Property Gold: The empty homes scandal – who’s the fool?

Property Gold is a monthly column written by independent bespoke property consultant, Alex Goldstein. With more than 17 years’ experience, Alex helps his clients to buy and sell residential property in some of the most desirable locations in Yorkshire and beyond. In this month’s column, Alex takes a look at where things have gone wrong to leave the UK with so many empty homes. 

There are 648,114 empty homes – let that sink in for a moment.

That is the number the government published in its report from October last year, on the number of uninhabited homes in the UK. Of this, 225,845 were classed as long-term vacant (empty for longer than six months).

The numbers speak for themselves. However, despite this, why are we continuing to build these mass-volume new-build developments? Why do governments and the media continually report that we aren’t building enough houses to meet demand and there is a housing crisis? Why are youngsters struggling to get on the housing ladder?

If you want my opinion, it all boils down to money, plus governments and councils meddling in a world they just don’t understand, nor are qualified to deal with. Their actions over the past 20+ years have had far-reaching implications for us all and we are now on the brink of yet another scandal to hit the new-build property sector and national economy. Like the tragic events at Grenfell Tower just over four years ago and the subsequent cladding scandal, there doesn’t seem to be any end in sight for ridding ourselves of this greenfield-sucking parasite.

As an example, Harrogate Borough Council didn’t have a Local Plan in place for several years. This resulted in the big PLC developers having an absolute field day, with limited barriers to their proposals. However, these key players can walk away at any point, with limited accountability for the hand they have had in altering the face of the district and UK forever.

Overloaded schools, GP surgeries, roads and infrastructure are problems we all now have to endure, through no fault of our own. In Harrogate district in the same 2020 count, there were 2,208 empty properties. Yet sizeable new-build schemes dotted throughout the area are still going ahead, with more still to come.

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Every new-build home sold adds more financial fuel to the fire, and we will simply continue going around in circles until all our green space is gone – and then what?

We are already seeing that empty homes bring about ghost blocks and areas, attracting crime, hitting local house prices and the economy. My concern is that a housing bubble is being created once more. The powers running the country have opened a Pandora’s Box and I don’t believe they know how to close the lid.

So who are the fools in all of this? The government, councils, PLC developers, the new home buyers, or us  for not taking a stand when it was needed?

If you have any comments or questions for Alex, please feel free to contact him on alex@alexgoldstein.co.uk

Appeal after woman in wheelchair hits three-year-old girl

A woman in a wheelchair hit a toddler near a Harrogate school yesterday and police are appealing for witnesses.

North Yorkshire Police (NYP) said a mother reported that a woman in an electric wheelchair stopped her while she was pushing her three-year-old daughter in a buggy on Skipton Road, at about 10.30am on Wednesday.

The suspect allegedly grabbed the girl, pinched her ear – which caused fluid to appear – then hit her on the head three times. The toddler did not require medical treatment.

Officers have appealed for anyone who was near Grove Road Community Primary School between 10.20am and 10.30am who may have witnessed the incident, or caught anything on dash-cam footage, to come forward.

The woman was described as being white, in her 40s, with short brown hair and a “chubby” build. She was wearing dark glasses and a short-sleeved pink T-shirt, NYP said.

Potential witnesses can email ryan.rudd@northyorkshire.police.uk or call 101.

Information can be given anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111, quoting the reference number 12210164772.

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Harrogate woman in dispute with care home over visits to 99-year-old dad

A Harrogate woman has spoken of her frustration after her application to become an essential care giver for her 99-year-old father was dismissed by his care home.

According to government guidance, essential care givers should be enabled to visit care homes in all circumstances, including if there is a covid outbreak.

But Judy Bass’ application to be an essential care giver for her father in The Granby care home, Harrogate, has not been accepted.

The home is not convinced Ms Bass, who isn’t included in her father’s care plan, meets the criteria.

This is once again severely limiting the amount of time she can spend with her dad, who will turn 100 next month.

Ms Bass said this was the “final straw” after months of infrequent visits and disagreements with the home.

Before the pandemic Ms Bass visited her father, Tom Wilkinson, every day and was therefore never included in his care plan. But since her visits have become less frequent she says his condition has deteriorated.

Judy Bass with her dad

Judy Bass and her dad.

She says it is important for her dad to have constant communication with his family due to his dementia. Currently Ms Bass sees her father for just 30 minutes, once a week.

She said:

“I’m at a loss. I just want to see my dad. It’s very draining on us all, it’s so upsetting. He’s just lying there alone once again. I just can’t understand why they can’t see how essential my visits are.”

She said the lack of contact was affecting her health because she can’t be there for him all the time.

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The home is scheduling a meeting with Ms Bass to review her father’s care plan. Those at the meeting will decide if Ms Bass’s support would improve Mr Wilkinson’s health and wellbeing and, if so, essential care giver status could be reviewed.

A spokesperson for Four Seasons Health Care, which owns the home, said:

“We fully understand how difficult it is for all loved ones at this time and our absolute priority is to care for the health and wellbeing of every resident.

“The Granby is currently in outbreak status and is following the government’s guidance on providing window visits and video calls.

“Our hard working team members are doing everything they can to ensure residents and relatives stay connected during this time, including providing essential care giver status where this is in the best interests of the resident.”

Chris Whitaker wins top crime novel award in Harrogate

Chris Whitaker’s book has won the prestigious crime novel of the year award on the opening night of the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival in Harrogate.

The four-day event, organised by the arts charity Harrogate International Festivals, is widely recognised as the biggest in crime writing.

We Begin at the End, a story of crime, punishment, love and redemption set in California, is credited by Whitaker for saving his life after he was mugged and stabbed as a teenager.

Whitaker, who received the prize at the Old Swan Hotel tonight, was nominated for the award for the first time. He was chosen by a public vote, the prize academy and a panel of expert judges.

He received £3,000 and an engraved oak beer cask.

Northern Irish author Brian McGilloway’s political thriller The Last Crossing, which explores The Troubles from the perspective of former operatives who like to think they have moved on, was highly commended.

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Simon Theakston, executive director of T&R Theakston, said:

“The contest for this year’s Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year award has been fiercely fought – a reflection of the outstanding quality of all the longlisted and shortlisted crime fiction published within the last year.

“I offer Chris Whitaker my hearty congratulations for clinching the title on his first ever nomination for his powerful and insightful We Begin at the End.”

Special presentations were also made to Ian Rankin and Mark Billingham, the winners of the outstanding contribution to crime fiction award for 2021 and 2020 respectively.

Mr Rankin said:

“It’s such a privilege and an honour to receive this award, and especially to be in Harrogate to receive it in person.

“I’ve been a published writer for over thirty years but this past year has been uniquely challenging – for writers, readers and booksellers. It’s heartening to see the Theakston festival rise like a phoenix. Books continue to provide us with that wonderful mix of food for thought and escapism. I couldn’t be prouder to be a crime writer.”

The festival continues until Sunday. Special guests include Mark Billingham, Ann Cleeves, Elly Griffiths, Mick Herron, Clare Mackintosh, Val Mcdermid and Richard Osman.

Stray Ferret videos of Prince Charles in Harrogate get 200,000 views

Exactly one week ago, Prince Charles and Camilla were in Harrogate to attend the Great Yorkshire Show.

The enduring appeal of the royal family has been highlighted by the fact that two Stray Ferret videos of their visit have been viewed almost 200,000 times.

We were live at the Great Yorkshire Show last Thursday to capture the couple’s arrival.

The clip, filmed live on Facebook, showed The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall happily chatting to exhibitors and the public as they made their way around the showground. It has currently received 92,000 views.

Another video of the royals leaving The Stray via helicopter has proved even more popular, having been viewed 107,000 times.

Their departure coincided with the end of the school day at about 3.45pm and scores of St Aidan’s Church of England High School pupils waved them off.

The videos have been enjoyed across the world and even shared by people in countries including Thailand, Algeria and Denmark.

Did you meet Charles or Camilla during their trip to the show? Email contact@thestrayferret.co.uk

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New gin bar to open at historic Harrogate hotel tomorrow

The St George Hotel in Harrogate is set to launch a new bar, which will exclusively stock gin.

Paul Donkin, the hotel’s new general manager, first floated the idea of a gin bar in a story on the Stray Ferret. It received lots of interest so he has decided to follow through with it.

The Duck in Gin Lounge, which opens tomorrow, will have about 40 different brands of gins on offer.

Besides gin, the bar will also have a series of quirky bar snacks called ‘duck feed’ created by the head chef.

The snacks include salt and vinegar scraps, maple bacon popcorn, raspberry and white chocolate and more. That menu will change over time as well.

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Mr Donkin told the Stray Ferret:

“When I first got here that bar was a nice space but it was under utilised. Surprisingly, considering the popularity of gin, there are no dedicated gin bars in Harrogate.

“We are lucky to have this space. Like I said I spoke to your colleague and made an off-hand comment about a gin bar.

“But the amount of interest we got made us realise that actually we needed to go for it.”

Becky Edmundson, sales manager, also told the Stray Ferret:

“We are definitely looking forward to opening. I think we thought as well that following coronavirus people are feeling quite anxious about going to bars.

“Whereas in here you can come and sit down and be a bit more distanced from people. Now that things are opening up we are getting lots of enquiries now.”

Harrogate landmarks built in Lego for summer family trail

Harrogate landmarks including Bettys, the Turkish Baths and the Great Yorkshire Showground’s main ring have been built in Lego bricks for a new town centre trail this summer.

The trail, created by Harrogate Business Improvement District, will run from Saturday July 31 until Sunday, August 22.

It includes ten mini-models at the following locations:

The models are being made by Fairy Bricks, a charity that donates Lego sets to children’s hospices and hospitals, and will be completed next week in time for the launch.

Other models include Harrogate Town’s mascot Harry Gator and Hogwart’s School from the Harry Potter books.

At 10am on July 31 and August 1, people can watch a white rose being built of Lego at the Victoria Shopping Centre.

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There is also a competition with 500 Lego prizes to be won. To enter, participants need to download the LoyalFree app and ‘check in’ at each venue using the QR code displayed.

The prizes will be collected from Toyland in the Victoria Shopping Centre.

Harrogate BID Manager Chapman Matthew Chapman said:

“With the school summer holidays already here we wanted to create a trail that would really appeal to families.

“With restrictions now lifted, this is one that can be enjoyed by people of all ages, and will be a fun way to spend a few hours visiting different parts of the town.

“As a child I loved Lego, and so do my two sons. And as you will see from these creations Lego can be anything but child’s play. I’m really excited to say that we have commissioned a number of models that will be unique to our trail.

“One of our key remits is to drive footfall into the town centre, and we hope our Lego trail will help us to achieve this.”

Harrogate and Knaresborough to get community grocery shops

Resurrected Bites is set to reopen its cafes for the first time in more than a year and launch what it calls community grocery shops.

The volunteer group, which specialises in turning food destined for the bin into nutritious meals, has delivered food to more than 15,000 people during coronavirus.

Michelle Hayes, the founder of Resurrected Bites, is proud of what her team has achieved but she feels that now is the right time to re-open its cafes.

While the group is well-known for turning food into meals, it is now preparing to launch its own shops at Harrogate’s New Park Primary Academy and at a yet-to-be-finalised location in central Knaresborough.

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The shops are intended to help anyone struggling to buy food. For between £3 and £5, people who sign up as members of the shop will be able to pick up a large amount of fresh and frozen food.

If the shops, which will be opening around September to October, go well then Ms Hayes has plans to open a third in the Fairfax area of Harrogate. She told the Stray Ferret:

“Community groceries are different from food banks because people pay a small amount rather than relying on vouchers.

“Anyone who needs it can pay a small amount for quite a lot of food. That small costs also gives people dignity.”

To get the projects off the ground, the group has started a fundraising campaign with a target of £2,000. Click or tap here to donate.

Resurrected Bites’ cafes are expected to return in the second week of September.

The cafe at Gracious Street in Knaresborough will be open on Tuesday and Friday from 10am to 2pm. The group has also moved the Wednesday cafe in Harrogate from St Mark’s Church to West Park United Reformed Church.

Boris Johnson welcomes first event back at Harrogate Convention Centre

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has welcomed news that the Harrogate Convention Centre has held its first events after being used as a Nightingale Hospital.

The Home and Gift Buyers’ Festival and the Manchester Furniture Show finished yesterday. Organisers said the four-day events attracted more than 10,000 visitors and had a projected economic impact of £750,000.

They were part of a government pilot scheme to gather evidence on the covid risks of holding large scale events safely.

All of those who attended had to provide proof of either having had two vaccinations at least a fortnight prior to the event or a negative lateral flow test within 48 hours.

They did not need to wear masks or observe social distancing rules, which were still in place across the UK for the first day of the event.

In a letter of support to Harrogate Convention Centre, Mr Johnson, said:

“The Harrogate Convention Centre is a great asset to the local economy, and I am so glad to hear that it is now back and ready to take part in the Events Research Programme pilot.

“The past year has been an immense challenge for the whole country and now, with the aid of events like this, we will all be one step closer to normality.”

Paula Lorimer, director at Harrogate Convention Centre, said:

“We’ve been waiting a long time to open venue doors and give people the opportunity to meet, network and do business.

“We were particularly delighted that it was the Home and Gift Show as our first major event, as it celebrates 60 years in Harrogate — it’s a real Harrogate success story.”

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Ms Lorimer added the convention centre has more than £15m of economic impact on its books between now and March.

Gemma Rio, head of destination management at Harrogate Borough Council, said:

“It was fantastic to see the buzz at Harrogate Convention Centre and across the town over the past few days.

“These two events, along with other recent events such as the Great Yorkshire Show are significant first steps in the event industries recovery.”

Combine harvester catches fire in Harrogate

A build up of dust is believed to have been responsible for a combine harvester fire in Harrogate last night.

Firefighters from Harrogate, Knaresborough and Boroughbridge were summoned to Kingsley Road to deal with the blaze at 7.30pm last night.

Wearing breathing apparatus and using thermal imaging cameras, they used doused the flames using mechanical foam.

Fortunately, the combine was slightly away from the standing crop.

In a separate incident at 2.20am this morning, firefighters from Ripon responded to reports of wheelie bins on fire outside a house on Priest Lane.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service’s incident summary said:

“The crews found the bins had been extinguished by a resident prior to their arrival and used the residents garden hose to dampen to the area.

“The cause is believed to have been accidental.”

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