2013.“

Pictured above left to right: Chris Rycroft, chairman, Bernadette Mossman, healthcare director, Jillian Young, operations director and James Rycroft, managing director at Vida Healthcare.

Harrogate law firm hosts networking event

A Harrogate solicitors is set to hold a free networking event next month.

Ison Harrison Solicitors will host the session at West Park Hotel on Thursday, May 4.

It will be held from 4.30pm until 6.30pm.

The event will include a quiz, networking session and fundraising for charity Harrogate Neighbours.

For more information and to register for a place, visit the EventBrite page here.

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Panto legend Tim Stedman will return to Harrogate for the 23rd time this Christmas.

Harrogate Theatre announced today Mr Stedman will play Idle Jack in Dick Whittington.

The production will run from November 22 to January 14. Tickets are already on sale.

Mr Stedman’s first appearance at the Victorian theatre on Oxford Street was in Sleeping Beauty in 2000. Since then he has become a huge favourite.

A Harrogate Theatre spokesperson said:

“Stay tuned as we release more information on the cast and creative team throughout the year.”

The spokesperson added this year’s production would be “packed with sparkle, silliness, and side-splitting jokes”.

You can book online here or via the box office on 01423502116.

Read more:

• Panto legend Tim Stedman brings Christmas magic to Harrogate again
• Christmas market on Harrogate’s Montpellier Hill bids to return this year

The Dales Bus summer service will begin its season this weekend.

The bus company provides access into and around the Yorkshire Dales on a not-for-profit basis.

It operates on Saturdays, Sundays and bank holidays throughout summer until October.

The 74 service from York Railway Station, which goes through Knaresborough and Harrogate and onto Ilkley, Bolton Abbey, Burnsall and Grassington, starts on Saturday.

Another Saturday route, the 59, will help people travel from Harrogate to Blubberhouses, Bolton Bridge and Skipton.

The 875 will depart from York every Sunday and Bank Holiday, starting this Easter weekend.

This year, an additional Sunday and bank holiday service – the 876 – will run from York to Leeds, Otley, Ilkley and Grassington, with onward connections to Upper Wharfedale and Hawes.

The national £2 single bus fare cap, which has been extended until June 30, will apply to Dales Bus services.

Find more information on services and timetables here.

The original Harrogate Christmas Market on Montpellier Hill could be set to make a comeback this year.

Brian Dunsby, co-organiser and founder of Harrogate Christmas Market Ltd, confirmed it had submitted an event management plan to North Yorkshire Council to stage the event from November 2 to 5.

The event was held annually from 2012 to 2019 until it was halted by covid.

Harrogate Borough Council then scuppered its prospects of returning by refusing to grant a licence and organising its own town centre Harrogate Christmas Fayre in conjunction with Market Place Europe, a specialist market company based in Greater Manchester.

But Harrogate Borough Council was abolished last weekend, with the new North Yorkshire Council taking its place.

The original Christmas market, which was organised by local people, had 170 traders and 53 coaches booked to attend in 2021 when the rug was pulled from under its feet.

By contrast, last year’s town centre fayre only had about 50 stalls, and some people have said there were too many food outlets and not enough craft stalls.

The fayre was accompanied by a giant Ferris wheel near the war memorial, an ice rink in Crescent Gardens and the Candy Cane Express free road train, which were popular with many visitors.

Some people welcomed the decision to hold the event in town rather than on the muddy Stray. Others said the new event lacks charm compared to Montpellier Hill.

Read more:

• Harrogate Christmas Fayre extended to 18 days
• Plan to demolish Harrogate tempietto approved

Destination Harrogate, a tourism organisation within North Yorkshire Council, issued a press release yesterday saying this year’s fayre would be extended from 10 days to 18 and run from December 1 to 17.

Because the dates for the seasonal events do not clash, there is the possibility that both could take place this Christmas.

Mr Dunsby declined to comment beyond confirming Harrogate Christmas Market Ltd had submitted its event management plan for what he hoped would be a similar event on Montpellier Hill to those staged up to 2019.

Too many food stalls?

Yesterday’s news release by Destination Harrogate announcing this year’s market extension did not mention North Yorkshire Council.

The Stray Ferret asked Destination Harrogate who was in charge of the market now Harrogate Borough Council no longer existed, who authorised the fayre extension and what response it had to claims that last year’s event had too many food stalls.

It said in a statement:

“The Harrogate Christmas Fayre has always been an event owned and operated by Market Place Europe and Destination Harrogate will continue to support them at a local level.

“The decision (to extend) was based on feedback from many of the town centre retailers, hoteliers and hospitality businesses, following the impact that the market made on their December trading. After taking on board the feedback from those sectors in particular, and following discussion with Market Place Europe, we’ve been able to agree the addition of the extra week and weekend.

“The market is open to any trader that wishes to apply to have a stall. We would actively encourage any local traders that would like to be part of the Christmas fayre to apply – as we have done since the new event was introduced in 2021. The variety and volume of stalls are dependent upon those traders that come forward and want to take the opportunity to be involved.”

A shared office space in Harrogate has issued an urgent plea for help after an injured pigeon was found in the building this morning.

Staff at Community House on East Parade discovered the young bird hiding behind a box in reception this morning.

They turned a cardboard box into a makeshift home and are attempting to keep it alive while help is found.

Karen Weaver, strategic lead at Harrogate and District Community Action, which is based in the building and has responsibility for it, said:

“We’re keeping it hydrated but it’s not keen to eat so far.  So if any one can offer it a good home and more expert knowledge than we have here we’d love to hear from them ASAP.”

Staff at Community House, which has 30 serviced offices, believe the pigeon was dislodged when the building’s gutters were cleaned yesterday.

https://twitter.com/KarenWeaver2020/status/1643572483977629696

They think the bird is too young to fly and contacted animal welfare charity the RSPCA but it was unable to help.

Ms Weaver said:

“We need someone to give it some TLC, help it feed and drink, hopefully survive and thrive and then fly off.

“We’ve got interest from the teenage daughter of one of our team  but mum would be happy for it to be rehomed elsewhere if we can find someone willing this afternoon.

“We get lots of requests for help here at Community House but we’ve not had one from a homeless bird before!”

Community House reception can be contacted on 01423503700.

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• Harrogate BID to launch campaign for second term

A ping pong parlour has returned to Harrogate’s Victoria Shopping Centre.

The attraction, which was set up by Harrogate Business Improvement District, will be open for seven days a week during retail hours.

It includes four table tennis tables and bats and balls are provided.

The BID is funding the free initiative as part of its mission to encourage people to visit town centre shops.

Matthew Chapman, Harrogate BID manager, said:

“This is ever popular with workers and students alike and evidentially brings people into town. It is open until mid-July before it will take a short break for the Harrogate Floral Summer of Celebrations’ immersive exhibition. It will then return and run through to the autumn.

“Table tennis is a great sport, and anyone can play it, no matter how young or how old. This parlour is for the public to use, free of charge. All we ask is that if there are a lot of people wanting to play, then please be sensible and don’t hog the tables too long. Give others a chance.”

The BID is encouraging people to come along and take part and there will be a monthly competition for those who ‘check in’ through a QR code to win a £50 Harrogate Gift Card.

Read more:

• New chair to take the reins at Harrogate BID
• Harrogate firms prepare to vote on whether to continue funding business group

Harrogate BID is set to launch its campaign for a second term at a meeting of its members later this month.

The business improvement district, funded through a levy on business rates for commercial premises in the town centre, was first voted in in January 2019.

Its first five-year period will end at the beginning of next year – but its manager and board are hoping to win support for a business plan for another term.

Harrogate BID chairman Dan Siddle said:

“Harrogate is a key visitor destination and working with our members, BID ensures the town centre excels as a place for business, to shop, visit and enjoy.

“The work of the team over the past five years has been focused on the delivery of five key areas: marketing, promotions and events; access and car parking; safe, clean and welcoming; business plus; and evening and night-time economy.

“The new business plan will see these five areas re-focused on three all-encompassing objectives, with even greater scrutiny of the return on investment in relation to each one.”

The new business plan will be presented to BID members at the Majestic Hotel on Wednesday, April 26. As well as showcasing the draft business plan, it will be an opportunity for the BID to highlight its achievements since it was established.

Among those are events in the town centre designed to draw visitors in, such as a lego trail last summer and attractions over the Christmas period.

It has also carried out regular deep-cleaning of streets, and added floral and artistic installations to make the town centre more attractive to visitors and residents.

It has employed a street ranger and used hosts to welcome visitors to town and give directions, as well as sponsoring free parking and free bus travel on selected routes to boost footfall in the town centre.

The ballot for the BID will open on June 1 and members will be asked to cast their votes by June 28. The result will be announced the following day.

Mr Siddle added:

“I am confident that the offering of our new five-year business plan and streamlined objectives will see a positive vote for the BID – from which we look forward to continuing our work in support of our members to make Harrogate thrive long into the future.”

Any BID members wishing to attend the event at the Majestic on April 26, which runs from 5pm to 8pm, can sign up by emailing the BID.

Read more:

• New chair to take the reins at Harrogate BID
• Harrogate firms prepare to vote on whether to continue funding business group

A training centre for the hair and beauty industry in Harrogate is set to be wound up after its director said she could no longer work in the “broken” education system.

Intuitions Ltd, previously based in Tower Street before moving to Station Parade, had been working with salons to train hairdressers for almost three decades.

However, Michelle Oliver said she closed the company in January after the Education and Skills Funding Agency reduced funding by 23%.

She said Intuitions had been heavily subsidising functional skills funding for a number of years, and the government had now removed funding for some areas of training including induction, initial assessments, and formal assessments of skills.

Ms Oliver added:

“Despite almost 30 years of trading, gaining a ‘good’ Ofsted result in July 2022 and an excellent relationship with our local employers, I no longer wanted to be part of what I feel is a broken education system with layer upon layer of meaningless bureaucracy that appears to have been put in place to prevent small independent training providers from succeeding.”

Intuitions had moved to Station Parade from Tower Street

The last Ofsted report praised Intuitions’ move to a salon-based approach, offering one-to-one and small group training. As part of this, the company had moved to an office in shared workspace Wizu on Station Parade.

However, Ms Oliver said the number of apprenticeships on offer with local salons had fallen since the covid pandemic, having an impact on the number of students training with Intuitions.

Ms Oliver is one of two remaining directors of Intuitions Ltd, having taken up the post in March 2000, alongside company secretary Berenika Wilkins. The company was founded in summer 1993 by John and Sheila Morton, who resigned as directors following Ms Oliver’s appointment.

She said former Intuitions employees had been given paid notice or made redundant and all had found jobs elsewhere.

Trainees and their employers, meanwhile, were supported to find other training providers.

A meeting of creditors has been called for April 11 at 10am, when liquidators are expected to be appointed.

Read more:

• Ofsted praise for Harrogate training centre’s new salon-based approach
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An alternative Easter window display is catching the eye of shoppers and passers-by in Harrogate.

Art collector Mark Hinchcliffe has curated the display at West Park Antiques, which hosts 40 independent traders on West Park.

Mr Hinchcliffe, who owns The Chapel on Grove Road, has created a window that combines taxidermy with Easter eggs.

A white peacock, a golden eagle and a black swan are among the star attractions.

Easter eggs and taxidermy

Mr Hinchcliffe, who is keen to shake-up Harrogate’s art and cultural scene, said the idea was to combine birds and eggs to promote the life-affirming Easter message in an original and less obvious way.

He said:

“It’s a left-field and Victorian gothic alternative to Bettys Easter window.”

West Park Antiques

Lisa Hawksworth, who owns West Park Antiques, said:

“We always do our own window theme and Mark approached us about doing something new. We’ve known him for years and know he’s creative.

“Mark has a great eye and knowledge of design and when you see what he has achieved at The Chapel, it was an easy decision to let him do it.”

The display is expected to remain in place until April 17.

Read more:

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Councillors have criticised North Yorkshire Council after it confirmed not all meetings will be live streamed online.

North Yorkshire Council replaced the seven district and borough councils, including Harrogate, as well as North Yorkshire County Council on Saturday.

It is the largest council area in England, spanning over 3,000 square miles with most of its meeting taking place at County Hall in Northallerton.

During the covid pandemic, the government passed legislation to allow council business to continue online. Meetings took place on apps such as Microsoft Teams and were live streamed for residents to watch on YouTube.

Since pandemic restrictions were lifted, Harrogate Borough Council continued to live stream all of its meetings whereas North Yorkshire County Council only routinely live streamed executive and full council meetings.

Following a question by a councillor, a senior officer at the new council confirmed in an email that the previous North Yorkshire County Council live streaming arrangement will continue.

County Hall in Northallerton

This means that at the moment, the only chance residents will get to see what is happening in a host of other meetings, including those concerning public health, education and transport, is if they travel to Northallerton.

However, meetings in Harrogate, such as planning committee, licensing committee and area constituency committee, will be streamed using equipment bought by Harrogate Borough Council.

But they will no longer include developments affecting Ripon, Masham and Pateley Bridge as meetings in Harrogate will cover the Harrogate and Knaresborough parliamentary constituency.

The email concludes by saying the new council is reviewing “what is possible and practicable” regarding live streaming meetings in the future.

Three-hour round trip

In some parts of Craven such as Ingleton or Bentham it’s a three-hour round trip to County Hall.

Andy Brown, Green Party councillor for Aire Valley, said residents should not be expected to travel to Northallerton to “watch democracy in action.” He added:

“Working online can save hours of travelling and make the meeting more efficient. It is crazy that I am travelling for 90 minutes to attend meetings that could be done online.

“It is wrong that meetings which could be steamed into the homes of every interested member of the public are not conducted as openly as possible.”

Andy Solloway, Independent councillor for Skipton West and West Craven said:

“The outgoing Craven District Council have been recording meetings for years, and live streaming them, especially decision making ones, would be a good thing for local democracy and for public participation and engagement.”

Read more:

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• Plan to demolish Harrogate tempietto approved

Arnold Warneken, Green Party councillor for Ouseburn, also said he was in favour of the council live streaming all meetings:

“Someone should be able to open their laptop in their house and see what the council is up to. Sometimes it’s like watching paint dry but you can have it on in background. That is transparency and engagement.

“The meetings should all be streamed if we’re serious about carbon and the impact we make ourselves. There’s a lot of support for it.”

What the council says

North Yorkshire Council’s executive member for democratic services, Cllr
David Chance, said:

“We are committed to ensuring that the new North Yorkshire Council has local
communities at its heart, despite serving such a vast area across the county.

“The online streaming of council meetings has been an important way of making sure that access is available as widely as possible to both councillors and members of the public.

“Meetings of full council and the executive will be routinely streamed online, and we will continue to record and broadcast planning and licensing meetings that were previously overseen by district and borough councils.

“We will consider broadcasting or recording other meetings when there is a strong public interest or where there are facilities in place that enable it to be readily done.

“The new council is the third largest in the country, and now oversees services that were previously delivered by eight authorities in North Yorkshire. There are therefore a significant number of meetings each year, which is in the region of 200.

“We are reviewing what is possible and practicable regarding the recording and broadcasting of meetings, taking into account the facilities which are available across the county, the IT and democratic support that is needed as well as investment in IT infrastructure.”