Harrogate Borough Council has refused a bid to convert a former working men’s club in Harrogate into two flats.

The National Reserve Club, East Parade, formally closed in July following a unanimous resolution from its members last year. It was also known as ‘The Nash’.

The organisation had been registered as a working men’s club since July 11, 1913, when it was known as the Harrogate Battalion National Reserve of the West Riding of York Club.

ID Planning, which submitted the plan on behalf of Ashleigh and Caroline Wells, said in its application that the scheme would provide a viable use for the building.

But as the building is a community facility, the council said in its refusal that the owner had not been able to prove that it was no longer viable before submitting planning permission.

Read more:

• Bilton Working Men’s Club to change name after more than 100 years
• Malcolm Neesam History: Harrogate’s thriving working men’s clubs

Working men’s clubs were once the heart of the community across the country but many have faced dwindling membership numbers with some forced to close.

The Nash never reopened after the first covid lockdown two years ago.

It had 28 members at the time of closing and donated its remaining cash to charity.

However, other Harrogate clubs such as The Londesborough Club and Bilton WMC are still going strong.

Read Harrogate historian Malcolm Neesam’s history of the town’s working men’s clubs here.

Two new smart bins branded an ‘eyesore’ outside Harrogate’s Valley Gardens are to be moved.

Harrogate Borough Council said today it would “find a more suitable location for the bins”, which it revealed cost £4,350 each.

The bins use sensors to identify different types of waste, as well as how full the receptacles are and whether they have been damaged.

Harrogate Civic Society and the Friends of Valley Gardens both called for the bins to be relocated this week because of their visual impact on the conservation area.

The council has installed six smart bins, costing a total of £26,1000, in Valley Gardens. But it is the two outside the main entrance that have attracted criticism.

Stuart Holland, co-chair of the civic society, said it welcomed receptacles to collect waste and recycling but described the smart bins as ‘eyesores’.

Ann Beeby, secretary of the Friends of Valley Gardens charity, said it has aesthetic concerns and had asked the council to consider moving them inside the entrance.

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A council spokesman said today:

“The location of the bins was chosen in areas where footfall is high and where in peak season bins require emptying multiple times a day.

“We’d like to thank Harrogate district residents and Harrogate Civic Society for sharing their comments on the bins. And following feedback from the civic society, we will work with them to find a more suitable location for the bins outside Valley Gardens to preserve the heritage of the town while maintaining a high footfall area.”

Smart bins ‘improve efficiency and increase recycling’

Two bins have also been installed in the children’s play area.

The council spokesperson said the new solar-powered compacting public bins would “improve efficiency and increase recycling”.

They added:

“Each self-contained 240l bin, that prevents birds and vermin from entering, can compact the volume of up to 10 standard bins.

“Resulting in each pair accommodating a total of up to 4,800 litres of waste and recycling and a reduction in the time and cost of emptying bins, as well as a reduction in fuel costs and carbon emissions.

“Meaning we can spend more time litter picking and keeping the district clean and looking its best.

“The allowance for recycling glass, plastic and cans means that these items can be removed from general waste and increase the district’s recycling rates.

“Much like the standard bins that have recently been retrofitted with a sensor, we are also able to monitor fill levels and are alerted if there are issues with the bin, or the bin becomes full before its next collection, ensuring litter is kept to a minimum and we can ensure the district is kept clean and tidy.”

A Harrogate man asked a 13-year-old ‘girl’ for nude photos during online chats, a court heard.

Thomas Fryer, 36, contacted the ‘girl’ on a messenger app, not realising he was in fact chatting with an adult decoy who was working undercover to trap online predators.

Prosecutor Ashleigh Metcalfe told York Crown Court that a vigilante group called Keeping Kids Safe was behind the sting, which ended with a “confrontation” at Fryer’s home that was live-streamed on social media.

She said the volunteer decoy – a man who was named in court – set up a fake profile purporting to be a teenage girl.

Fryer made contact under the username ‘Tom Fryer 1’. On the ‘girl’s’ profile it said she was 19 years of age, but when he contacted her, she told him she was 13 years old.

Thus began a series of debauched chats on the Oasis and KIK apps, culminating in the “confrontation” at Fryer’s home where the vigilantes called in police.

Officers arrived on the scene and seized Fryer’s iPhone, which showed messages between him and the ‘girl’, including one in which he asked her if she “goes nude” and encouraged her to take naked photos of herself. Ms Metcalfe said:

‘She’ sent him two photos, whereupon Fryer called her a ‘cute girl’.”

He then asked ‘her’ if she had any photos of her young friend and if this girl was sexually active.

He then asked ‘her’:

“Why don’t you kiss your ‘bestie’ for the experience?”

In subsequent chats, he asked for more pictures from the ‘girl’ and told ‘her’:

“It’s probably better to keep this between you and me. Don’t tell anyone about the (pictures) LOL.”

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Ms Metcalfe said the chats occurred over a five-day period between May 28 and June 1, 2020.

Never been in trouble before

Fryer, of Dragon Parade, was quizzed by police but remained largely silent. However, he ultimately admitted attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity and attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child.

They were charged as ‘attempts’ because the ‘girl’ was in fact an adult decoy.

Robert Mochrie, mitigating, said Fryer had never been in trouble before.

Judge Simon Hickey said it was better for Fryer to get the help he needed in the community rather than any custodial sentence.

Fryer was given an 18-month community order with a 40-day rehabilitation programme. He was also ordered to carry out 80 hours’ unpaid work.

He was placed on the sex-offenders’ register for five years and made subject to a five-year sexual-harm prevention order, mainly to curb his internet activities.

Harrogate Thalidomide campaigner Guy Tweedy has laid a wreath to pay tribute to victims of the morning sickness ‘wonder drug’.

Mr Tweedy placed the wreath at the foot of a copper beech tree planted on the Harrogate’s Montpellier Hill in 2012.

The tree was the UK’s first-ever memorial to those who died as a result of their mothers being prescribed the drug in the early stages of pregnancy.

The wreath commemorates the 60th anniversary of the Thalidomide Society, which was formed in 1962 by the parents of children affected by the drug.

Mr Tweedy, who turns 60 in June and is himself a Thalidomider, is a prominent campaigner for the society.

The society was formed by parents of children affected by the drug in order to provide mutual support and seek compensation.

At least 2,000 babies in the UK were born due to Thalidomide, and more than half of them died within their first year. An unknown number also died in the womb.

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Common deformities included missing or shortened limbs, blindness, brain damage and missing internal organs.

442 UK Thalidomiders still alive

There are a total of 442 Thalidomiders aged between 56 and 63 still alive in the UK today.

Over the last two decades, Mr Tweedy – who sufferers from shortened arms and fingers fused together, has helped secure hundreds of millions of pounds from the government for the ongoing care of fellow survivors.

He said:

“A decade ago, we planted this tree to commemorate those who died from this hideous drug. Thalidomide was the worst man-made disaster in peace time history.

“It killed thousands of babies in the womb and in their first years of life. It left thousands more with terrible deformities and affected the lives of thousands of families around the world.

“For the last ten years I have watched the memorial tree grow – and it will be here long after I, and all the other Thalidomide survivors, have passed away.

“The Harrogate district has seven thalidomide survivors, and since its inception 60 years ago the Thalidomide Society has fought our corner and championed our welfare.

“Whilst this wreath is to commemorate the victims of this tragedy, it’s also to recognise the ongoing work of the Thalidomide Society which aims to ensure the impact of thalidomide is never forgotten.

A quirky café where you can grab a slice of cake and cuddle a chihuahua is set to open in Harrogate this month.

Billed as ‘England’s first interactive chihuahua experience’, The Chihuahua Lounge is aimed at boosting mental health with pet assisted therapy.

The venue, on Knaresborough Road, is expected to open on weekends from Saturday, May 14.

Customers will be able to book a 50-minute session at the café, on Knaresborough Road, and chill out with a coffee in the company of six cute long-haired chihuahuas.

Picnic and her puppies Badger, Lambie, Potter, Peony and Lucy, all bred and raised by café founder Caroline Leather, will roam free within the building.

Ms Leather said she wanted to share the benefits that she gains from her own affectionate pack of chihuahuas.

She explained that this is how the concept of a ‘home-from-home interactive chihuahua experience’ with lounge seating, coffee, cakes and cuddles was born.

Ms Leather said:

“The Chihuahua Lounge is a friendly, safe haven, away from the hustle and bustle of modern life.

“We are passionate about animal assisted therapy, which has shown that spending time with dogs not only reduces your heart rate and blood pressure, but is good for mental health.

“We offer an extensive menu of hot and cold drinks, freshly baked cakes and have cosy sofas, arm chairs and foot stools, so you can kick off your shoes and curl up for a cuddle.”

The experience costs £10 per person. This contributes towards the cost of the specific qualifications needed to exhibit the animals, as well as the strict animal welfare and licensing laws.

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For the safety of the dogs, only children over the age of six are permitted.

Ms Leather said:

“Our dogs love human attention and we have made sure that the café is a home-from-home for them.

“They also have their own private room where they are free to wander in and out as they please.

“We do not force our dogs to be in the lounge area with our guests. When the dogs are in the lounge space, they are there out of choice, and we intend to always keep it that way.

Ms Leather explained that the dogs also have weekly health checks and  behavioural studies are conducted on each animal regularly to ensure their behaviour in the café demonstrates that of a happy and relaxed dog.

She added:

“If it does not, we take them out of the café environment.

“We have a set of house rules to protect the dogs welfare that have to be adhered to by all customers.

“We also limit the capacity of our café to ensure the dogs are not overcrowded.”

A Harrogate man with motor neurone disease is to scale Snowdon to raise funds for Leeds Hospitals Charity and the MND Association.

Ian Flatt, 56, was diagnosed with the terminal illness in 2019 and needs a ventilator for 16 hours a day.

Despite his diagnosis, he’s already completed two 100-mile trips to raise money for a new state-of-the-art MND facility in Leeds.

His latest challenge will see him ascending the highest mountain in Wales, which is 1,085 metres tall and the equivalent of climbing 4,610 steps.

The Leeds-based hospital charity is raising money to build a new Rob Burrow Centre for Motor Neurone Disease at Seacroft Hospital, where both men are cared for.

The former Leeds Rhinos player Rob Burrow MBE has become an ambassador for the disease since his own diagnosis in 2019.

Mr Flatt said:

“The Rob Burrow Centre for Motor Neurone Disease is very important to us as a family. We’re passionate about supporting other families going through this difficult disease.

“The support of the team at Leeds and their specialist help is so crucial for us to live as well as we can as a family. Whilst my mobility, dexterity and respiratory functions are failing, my sense of adventure remains intact.”

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Mr Flatt’s wife, two daughters and around forty friends will be joining him on the Snowdon trek. Staff from both the MND Centre and Leeds Hospitals Charity will also be climbing the mountain.

The charity’s appeal has raised £2m of the £5m needed to build the new centre.

To donate visit: https://donate.giveasyoulive.com/fundraising/ian-flatt-whats-your-mountain

Film crews were in Harrogate again over the bank holiday to film the latest series of All Creatures Great and Small.

The road outside the former Harrogate Borough Council offices at Crescent Gardens was closed to enable filming to take place for the third series of Channel 5‘s adaptation of the books by James Herriot.

Filming began in March and has taken the cast and crew around the Dales to areas such as Grassington, Summerbridge and Pateley Bridge for the programme about the life of a vet in the Yorkshire Dales.

Reader Holly Chaplin sent us some images over the weekend after spotting a classic car and multiple men in tweed being filmed outside Crescent Gardens.

This is the second time in a few weeks the former council buildings have been used as a backdrop for a TV series. At the beginning of last month it was used as a location for Netflix’s new show Bank of Dave.

Plans to redevelop Crescent Gardens, which include a two-storey extension, rooftop restaurant, gym and new office space, are recommended for approval next week.

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Harrogate has been visited by numerous film crews and stars in recent weeks.

Ms Chaplin also sent us a photo of wildlife presenter Steve Backshall, taken when he appeared at a show at Harrogate’s Royal Hall yesterday.

Steve Backshall in Harrogate yesterday. Pic by Holly Chaplin

Plans to convert a historic mill in Darley into 20 homes look set for approval.

Darley Mill on the B6451 is Grade II Listed and includes a former corn mill that dates back to the 18th century.

A Harrogate Borough Council officer has recommended councillors next week approve an application to redevelop the Nidderdale mill by its Leeds-based owner YorPlace.

It comes four years after the council granted permission to build a smaller development of 13 homes. However, building work never began and a council report states the applicant would now like to build a larger development to make the project viable.

A mix of two, three and four-bedroom properties would be created.

A distinctive water wheel will be kept under the plans.

Darley & Menwith Parish Council said in planning documents it would welcome the landmark being brought back into use.

Chair Martin Pearson said:

“In respect of the current application, the parish council confirmed that it is still keen to see the mill building redeveloped as soon as possible, noting that its current condition is spoiling the local landscape.”

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History of the mill

Darley Mill was one of eight mills in the village and was built in the 18th century on the banks of Darley Beck.

It was used as a working mill until the 1950s when it became a tourist attraction.

In the mid-1980s, the mill was converted into a store selling linens, crafts and clothing.

In 2009, it was bought by the Yorkshire Linen Company, which ran a restaurant and shop at the mill until 2016 when it closed due to financial problems.

Rail campaigner Brian Dunsby has said his pleas to reinstate the cancelled 6.07am train from Harrogate to Leeds have been ignored by publicly-owned rail operator Northern.

The Stray Ferret reported last month that the weekday service — the first of the day — will be axed from May 15. Some evening services will also be cut.

Mr Dunsby, of Harrogate Line Supporters Group, branded the move ‘disgraceful’ and called for a rethink. He said the service is vital for commuters and voiced his concern that losing it will damage Harrogate’s business community.

Since the decision, he said he’s been lobbying Northern as well as Transport for the North and local Conservative MP Andrew Jones, but he’s been left disappointed.

He said:

“There’s been no progress at all. It’s quite unjustifiable. We can’t understand why they are cancelling them. It’s very unsatisfactory.”

Northern blamed lower passenger numbers, issues with rolling stock and staffing problems for the cuts, which has seen a raft of services across Yorkshire withdrawn.

Read more:

• Northern to continue with Harrogate train cuts despite pressure from MP
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Northern will put on a bus to replace the lost early train service from Harrogate to Leeds, but it could be December at the earliest until Northern will look at reintroducing the rail service. Mr Dunsby said this was “not good enough”.

He added:

“That’s eight months away. People need this train for business trips.”

Tony Baxter, regional director at Northern, said:

“Customers are at the heart of everything we do, and the new timetables are designed to deliver high levels of reliability.

“We’ve made decisions about our timetables based on the levels of resource we have available and prioritising the routes with the highest customer demand, and which support the region’s economic growth.”

A Knaresborough teenager has been ordered to do 300 hours of community work after pleading guilty to having a knife in Harrogate bar Mojo.

Arterus Moisejevas, 19, was accused of having a flick knife in the venue on Parliament Street on April 10.

Moisejevas, of Colebrooke Meadows, admitted the charge at Harrogate Magistrates Court on Thursday.

He was also ordered to pay a £95 surcharge to fund victim services and £85 costs to the Crown Prosecution Service.

His case is one of a spate of recent knife crime offences heard in court in Harrogate recently.

Harrogate Pubwatch revealed on Thursday that it had imposed a life ban on someone found carrying a knife in a town centre venue.

The organisation represents about 40 licensed venues in town. Members share information on troublemakers and jointly impose sanctions.

Sadly we have had to impose a lifetime ban on someone found to be carrying a knife in one of our town centre venues a couple of weekends ago. The possession of weapons in Harrogate's pubs, clubs and bars simply won't be tolerated #Harrogate

— Harrogate Pubwatch (@hgpubwatch) April 27, 2022

Police: knives produce ‘false sense of security’

Asked whether knife crime in the Harrogate district was increasing and, if so, what action it was taking, a North Yorkshire Police spokesperson said:

“Carrying a knife is a completely false sense of security. Producing a knife does not de-escalate a confrontation, it makes a bad situation worse and drastically increases the chance of you yourself being injured by that blade.

“As part of our efforts to tackle knife crime, we support Operation Sceptre, which is a twice-yearly national coordinated week of activity where police forces across the country help keep knives off the streets and deter people from carrying them, and through information and intelligence, proactively target knife-related offences.

“In July last year, changes to the Offensive Weapons Act 2019 were introduced which mean it is an offence to possess certain items such as knuckledusters, throwing stars and zombie knives, even in private.

“To anyone who is concerned for a friend or family member who they think maybe carrying a knife, please speak to them and explain the dangers. Tell them the safer and smarter thing to do is to put the knife down or come and surrender it at one of our police stations. You could be saving a life.

“Anyone with information on knife crime in their local community can always contact police on 101 or can pass information to Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. In an emergency, always dial 999.”