New Harrogate craft beer bar set to open next month

A new town centre craft beer run by the owners of Husk Beer Emporium could be open by the end of October.

Friends Danny Duckworth and Tom Gill have had a shop on King’s Road for the last couple of years.

It’s become a haven for craft beer lovers, selling a wide range of beers with idiosyncratic branding and flavours.

They will soon be creating their first bar in a former restaurant on Station Square and will keep the Husk name.

The friends received the keys from the landlord this week and are now busy refurbishing the premises ahead of opening, which Mr Gill said is likely to be late October or early November.

The bar will be in a unit previously home to Souvlaki restaurant on Station Square

The ground floor bar will have 10 craft beer lines as well as a selection of bottles and cans. It will also serve tea and coffee as well as cakes and cheeseboards.

The shop will move from King’s Road to downstairs below the bar.

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Mr Gill said it was “exciting but also nerve-wracking” to be opening.

Rising energy bills are on the mind of every business owner at the moment and he hopes the new Chancellor will cap bills for businesses in next week’s emergency budget.

He said:

“Some bars in Leeds have seen 200% to 400% increases on their energy bills. That’s pretty scary.”

Over the last decade, Harrogate has welcomed many new craft beer bars including North Bar, the Disappearing Chin and the Harrogate Tap.

Handily, the bars all follow a trail for drinkers, which Husk will be part of.

They also hope to apply for a pavement licence so drinkers can sit outside. Mr Gill said he believed his business will benefit from the proposed Station Gateway scheme that is set to transform the area and pedestrianise James Street.

He added:

“I can quite easily see the negatives [of the Station Gateway] but for us it will help increase footfall and help to create a ‘cafe culture’ around Station Square.”

To find out more about Husk Beer Emporium visit its website.

Most Harrogate hospital operations to go ahead on Monday

The majority of planned operations at Harrogate District Hospital are set to go ahead on Monday.

Staff at Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust have been contacting patients after the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II was made an official bank holiday.

The trust said that of 35 operations due to go ahead on Monday, 33 were still due to proceed.

Two non-urgent operations have been cancelled. The hospital said one was rescheduled on request of the patient.

The trust said in a statement:

“We are working hard to deliver as many of the appointments and operations that have been booked to take place on Monday, September 19, as possible.

“By the end of this week, we will contact anyone who has an appointment, endoscopy or operation on that date to let them know if it is going ahead as planned or not.

“We would ask anyone who might be affected to please wait for the call from out teams.”

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It comes as hospitals across the country have been told to contact patients ahead of the bank holiday to inform them of whether their appointments are going ahead.

In a letter to all English hospital trusts, Dr Ursula Montgomery, director of primary care at NHS England, said:

“For patients with planned appointments that are affected by the bank holiday, please ensure they are informed in advance of any changes by utilising direct patient communications. 

“Where planned appointments are going ahead it is important this is also confirmed with patients.”

No bonfire on the Stray in Harrogate this year

Harrogate’s main fireworks night event on the Stray will take place this year without a bonfire.

Last year Harrogate and District Round Table celebrated the 50th anniversary of organising the free-to-attend charity fundraising event

It will return this year on Saturday, November 5 and although there will be fireworks there won’t be a bonfire.

Andy Rickard, who is responsible for planning this year’s event, said:

““I know some people will miss the bonfire, and we certainly haven’t ruled out having a bonfire in future years, but we thought it was time to try something different.

“I’m incredibly excited about this year’s event and can’t wait to see everyone there.”

Mr Rickard said feedback from last year indicated most people attended for the fireworks and were ambivalent about the bonfire.

The cost and logistics required to source and move suitable wood were also factors for what aspires to be an environmentally sustainable event.

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However, the event will start earlier, include fairground rides and see local groups perform on the stage, which will be moved to a more prominent position.

Besides the usual firework finale, visitors can expect to see fire performers as well as local entertainers on the stage.

Stray bonfire 2021 Pic by Tyler Parker

The fireworks will be back. Pic by Tyler Parker

The district Scouts and commercial vendors will sell food.

Craig Stephenson, chair of the Round Table, said:

““It’s great to see new ideas and innovation in this community event and I know that there’s a lot of work going on behind the scenes to put together a fantastic programme, which we look forward to announcing in the forthcoming weeks.”

The event will open at 4pm on the Saturday afternoon and culminate with the firework display at about 7.30pm.

It will be free to attend with net proceeds from donations going to a local charity.

The Round Table charity raises funds for local good causes through events such as Harrogate Beer Festival.

It also provides community service events, such as The Old Peoples Lunch and The Stray Charity Fireworks.

Generating over half a million pounds in the last 15 years, it has awarded grants to individuals and organisations supporting the young, old, sick or vulnerable and anyone in need.

Harrogate man stole £24,000 watch from Rudding Park Hotel

A Harrogate man has been given a community order after stealing a £24,000 Rolex watch from Rudding Park Hotel.

Jake Perks, 32, of Jennyfield Drive, pleaded guilty to theft when he appeared before Harrogate Magistrates Court yesterday.

The court heard how Perks had visited the hotel on a spa day with his girlfriend on April 22 this year.

The named victim, who owned the Rolex GMT Master II watch, had left it in the changing rooms to go in the shower.

On his way out of the hotel sometime later, he realised he did not have his watch on and could not find it in the hotel.

The Rolex was reported stolen to police and Perks later made a full admission to taking it after noticing it in the changing rooms.

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The prosecution said he handed the watch into police after it was in his possession “for a number of weeks”.

His defence lawyer said it was “an offence committed on impulse” and that he had no previous criminal history.

“He accepts that he has taken the watch and it was out of character.”

The defence added that Perks had been going through a long divorce with his ex-wife and had personal issues.

The magistrates said they accepted that the matter was “an unfortunate lapse in judgement”.

However, the court issued Perks with a community order and ordered him to carry out 60 hours unpaid work.

He was also ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £95 and £85 court costs.

Business Breakfast: Harrogate private hospital joins forces with Mumsnet

Business Breakfast is sponsored by Harrogate law firm Truth Legal. 

The Duchy Hospital in Harrogate has joined forces with parenting website Mumsnet to help women get answers to a range of gynaecology-related problems. 

The partnership gives Mumsnet users the chance to ask women’s health-related questions directly to one of the UK’s leading gynaecologists.

Dr Sujata Gupta is a consultant gynaecologist at Circle Health Group, the healthcare provider that runs the hospital. 

Historically the diagnosis and treatment of gynaecological conditions have been challenging, with women often left waiting years for a diagnosis, or in some cases never receiving a clear answer.

Dr Gupta hopes the campaign will empower women to better understand their health.

She said:

“Thousands of women in Yorkshire struggle with the effects of a gynaecological condition and yet often go undiagnosed for years.

“The greatest challenge is often finding the right information, or the feeling of embarrassment that comes suffering with this type of condition.

“This has a dramatic impact on how women engage with healthcare professionals and ultimately prevents them from asking the appropriate questions and getting the diagnosis they need.”

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Event to help businesses become menopause-friendly

Community organisation Mylifepool Harrogate will host an event for businesses to learn more about how to become more menopause-friendly.

It will coincide with World Menopause Day on October 18, which raises awareness of the menopause and the support options available.

The event will take place at Crowne Plaza in Harrogate and promises an evening of “no-nonsense advice” about menopause in the workplace.

Tickets cost £4 and there is a 20% discount on food and drink at the hotel.

For more information on topics covered, and to book, visit here.

North Yorkshire Police to send officers to Queen’s funeral

North Yorkshire Police has said policing levels in the Harrogate district “won’t be adversely affected” despite officers being redeployed to London for the Queen’s funeral.

The state funeral of Elizabeth II will take place at Westminster Abbey on Monday. About 10,000 police officers are expected to be in the capital in the days leading up to the funeral and during it.

The Met has drafted in officers from around the UK to boost security, including both specialist and general officers from North Yorkshire Police.

The Stray Ferret asked the force how many officers based in the Harrogate district will be in London but it said it was unable to give a figure due to “operational reasons”.

Assistant chief constable Elliot Foskett said NYP will allocate officers in the district “in a way that does not adversely affect the level of policing the public.”

He said:

“Like other police forces, North Yorkshire Police is supporting the Metropolitan Police in helping to deal with the significant challenges for them at this very difficult, and very sad time.

“We are providing both specialist and general duties police officers to work alongside other national colleagues to ensure the safety of the public visiting the capital to pay their respects.”

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Harrogate solicitor who rammed car into wife’s home spared jail

A drink-driving solicitor rammed his car into his wife’s home following months of marital discord in which he falsely accused her of being unfaithful and forced her to flee the house.

Richard Wade-Smith, 66, a former “high-powered” solicitor from Harrogate, waged an unrelenting harassment campaign against his now-former partner.

It culminated in the early hours of Boxing Day last year when she was awoken by a terrible “smashing” noise, prosecutor Brooke Morrison told York Crown Court.

The ex-partner initially thought it was an “explosion” but then heard an engine revving and locked herself inside a bedroom as she was too scared to go out and see what it was. 

She called police and it was only when officers arrived that she dared venture outside her home in Slingsby Walk, near the Stray.

To her horror, she realised it was Wade-Smith, who had rammed his Nissan Qashqai into her front door.

Police helped Wade-Smith out of the car, which was damaged along with the front of his ex-partner’s semi-detached home. He was taken into custody where a breath test showed he was nearly twice the drink-drive limit. 

Wade-Smith, a Cambridge law graduate whose legal specialisms included planning and environmental matters, was arrested and charged with harassment causing fear of violence, damaging property and drink-driving.

He ultimately admitted the offences and appeared for sentence today when the court was told about the couple’s toxic relationship and Wade-Smith’s unrelenting harassment of the victim.

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At a previous hearing, Wade-Smith had contested the parameters of a proposed restraining order to keep him away from his former partner because he was worried that the exclusion zone would prevent him going to Waitrose, the upmarket superstore. 

Ms Morrison said the former couple had been in a relationship for about 22 years, but in 2021 Wade-Smith’s behaviour changed after he started drinking following seven years of abstinence.

He would “disturb (his wife’s) sleep”, waking her in the middle of the night and demanding she “answer questions” about her so-called “secret lives” and their sex life.

Wade-Smith also demanded on “multiple occasions, in the middle of the night”, that she leave the house.

He would shout at her on “multiple occasions” in the street. She became so frightened she began “spending large amounts of time overnight sitting on her doorstep or wandering the streets”.

Fearing for her safety

In November last year, she started receiving nasty messages on a “daily basis” from Wade-Smith, who made further groundless accusations about her.

On one occasion inside the house, he told her: “If you don’t go now, I’ll kick you down the stairs.”

Fearing for her safety and worried she would be physically attacked, the former partner called police. 

Wade-Smith was arrested and bailed on the proviso that he didn’t contact her or go to her address.

But the ex-lawyer, who had worked for a number of legal firms in Yorkshire before latterly being self-employed, allegedly sent her more messages while on bail, culminating in the car-ramming incident on December 26.

Following his arrest for that incident, Wade-Smith gave police a prepared statement in which he admitted that the relationship was “not good” but initially denied that the messages and his behaviour were threatening.

In a victim statement read out in court, the former partner said Wade-Smith’s behaviour had left her with health problems and had affected her “financially and psychologically”.

She said she was trying to sell the house of which Wade-Smith had joint ownership and there had been contact between their respective solicitors.

She said that at this stage in her life she he hadn’t expected to be in “this insecure position” and been put under pressure to sell the high-market-value house which needed considerable repair.

Defence barrister Alasdair Campbell said that Wade-Smith had severe mental health problems at the time of the offences and became bipolar in middle age. 

A doctor’s report confirmed he had been suffering from psychosis and “hypermania”, which had been exacerbated by alcohol and “led to a very unpredictable life for both of them”.

Mr Campbell added:

“Because of his previous life (as a solicitor) he clearly has intelligence (and) he has remorse.”

‘A tragic case’

Wade-Smith, a keen cyclist, was currently homeless after spending nine months on custodial remand awaiting sentence.

Judge Sean Morris, the Recorder of York, told Wade-Smith: 

“This is as tragic case – tragic for you, but especially tragic for your wife.

“You (were) a man of good character and you were a successful solicitor who worked extremely hard in a high-powered position, but unbeknown to you, you became bipolar.

“Your wife recognised that there was obviously something wrong with you and you acted as a completely different person to the man she used to know and love.

“At the time of these awful experiences for your wife, you were suffering with episodes of mania and psychosis, not helped by the fact that you tried to self-medicate with alcohol.

“You became delusional and acted in a way you would not have acted had you not been affected with this problem.”

Mr Morris said that due to this “strong” personal mitigation, he would not be sending Wade-Smith to jail, nor imposing a suspended prison sentence because the former lawyer would be released immediately without accommodation due to the nine months he had spent on remand.

Instead, Wade-Smith received a three-year community order with 40 rehabilitation-activity days “to help “rebuild your life”.

Mr Morris said a community order with support rather than a suspended prison sentence was more “appropriate”, otherwise Wade-Smith would be released from prison “unaided” and with nowhere to live and “on the streets”.

Restraining order

Wade-Smith was also made subject to a restraining order, for an indefinite period, which prohibits him contacting his wife or going near her home in Slingsby Walk. 

The initial map proposed by the prosecution asked for Wade-Smith to be banned from going within 500 metres of his former partner’s house in Slingsby Walk, but Wade-Smith asked for the radius to be halved so he could go to Waitrose.

The judge said that the definitive map would be redrawn if the victim wished to alter it. 

Wade-Smith also received a 17-month motoring ban for drink-driving. 

The Probation Service said that Wade-Smith would be treated as a “priority” case for emergency housing and that the local authority would find him homeless accommodation in Harrogate. 

Harrogate to host Green Party conference this month

Over 1,000 Green Party members will be coming to Harrogate this month for the party’s autumn conference.

It will take place at Harrogate Convention Centre from September 30 to October 2.

The conference theme is ‘The pathway to a fairer, greener country’ and topics will include the climate emergency and the cost of living crisis.

The Greens last came to Harrogate for their autumn conference in 2017.

The party had a successful local elections in May, winning five seats on North Yorkshire County Council, including Arnold Warneken in Ouseburn.

Co-leaders Carla Denyer and Adrian Ramsay will be delivering a keynote speech at 2pm on the first day of the conference.

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Junior soldiers in Harrogate among first to swear oath to King Charles III

Junior soldiers in Harrogate have become some of the first British army service personnel to swear the oath to King Charles III.

A total of 211 junior entry soldiers at the Army Foundation College, on Penny Pot Lane in Harrogate, swore the oath on Sunday night, signifying their enlistment into the army.

The college provides basic training to recruits aged 16 and 17. The courses last for either 23 or 49 weeks.

Army Foundation College

credit MOD Crown Copyright 2022

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Covid infections in Harrogate district lowest for 15 months

Covid infections in the Harrogate district have fallen to their lowest level since June last year.

Latest figures show the district’s weekly infection rate per 100,000 people currently stands at 47. The last time it was below this level was 15 months ago.

The rate is also well below its record of 1,906 in January when the Omicron variant fuelled a huge wave of infections at the peak of winter.

Health experts have predicted there will be a jump in covid and flu infections ahead of this winter, and they are urging anyone who is eligible for an extra vaccine to boost their protection against both illnesses.

The autumn booster campaign began across most of the UK last week, with care home residents being vaccinated first.

The other groups who qualify and will be invited over the coming weeks are:

Adults aged 50 and over

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In Harrogate, some walk-in appointments are available at the Great Yorkshire Showground’s Event Centre, although booking is advised via the NHS website or by calling 119.

North Yorkshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) is running covid vaccinations at the site everyday between 9am and 5pm until Friday.

The CCG said those eligible must be aged 80 and over, or work in health and social care, or were previously shielding.

Meanwhile, Harrogate District Hospital currently has 28 covid-positive patients, although only two of these are primarily receiving treatment for the virus.

The hospital last reported the death of a patient who tested within 28 days on 19 August, with its toll since the pandemic began standing at 274.