Harrogate Archives - Page 617 of 770

Roadworks begin tomorrow on one of Harrogate’s main roads

Roadworks are set to begin tomorrow morning on North Park Road, which is one of the main routes serving Harrogate town centre.

The works, which involve replacing street lights, are set to continue until Friday next week.

Stop and go boards will be used to control traffic along the street.

The works, carried out on behalf of North Yorkshire County Council, are likely to cause delays.

Further works are set to arrive further up the road on September 9.

A county council spokeswoman said:

“The work is part of a street lighting column replacement programme. It will be closed from Marlborough Road to Knaresborough Road.”

Keep an eye on the morning’s delays via our live traffic blog updated every 30 minutes.

Harrogate beauty queen sets sights on UK crown

A 23-year-old supermarket worker has been crowned Miss Harrogate Galaxy and is now ready to take on other beauty queens in the final of Miss Galaxy UK.

Victoria Hind, from Sharow, near Ripon, was crowned Miss Harrogate in her first pageant last month and will now compete in November’s final.

Ms Hind said she always wanted to compete in pageants but prior to lockdown didn’t think she had the confidence.

After suffering with anxiety for some years, she is hoping this competition will boost her confidence and teach her to “grab every opportunity that comes my way”.

Pageant life is a little different to Ms Hind’s day job at Sainsbury’s in Ripon.

The Miss Galaxy UK final at the Park Hall Hotel in Lancashire consists of four rounds; an interview round, an evening wear round, a fashion wear round and a swimwear round.

If she wins she will have the chance to travel to America to compete in the Miss Galaxy International final next summer.

Ms Hind said:

“I’m really excited, its something I’ve wanted to do for a while but I was too nervous.

“It’s not just a beauty pageant; it’s about girls supporting girls. This gives me a reason to step out my comfort zone.”

Ms Hind has already made an appearance as Miss Harrogate Galaxy at Ripon Races and is looking forward to attending more events during her reign.

She also plans to use her platform to raise money for the charity Dogsforgood, which trains dogs to live as assistance dogs in people’s homes.

The charity helped find her step-dad, who suffers from multiple sclerosis, an assistance dog so she is determined to raise as much as she can.

‘You’re banned’: Harrogate pubs introduce new sanctions against troublemakers

People caught drug dealing in Harrogate venues face 18 month bans in a new list of sanctions that comes into force today.

Harrogate Pubwatch, which represents 38 licensed venues in town, has updated its list of ban tariffs.

The tariffs state how long people caught offending in one venue face being banned from all venues that take part in the scheme.

Members of Harrogate Pubwatch, which includes pubs such as Wetherspoon and Christies Bar as well as hotel bars such as The Crown and the Cedar Court Hotel, share information and photos of troublemakers on an app.

They then have a week to vote on what action to take, with the ban tariffs acting as a guide.

Acts of violence carry a 24-month ban, sexual harassment has a nine-month ban and possession of weapons carries a life ban. Eleven people currently have life bans.

Harrogate Pubwatch ban tariffs

Acts of violence against venue staff, which carries a 30-month ban, has been introduced as a new category following a recent increase in incidents.

Alan Huddart, vice-chair of Harrogate Pubwatch and treasurer of Bilton Working Men’s Club, said there had been four attacks on venue staff in town since pubs reopened after lockdown.

Mr Huddart said he wasn’t sure why staff were being attacked more but the app had proved effective in taking collaborative action to keep venues safe. He said:

“At the moment we have a total of 46 people banned. There have been as many as over 100 previously.

“You could argue that lockdown has been responsible for the number declining but increasing the profile of Harrogate Pubwatch has been effective.”

Harrogate Pubwatch holds quarterly meetings with police representatives.

Harrogate Business Improvement District contributed £2,000 towards the Harrogate Pubwatch app.

Harrogate army sergeant’s desperate bid to help Afghan family leave Kabul

A former British army sergeant major from Harrogate has spoken of his fears for the future of an Afghan family he has been trying to help leave Kabul.

Rob Smith taught locals boxing during a six-month tour of duty at Camp Souter military base in Kabul in 2010. Mr Smith is now head coach at H Hour Amateur Boxing Gym on Harrogate’s Skipton Road.

One Afghan man he coached called Omar died in a car accident last year, leaving a young wife and daughter, two sisters and parents.

Mr Smith says the family are at risk from the Taliban and he has been trying to get then out of Kabul. He said:

“I am very worried for them. I don’t know what to do now or tell the family, as there are no flights out of Kabul.”

Mr Smith has written letters of recommendation to Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Home Secretary Priti Patel, former veterans minister Johnny Mercer and his successor Leo Docherty, and Andrew Jones, the Conservative MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough.

He said only Mr Mercer and Mr Jones had replied expressing interest to help.

But with the paperwork incomplete before the British and American departure from Kabul, the situation is now desperate.

Mr Smith coaching in Afghanistan.

Mr Smith said:

“I realise the top tier are under immense pressure to deliver many things. Johnny Mercer and Andrew Jones MPs responded, but my request for help went in too late for assistance.

“No one thought the Taliban would be able to seize control of Afghanistan in such a short period of time, I’m sure evacuation plans for at risk people were in place but in slow time to ensure vetting and other checks took place.

“What many people forget is the percentage of Afghans that can’t read or write Dari/Pashtun, let alone read English and be expected to fill out forms.

“I am just gutted that my friends are not safe, I hope measures are being planned to assist the people at risk left in the country.”

Hull company awarded £827,000 Otley Road cycle route contract

A Hull-based engineering company has been awarded an £827,000 contract to construct the first phase of the Otley Road cycleway in Harrogate.

North Yorkshire County Council appointed PBS Construction for the project, which is known as the West Harrogate Scheme, with a start date earmarked for September 20.

The company has largely carried out projects in East Yorkshire and northern Lincolnshire, but has previously repaired the Kirkby-Masham bridge in North Yorkshire at a cost of £229,500.

The firm is also a sponsor of Hull FC rugby league club.

According to government procurement documents, the contract is valued at £827,100 and is set to end in November this year.

Melisa Burnham, highways area manager at the county council, said:

“The bid process allows any interested companies to bid. All tenders are evaluated and in this case PBS Construction Ltd were the stand-out applicants.

“Work is scheduled to begin in September and we will be issuing an update shortly.”

Work will include widening Otley Road on the approach to Harlow Moor Road as well as the creation of a designated left turn lane on the western approach to Harlow Moor Road and designated right turn lane on the eastern approach.

An off-road cycle route will also be created between Harlow Moor Road and Cold Bath Road as part of the contract.

Traffic light junctions will also be upgraded.

The county council previously confirmed to the Stray Ferret that the final two phases of the scheme would also be awarded via open tender.

Negotiations with the Duchy of Lancaster over the exchange of Stray land have caused delays.

Harrogate Borough Council agreed in March to designate a plot of land on Wetherby Road as Stray land in exchange for the loss of grass verges on Otley Road for the new cycle path.

Plans to install 1,000 solar panels on roof of Harrogate Convention Centre

Harrogate Borough Council has submitted plans to install 1,077 solar panels on the roofs of several buildings at Harrogate Convention Centre.

The council, which owns the centre, applied for planning permission last week. It’s unclear when the application will be heard or when construction could start.

According to planning documents, the scheme will be fully funded by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy‘s public sector decarbonisation scheme.

The scheme provides grants for public sector bodies to fund heat decarbonisation and energy efficiency measures.

The council has appointed French utility company Engie as contractor for the project.

How the solar panels will look at the top of the Harrogate Convention Centre.

It follows a similar planning application by the council to install 420 solar panels at the Hydro in Harrogate, which was also funded by the public sector decarbonisation scheme.

At the time the council said that it had “ambitious plans” to make sure its operations and buildings were clean, efficient and had a net zero carbon economy by 2038.

Harrogate man set to launch town’s first ghost walk

A Harrogate man with a love of all things spooky and historical is to launch what he believes to be the town’s first ghost walk.

Paul Forster, who has trained as a magician and actor, hopes to make the experience an unforgettable one with a mixture of storytelling and theatrics.

The plan started before the pandemic and Mr Forster had planned to launch the walk last October. But with coronavirus restrictions in place he decided to push it back another year.

Harrogate Ghost Walk will start on Halloween weekend. After the initial launch, the walk will take place on the first and last Friday of every month.

The one-hour route will start outside the Royal Pump Room Museum and take in The Alexandra pub, The Crown Hotel and The Harrogate Club.

Tickets are £6 for adults and £4 for children. Walks start at 8.30pm and can cater for 30 people.

Mr Forster told the Stray Ferret:

“It was a shame to not launch last year but I have spent the whole of the coronavirus pandemic researching and gathering as much information as I could.

“Harrogate has some great stories, some are hard to believe. I have got some surprises in there and I don’t want to give anything away but there are some scream factor moments too.”

One of his favourite stories is the time Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the author behind the Sherlock Holmes novels, held a seance at The Harrogate Club.

‘We will not resort straight away to criminal prosecution’ of travellers, say police

North Yorkshire Police has said it will not “resort straight away” to criminal prosecution of travellers who set up illegal encampments.

Travellers have pitched up at Hay-a-Park in Knaresborough and on the playing field at Ashville College in Harrogate this month.

Asked today by a member of the public why officers did not use the Criminal Disorder Act 1984, which prohibits trespassing, deputy chief constable Phil Cain said the police always looked to resolve the matter at “the earliest opportunity”.

But he added the force had a “graduated response” to dealing with such incidents.

DCC Cain, speaking at a North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner public accountability meeting, said police had to balance the human rights of all those involved, particularly as the travelling community often has families with small children.

He said:

“The graduated response from North Yorkshire Police, as it is with other forces, is that we will not resort straight away to criminal prosecution. We will engage with the travelling community and the land owners as we have done on this occasion.

“We will seek to resolve the matter at the earliest opportunity using the least intrusive means possible. That includes graduating up through private land owners utilising powers in civil courts for unlicensed travellers settlements all the way through to the final element, which would be criminal prosecution.

“On this occasion, local officers have engaged with the travelling community and they have agreed to move on without the need for us to resort to criminal prosecution.”

“It’s not that we are not prepared to use these powers, it’s that there has to be a graduated response and we have to show that graduated response in order to show that we are complying with the Human Rights Act.”

Last week travellers set up camp on Ashville College’s rugby pitch and demanded £5,000 to leave, according to a college spokesperson.

However, after less than two days the travellers hitched up their caravans and moved on. The college said they left of their own accord.

Hay-a-Park rugby field in Knaresborough was sealed off by police and deemed to be a health hazard due to the amount of human excrement after travellers departed on August 10.

A police cordon sealing off Hay-a-Park rugby field after travellers left.

Harrogate cancer survivor walks 500 miles for charity in a month

A Harrogate woman who battled cancer during the coronavirus pandemic has walked more than 500 miles in a month to raise money for the charities that supported her.

Lucy Hind was diagnosed with breast cancer in November 2019 and after months of treatment is on the recovery path.

Now she is feeling better, she has started to take on various challenges to raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support and Harrogate Hospital & Community Charity.

At the time of publication she has raised £5,435. Her fundraising target is £7,500 and she is likely to achieve it as pledges continue to roll in. You can donate here.

The first major challenge Lucy set herself was a mammoth walk of 500 miles. Most of the walks, at around 16 miles a day, were in Yorkshire but some also took place in Manchester and Scotland.

Joined by various friends along the way, including Lesley Jepson, she has managed to beat the original 500-mile target and looked set to reach a total of 520 miles on the last day today.

On her final walk in Bramley, near Leeds, with Kirkstall Abbey in her eyeline, Lucy told the Stray Ferret:

“We are walking the last of our walks today. We reached the 500 miles yesterday but we had another day in the month to go so we are out again.

“Before we started we thought it would be really difficult. We may have some blisters and sore limbs but when we are out walking we feel fantastic.

“These charities are so important to so many people. That’s why I want to keep going with these challenges and raise as much money as I can. I plan to finish only in 2024.”

Harrogate Film Society’s 66th season set to begin

Harrogate Film Society will begin its 66th season on Monday next week with a showing of the South Korean film Parasite at the town’s Odeon cinema.

It will be the first of 15 critically acclaimed and diverse films from around the world, many of which are rarely shown on big screens in the UK.

The society, which stages films every fortnight at the Odeon, also organises social evenings and discussions after selected films.

Next week’s season opening film is followed by His Name Is Green Flake, The Great Beauty, Just Mercy, Saint Maud and Pain and Glory, plus more.

Committee member Jan Garvey said:

“After a difficult year due to covid, we are so happy to be putting on a full programme of 15 films.

“We believe that good films are best enjoyed in a cinema, on a big screen, with a good sound system and in the company of others.”

Annual membership, which costs £45 and is available to anyone aged 16, provides entry to all 15 films. Guests are also welcome at £5 per viewing.

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