Stray Ferret Business Awards: Dynamic Leader

The Dynamic Leader Award is sponsored by Succession Wealth.

Succession Wealth offers premium financial advice  clients across the UK.

The firm aims to provide clients with peace, clarity and financial well-being.

This award is designed for those in the Harrogate district who are driving progress and change within their organisation, even during hardships.

Finalists

Ian Baker, The Soundproofing Store:

Ian Baker is the Founder and Managing Director of The Soundproofing Store.

Ian Baker has led The Soundproofing Store to become the largest online retailer of soundproofing equipment and solutions in the UK.

Ian’s employees say, “his style of leadership is instrumental in the success of the business and solutions offered to customers”.

Ian Baker said:

“I am deeply grateful to be recognised among such a talented group of individuals, especially as my team nominated me without me knowing. I feel very humbled to have made the shortlist.

“I would like to express my gratitude to my team for their hard work, dedication, and support, without whom this recognition would not be possible. Their contributions and efforts have been instrumental in making our company what it is today”.

Sarah Jones, Full Circle Funerals:

Sarah Jones is the founder of Full Circle Funerals.

The company aims to raise the standards and expectations of funeral care across Yorkshire and beyond.

Since launching Full Circle, Sarah has collaborated with university academics to research the long-term effects funerals can have on people’s well-being, using the results to improve her own company.

Sarah has led Full Circle to become the first funeral director in the UK to be listed as a B Corp organisation.

Sarah Jones said:

“It is incredibly humbling to be recognised in the context of leadership and I hope that my actions and those of others around me will inspire and create positive change, particularly in relation to sustainability and wellbeing”.

Danny Wild, Harrogate College:

Danny Wild is the principal of Harrogate College.

Danny places sustainability at the top of Harrogate College’s agenda, hoping to become a centre of green excellence and a net zero facility by 2035.

Danny has led the College be the first in North Yorkshire to achieve a ‘College of Sanctuary’ status. The accolade recognises colleges that support refugees and people seeking asylum.

Harrogate College recently celebrated an Ofsted rating of ‘Good’ with ‘Outstanding Features’. The provision for adults and personal development of students were both graded ‘Outstanding’.

Danny Wild said:

“I feel very proud to be nominated for this award. This nomination gives me an opportunity to reflect on the work of my colleagues at Harrogate College, who work hard every day with people to change their lives through education.

“My view of being a dynamic leader is being attuned to the needs of the people you work with by listening and responding in a way that allows people to succeed”.

Suzanna Prout, Xenonex:

 Suzanna Prout is the Founder and Managing Director of Xenonex.

Xenonex offers leadership coaching and development programmes.

During covid, Suzanna shifted Xenonex to be entirely online. This included online training and bespoke portals where users could access resources and track progress.

Suzanna also led the business to win the CorporateLiveWire Innovation & Excellence Award for ‘Management Training Specialist of the Year – UK’.

Suzanna’s colleagues say, “her door is always open to provide support”.

Suzanna Prout said:

“I am delighted to be a finalist in the dynamic leader award. Being recognised is a wonderful way to reflect on all it takes to build a business from the ground up, to build a fabulous team and to work with some amazing clients.

“This could not be possible without the ongoing commitment and contributions from the fabulous team at Xenonex who inspire me every day. Dynamic leadership is about constant change, boundless energy and a positive outlook even when times are tough. For me, it’s all about being one step ahead and for delivering a level of service to our clients that exceeds expectations”.

Andrew Meehan, Harrogate Family Law:

Andrew Meehan is the Founder and Managing Director of Harrogate Family Law.

Andrew has led the firm to be consistently ranked in Legal 500 and Chambers guides.

Andrew dedicates a significant amount of time to all his employees as a mentor, intending to create premium standard lawyers and great career progression.

Andrew is empathetic to the emotional pressure family law can bring, and provides external coaching and counselling services to his staff when needed.

Andrew’s employees describe him as “charismatic and loved by all”.

Andrew Meehan said:

“I feel flattered to be shortlisted for the Stray Ferret Award for Dynamic Leader. I was surprised to be nominated by my team, but am delighted to have been shortlisted, especially given the quality of the other shortlisted nominees.

“I wish them all the very best of luck on the night.”

Alastair Taylor, NYnet:

Alastair Taylor is the CEO of NYnet, a broadband connectivity company in Harrogate.

Since taking on the role of CEO in 2022, Alastair has rebranded the company and launched a new website in preparation for expansion into the private sector.

Alastair oversaw the rollout of free town centre WIFI to 20 towns in North Yorkshire, including Harrogate.

Alastair’s employees say, “Alastair recognises the importance of inspiring his team and motivating them to achieve the goals he has for NYnet”.

Alastair Taylor said:

“It means a great deal that this is a local award, in the region where my colleagues and I are engaged in improving connectivity and the digital economy. I feel fortunate to work with a fantastic senior management team in a field that is dynamic by nature, where technology is always generating change and new opportunities.

“One of the bonuses of this is being able to share the knowledge we gain here in Yorkshire with technology leaders much further afield.”

The Stray Ferret Business Award event sponsor is Prosperis. To find more and to purchase tickets for the big night, click here.

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Harrogate hospital nurses to strike again next month

Nurses at Harrogate District Hospital will stage another 48-hour walk-out next month.

The Royal College of Nursing has announced further nationwide industrial action in a dispute over pay and conditions.

The strike, which will include nurses at 128 NHS hospitals, will take place from Wednesday, March 1.

Speaking following the announcement, Pat Cullen, chief executive at the RCN, said:

“It is with a heavy heart that I have today asked even more nursing staff to join this dispute.

“These strikes will not just run for longer and involve more people but will leave no area of the NHS unaffected. Patients and nurses alike did not want this to happen.

“By refusing to negotiate with nurses, the Prime Minister is pushing even more people into the strike. He must listen to NHS leaders and not let this go ahead.

“I will do whatever I can to ensure patient safety is protected. At first, we asked thousands to keep working during the strikes but it’s clear that is only prolonging the dispute. This action must not be in vain – the Prime Minister owes them an answer.”

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The move comes as nurses in Harrogate have staged two walkouts since January.

Staff staged the industrial action outside the hospital on Lancaster Park Road.

Meanwhile, on February 6, nurses walked out alongside ambulance workers from Yorkshire Ambulance Service.

North Yorkshire bus routes may avoid financial ‘cliff edge’, says transport boss

Bus services in North Yorkshire may avoid a “cliff edge” over funding next month, according to the county’s transport boss.

Cllr Keane Duncan, executive councillor for highways at North Yorkshire County Council, had previously warned that up to 79 services faced reduced frequency or ceasing altogether when central government funding comes to an end in March.

It comes as a drop in passenger numbers and increased costs for operators has put some routes at risk.

Some services, such as the 24 service in Pateley Bridge, have been secured for another year.

However, in a statement to next week’s full council meeting, Cllr Duncan has suggested others may be saved.

He said:

“North Yorkshire’s bus network remains in a fragile position, with lower passenger numbers and increased costs continuing to affect the profitability of several services.

“However, there are positive signs that the council’s close cooperation with operators will allow us to avoid the feared March ‘cliff edge’ when post-covid government funding is expected to end.”

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Cllr Duncan added that the county council intends to focus on securing funding for other services after recently securing bus routes in Selby and Scarborough.

He said:

“Our focus now shifts to other parts of the county. 

“It is our hope that we can find funds to protect services here too until at least 2024.”

The comments come as the county council negotiated funding to secure the 24 bus route between Pateley Bridge and Harrogate until April next year.

Transdev, which operates the service, had initially planned to withdraw most services on the route.

Woman robbed and sexually assaulted in Harrogate

North Yorkshire Police has said it is stepping-up patrols in a Harrogate suburb after a woman was robbed and sexually assaulted last night.

The woman was attacked while walking in the Bogs Lane area, which is off Knaresborough Road.

She sustained facial injuries and is receiving support from specially trained officers.

A police statement today said:

“It happened at around 8.30pm when the victim was approached by a man on a lane near to the tennis field who stole her jacket and mobile phone and sexually assaulted her.

“The suspect is described as tall and was wearing dark coloured clothing including black jogging trousers, a black puffa jacket, brown boots and had a large ring on his finger. Following the assault he ran off in the direction of Starbeck High Street.”

The statement added officers were “carrying out extensive enquiries including CCTV and house-to-house enquiries”. It added people may see an increased police presence in the Bogs Lane area.

Police are also appealing to anyone who was in the area at the time and witnessed the incident or saw anything suspicious people to contact them.

They urged anyone who lives in Bogs Lane, Allotment Gardens, Hillbank View or the approaches to Bogs Lane who has doorbell or private CCTV cameras that may have captured the suspect or the incident to get in touch.

Dial 101 and ask for Harrogate CID, quoting reference number 12230028839.

If you prefer to remain anonymous, you can pass information to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

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£69m Kex Gill realignment beset by further delay

Work on a major realignment of the A59 at Kex Gill has been further delayed as the scheme awaits sign off from government.

North Yorkshire County Council had earmarked work on the scheme to finally start in January.

The project will see a diversion built west of Blubberhouses on a stretch of road blighted by a history of landslips.

The scheme has faced numerous delays and following tender returns, the estimated cost of the scheme increased by £7.2 million to £68.8 million, which the council attributes to inflation affecting constructions costs.

In a statement to full council next week, Cllr Keane Duncan, executive councillor for highways, will say:

“We are almost ready to begin construction work to realign Kex Gill, which is amongst the council’s biggest ever infrastructure projects.

“The council has awarded preferred bidder status to John Sisk & Son (Holdings) Ltd, a family-owned international civil engineering and construction contractor with a strong track record.

“We are in the final stages of completing land acquisition processes ahead of a decision on our full business case which was submitted to the Department for Transport in August.

“A decision is expected very soon to coincide with a planned start on site.”

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The project is due to be funded by a £56.1 million grant from the Department for Transport, with the council covering the rest from its reserves.

A further £11 million has been factored into the £68 million budget to cover any issues with ground conditions or bad weather.

It comes as senior county council officials have warned about the risk involved with the authority’s major projects amid soaring inflation.

Gary Fielding, the council’s director for strategic resources, warned previously that the “burden of risk” for major projects, such as the realignment of the A59 at Kex Gill, will fall on the authority amid soaring inflation.

The A59 at Kex Gill, near Blubberhouses, is the main route between Harrogate and Skipton. Since 2000, the route has been closed 12 times following landslips.

The estimated completion date for the scheme is May 2025.

Harrogate woman who had stroke at 18 to run London marathon

A Harrogate woman who had a stroke when she was just 18 years old is running the London marathon to raise money to help others.

Millie Carrington was a healthy teenager when she suffered a stroke during a weekend job at a supermarket in Harrogate 10 years ago.

She had just finished A-levels at Harrogate Grammar School and did not imagine someone so young and healthy could be affected by such a serious condition. Millie said:

“I had many of the telltale signs – the right side of my face fell, I was weak down one side, I had issues speaking and understanding conversation.

“I vividly remember thinking to myself, ‘this feels like I’m having a stroke’. Yet due to my age, both those who witnessed it, as well as myself, didn’t think I was actually having a stroke. I instead put it down to a particularly bad migraine.

“It would take three more days of screaming headaches, trouble walking, problems speaking, writing and communicating, and constant sleeping before I went to a hospital where doctors diagnosed a blood clot in my brain. After many tests, they concluded that the cause was due to a previously undetected hole in my heart, which I later had surgery to close.”

Millie Carrington

Millie pictured a few months after her stroke.

Millie says she was “incredibly lucky” to make a full recovery after speech and occupational therapy, and heart surgery to fix the cause of the stroke.

In 2015 she and a friend hitchhiked from Edinburgh to Paris to raise money for the Stroke Association, which supports stroke survivors.

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Now she is attempting to raise £2,000 for the same organisation by completing the 26-mile route through the capital on April 23. She also wants to reach out to young people.

She said:

“I especially want to use this opportunity to raise awareness that a stroke can happen to anyone, of any age. I was very lucky to recover in full, but this doesn’t happen for a lot of people.

“Seeking medical attention in the first three hours often means the person receives crucial medication that gives them the best chance of survival and recovery.”

Millie has already raised nearly half of her £2,000 target. You can support her charity run here.

Smoke inhalation killed woman in Harrogate house fire, inquest hears

A woman who lost her life in a Harrogate house fire died because of carbon monoxide poisoning due to smoke inhalation, an inquest has heard.

Jayne Addyman, 54, died on January 7 last year at her home on Craven Street, which is close to King’s Road.

The inquest also heard alcohol intoxication was found to be a significant factor contributing to her death.

John Broadbridge, assistant coroner for North Yorkshire and York, concluded Ms Addyman died because of an accident.

The inquest was held on January 20 in Northallerton and Mr Broadbridge confirmed the details today to the Stray Ferret.

Firefighters from Harrogate and Knaresborough were called to Craven Street at 6.20am on Friday, January 7 last year.

Paramedics performed CPR but Ms Addyman was certified dead at the scene.

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Stray Ferret Business Awards: Sustainable Business

The Sustainable Business award is sponsored by York & North Yorkshire Growth Hub.

The York & North Yorkshire Growth Hub aims to provide businesses of all sizes and sectors effective and impartial business support.

As a local organisation, the service provided is tailored to the needs of individuals and their particular region.

This award recognises those businesses that have put sustainability at the top of their agenda by reducing their impact on the environment.

Finalists

Full Circle Funerals

Full Circle Funerals aims to improve the standards and expectations of funeral services.

Full Circle is the first funeral director in the UK to achieve B Corp status – an international measure of sustainability and business for good.

The company led a crowdfunding campaign in 2022, raising over £20,000 to fund research into the environmental impact of certain funeral choices.

It was also named UK Green Funeral Director of the Year in 2021 and 2022.

Sarah Jones, Founder and Director of Full Circle Funerals, said:

“The environment is important to us and to many of the bereaved people we support, which is why it is important to us that we have a sustainable business and share knowledge with others on how to make planet friendly choices.

“Our business was established to be a force for good and it is such an honour to have been recognised locally and nationally as an organisation that puts purpose before profit in everything we do”.

JOT’s Gallery:

JOT’s Gallery in Pateley Bridge is an art gallery dedicated to using recycled materials to showcase the environment.

James Owen Thomas, founder of the gallery, is an ambassador for the Young Tree Champion programme.

James has an artist residency in Fishpond Wood, Bewerley. He leads monthly workshops where he shares his techniques and offers ideas on how to become more creative with recycled materials.

James has also made multiple television and radio appearances discussing his passion for artwork and the environment.

James Owen Thomas said:

“We are all surrounded by the beauty of nature, and this has always been the deepest source of inspiration for me. In my efforts to protect the environment, I always choose to incorporate used materials into my art.

“I hope that my business values will encourage others to creatively recycle and reuse, so we can all do our part to save the planet”.

Number Thirteen

Number Thirteen is an eco-friendly coffee house in Knaresborough.

Everything at Number Thirteen is pre-loved, up-cycled or handmade. From teaspoons to wallpaper – it’s all been sourced from charity shops, auctions and boot fairs.

Supplies are kept local and any spare parts from deliveries, like milk bottles, are washed and reused or recycled, meaning a cup of coffee uses 0% single-use plastic.

The electricity used to power Number Thirteen is 100% renewable, generated from a combination of wind, solar and hydro energy.

Sarah Ward, owner of Number Thirteen, said:

“I wanted to try and create a business that strives to buck the single-use trend, using eco-friendly products that can be recycled or reused. I think we are living in a time where it would be irresponsible to not be aware of the impact we make on the environment.

“I strive to live a sustainable life at home, so why wouldn’t I do it at work too? Creating a business that puts sustainability at the forefront of its values, simply makes me feel better about my business and its overall impact on the environment”.

NEOM Organics London

NEOM Organics is an aromatherapy wellness brand based in Harrogate that has become a national brand.

NEOM is a certified B Corp organisation, an accolade that recognises UK businesses that place sustainability at the forefront of their values.

NEOM measures its significant environmental impacts, include packaging, water usage and ingredient sustainability, in order to establish an entirely green future.

The company has also calculated its carbon footprint and is actively developing a reduction plan.

Oliver Mennell, Co-Founder of NEOM, said:

“The NEOM team are delighted to be shortlisted as a finalist in the Sustainable Business Award. I want to credit the hard work and passion that everyone here has for building a business that doesn’t just look after the welfare of people, but also the wellbeing of our precious planet.

“As we say at Neom: “Let’s build a business we can all be super proud of”.

Source Climate Change Coffee

Source Climate Change Coffee is a conservation coffee company in Harrogate.

Source Climate Change Coffee sources its coffee globally. The company rewards farmers by buying their carbon offsets and then invests these into reforestation activities.

The company recently created a range of coffee capsules, made from entirely plant-based materials that are 100% compostable.

Source Climate Change also supports the Lorna Young Foundation to train farmers on their markets, climate change and sustainable land management practices.

Cristina Tales, Managing Director of Source Climate Change Coffee, said:

“This award recognises the work we have done in our supply chains for coffee.  Source is the only conservation-led coffee company buying coffees from reforestation projects in ecological hotspots.

“Each coffee protects a tropical forest and supports a local conservation project, where farmers are encouraged to focus on organic and sustainable land management practices, as well as plant trees to ensure they have a sustainable source of firewood and building materials. The aim is to reduce their dependency on forests as a resource”.

Resurrected Bites

Resurrected Bites is a food waste organisation, with cafés in Harrogate and Knaresborough.

The business collects short shelf-life and excess food from local producers and distributes it via the pay as you feel community cafes.

Any food not fit for human consumption is passed onto livestock and peelings are gifted to allotments to make compost.

Resurrected Bites also uses the café and social media to educate people on climate change. In 2022, the business dedicated a week of its social media posts to educating people on how to reduce food waste at home.

Michelle Hayes, CEO of Resurrected Bites, said:

“Resurrected Bites is passionate about doing all we can to protect the environment.

“The reason I started the organisation is because food waste is such a massive environmental issue and, therefore, sustainability is always at the forefront of our minds when we are deciding how we operate in all areas of our organisation.”

EnviroVent

EnviroVent is a designer and manufacturer of sustainable ventilation systems.

The company has recently moved from two separate sites into one zero-carbon building in Harrogate. The building benefits from low carbon heating and energy sources, as well as solar panels.

EnviroVent has committed to planting 5,000 trees a year in partnership with MoreTrees.

EnviroVent also works with a waste management company to prioritise recycling.

Andy Makin, Managing Director of EnvrioVent, said:

“At EnviroVent, the “enviro” in our name is not just about improving the environment of our customers, but also in improving our environmental impact for the world we live in. We take responsibility to proactively tackle climate change and are committed to achieve Net-Zero targets by 2030!

“The first major milestone for the next stage in our sustainable journey was relocating to our carbon neutral head office. This new self-sustaining building, reduces our environmental impact, utilising greater energy efficient initiatives, including solar panels, the use of additional renewable energy sources e.g. heat recovery units”.

The Stray Ferret Business Award event sponsor is Prosperis. To find more and to purchase tickets for the big night, click here.

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Harrogate’s Otley Road cycleway has cost £2.2m so far

The Otley Road cycleway in Harrogate has cost £2,234,000 so far  — almost triple the amount awarded to contractors to construct the first phase.

Hull civil engineering firm PBS Construction was awarded £827,000 in 2021 to build phase one from Harlow Moor Road to Cold Bath Road.

The much-criticised route opened in January last year but subsequent remedial work and design fees for phase two of the project — which has since been scrapped — increased the cost significantly.

The widening of the Otley Road and Harlow Moor Road junction was the main remedial work.

The figures are contained in a North Yorkshire County Council report, which raises questions over whether the council had sufficient funds to complete the second phase of the scheme.

Councillor Keane Duncan, the Conservative executive member for highways and transportation at North Yorkshire County Council, said phase two had been dropped because it lacked public support.

But the report reveals the council has just £565,000 remaining of the £4,275,000 it secured in 2018 from the government’s National Productivity Investment Fund for measures that enabled development and business growth in west Harrogate

The funding and spending figures contained in the report are reproduced below.

Otley Road cycle way

Otley Road cycle way

According to the document, council officers received “multiple reports” about the design and construction of the cycleway from residents and groups such as Harrogate District Cycle Action after it opened. It adds:

“These were then reviewed with our design consultants WSP, and a list of remedial works have now been prepared.

“These remedial works were planned to be completed in the early part of 2023. However, in May 2022 the fibre optic network company City Fibre contacted North Yorkshire County Council with a request to install fibre optic cables down the full length of the newly constructed cycleway.

“We have negotiated with City Fibre to reinstate the full width of the cycleway at their expense. We will therefore carry out our outstanding remedial works once City Fibre have installed their apparatus.”

The report adds £60,000 of the remaining funds are expected to cover these remedial works.

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The council has said it will come up with new traffic calming measures in the west of Harrogate to compensate for scrapping phase two of the scheme, which would have extended the cycleway from Cold Bath Road towards Beech Grove.

It still has aspirations to construct phase three out of town to Cardale Park at an unspecified time in the future.

North Yorkshire County Council’s highways area manager Melisa Burnham said:

“Although construction costs increased to £970,000 following completion, this was still within our anticipated budget. The increase was a result of additional design works and remedials found whilst on site.

“The remaining costs include design, feasibility, surveys and utility diversions required to deliver phase one and two of the cycleway, and the Harlow Moor Road junction improvement to date.”

 

Police appeal for witnesses after attempted burglary in Jennyfields

Police have issued an appeal after an attempted house burglary on Bramham Drive in Jennyfields this week.

The incident happened on Monday between 2.15pm and 3pm.

Officers said “significant damage” was caused to the doors of the house, but the suspect failed to gain entry.

Police added that a driver of a dark coloured Seat Leon with a registration containing “70” was seen at the time of the attempted burglary.

The driver is described as a young white man with a round face, about 5ft 8in tall, with short dark hair and wearing a dark hoodie.

A North Yorkshire Police statement added:

“Anyone with information that could assist the investigation should email elizabeth.parry@northyorkshire.police.uk or call 101, select option 2, and ask for Elizabeth Parry.

“If you wish to remain anonymous, you can pass information to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

“Please quote the North Yorkshire Police reference number 12230027326 when providing details.”

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