Crimple Valley red kite wood sculpture vandalised

A Harrogate wood carver has expressed disappointment after vandals ripped off the face of one of his sculptures.

Jonathan Sherwood, who operates under the trading name Sherwood Carving, created the red kite sculpture for Harrogate Sports & Fitness Centre.

The artwork stood proud in the Crimple Valley area of Harrogate for just two months before vandals damaged it last Tuesday.

As the missing piece could not be found, Mr Sherwood is going to try and recarve the head this evening. He told the Stray Ferret:

“I always try to make my carvings quite sturdy but unfortunately if someone really wants to do some damage then they are able to.

“Obviously it is disappointing. I was quite surprised to see it like that. I am fully booked with work so I will have to go in the evening to have a look.

“Hopefully I will be able to recarve it by moving the position of the bird’s head slightly.”

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Local resident Mike Ulman found the damage last week and posted pictures of it on a community Facebook page.

The post prompted numerous comments from people sharing Mr Sherwood’s disappointment and questioning the motivations of whoever was responsible.

Live: Harrogate district traffic and travel

Good morning and happy Monday, it’s Leah with you this morning giving you updates every 15 minutes on the road and rail links near you.

The blog, brought to you by the HACS group, will show you where the traffic hotspots and temporary traffic lights are and tell you of any train and bus delays.

9am – Full Update

That is it from me this morning, Suzannah with be back with you tomorrow morning with updates every 15 minutes from 6.30. I hope you all have a lovely Monday.

Roads

The roads are looking clear so far this morning but make sure to keep checking in for today’s traffic hotspots.

Traffic Hotspots:

Traffic is building here:

Temporary traffic lights are in place here:

Trains

Buses

8.45am – Full Update

Roads

The roads are looking clear so far this morning but make sure to keep checking in for today’s traffic hotspots.

Traffic Hotspots:

Traffic is building here:

Temporary traffic lights are in place here:

Trains

Buses

8.30am – Full Update

Roads

The roads are looking clear so far this morning but make sure to keep checking in for today’s traffic hotspots.

Traffic Hotspots:

Traffic is building here:

Temporary traffic lights are in place here:

Trains

Buses

8.15am – Full Update

Roads

The roads are looking clear so far this morning but make sure to keep checking in for today’s traffic hotspots.

Traffic Hotspots:

Traffic is building here:

Temporary traffic lights are in place here:

Trains

Buses

8am – Full Update

Roads

The roads are looking clear so far this morning but make sure to keep checking in for today’s traffic hotspots.

Traffic Hotspots:

Traffic is building here:

Temporary traffic lights are in place here:

Trains

Buses

7.45am – Full Update

Roads

The roads are looking clear so far this morning but make sure to keep checking in for today’s traffic hotspots.

Traffic Hotspots:

Traffic is building here:

Temporary traffic lights are in place here:

Trains

Buses

7.30am – Full Update

Roads

The roads are looking clear so far this morning but make sure to keep checking in for today’s traffic hotspots.

Traffic Hotspots:

Traffic is building here:

Temporary traffic lights are in place here:

Trains

Buses

7.15am – Full Update

Roads

The roads are looking clear so far this morning but make sure to keep checking in for today’s traffic hotspots.

Traffic Hotspots:

Temporary traffic lights are in place here:

Trains

Buses

 

7am – Full Update

Roads

The roads are looking clear so far this morning but make sure to keep checking in for today’s traffic hotspots.

Traffic Hotspots:

Temporary traffic lights are in place here:

Trains

Buses

6.45am – Full Update

Roads

The roads are looking clear so far this morning but make sure to keep checking in for today’s traffic hotspots.

Traffic Hotspots:

Temporary traffic lights are in place here:

Trains

Buses

 

6.30am – Full Update

Roads

The roads are looking clear so far this morning but make sure to keep checking in for today’s traffic hotspots.

Traffic Hotspots:

Temporary traffic lights are in place here:

Trains

Buses

 

Stray Views: Is Harrogate in decline?

Stray Views is a weekly column giving you the chance to have your say on issues affecting the Harrogate district. It is an opinion column and does not reflect the views of the Stray Ferret. See below for details on how to contribute.

Drunken Harrogate? It’s just people enjoying themselves…

I have never before been moved to write re readers letters. However, the superior tone of Tim Emmott’s letter last week really cannot go unanswered.

The tone smacks of so much that is wrong with Harrogate. Namely that those of a certain age and with money think it is quite OK for them to object to normal humans wishing to enjoy themselves. Do they not think other people have money or equal right to enjoy themselves?

The same people call out people for standing within 1.9 metres of people in supermarkets, etc. I could go on. How very dare they think they have a superior right to exist over others.

Mick Marshalsey, Harrogate

But we agree with Tim — Harrogate is going downhill

I absolutely agree with Tim Emmott.

We too have friends that no longer visit when we are in Harrogate. The general view is ‘it’s not what it was’.

Harrogate used to be such a lovely place, where so many people aspired to live. Now we have anti-social behaviour, drunks, litter, vandalism, beggars travelling from out of town, robberies and drug dealers trading around the station.

There’s little or no police presence and no will by the council to tackle these issues. What a sorry state of affairs.

Catherine Tucker-Sykes, Harrogate

Harrogate’s 10-year decline

We have only lived here in Harrogate for 10 years but have been saddened to witness the rapid decline of the town over this time. There are beggars on the streets who enjoy getting together to drink.

Sandra Fielding, Harrogate

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Do you have an opinion on the Harrogate district? Email us at letters@thestrayferret.co.uk. Please include your name and approximate location details. Limit your letters to 350 words. We reserve the right to edit letters.

 

Green Shoots: Harrogate district plumber swaps ‘dirty diesel’ for vegetable fat

In this month’s Green Shoots we look at a Harrogate district plumber and heating engineer who has upgraded his “dirty diesel” van to run on a new green fuel made with vegetable fat — and reduced the amount of CO2 emissions it produces by up to 90%.

Alan Marcon owns Green and Reliable Heating in Whixley and clocks up hundreds of miles a month in his VW van travelling around Harrogate, York, Knaresborough, Nidderdale, and Masham installing central heating systems.

After becoming increasingly concerned about his own impact on the environment, he decided to “practice what I preach” and two months ago ditched polluting diesel for hydro-treated vegetable oil (HVO).

No modifications to the fuel tank are needed.

A litre of HVO works out at £1.75, which is more expensive than diesel, but its impact on the environment is profound as it helps to combat climate change while making the air cleaner.

He said:

“We need to make change. Diesel is dirty. Our kids, their grandchildren need cleaner air. The quicker we can rid of diesel the better.”

“Our children need cleaner air”

Once touted as a clean fuel by the UK government in the 2000s, the reputation of diesel was irretrievably severed after the ‘dieselgate’ scandal in the 2010s when the carmaker Volkswagon was found to be cheating emissions tests.

Studies have come out in recent years that show exposure to diesel can contribute to asthma, heart disease and several types of cancer.

In a landmark case in December 2020, a coroner said air pollution contributed to the death of nine-year-old Londoner Ella Kissi-Debrah due to her exposure to toxic exhaust fumes near her home by a busy road.

The government will ban the sale of new diesel vehicles from 2035.

Alan said he was 11 when he began helping out at the family plumbing business, but during his early years in the trade his awareness of the damage diesel can do to the body was limited.

He said:

“We need to do something now”.

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Future technology

Before making the switch, Mr Marcon was worried the new fuel might damage his van, but he says the engine is quieter and happier, which should reduce the chance of engine failure or costly repairs.

He buys the fuel in barrels from a wholesale supplier.

2020 was a record year for electric car sales, but the majority of those sold were personal cars such as Teslas.

The switch to electric for fleet and trade vehicles has been a slower process, partly due to the high cost for new vehicles and a lack of government subsidies to encourage businesses to convert.

Mr Marcon sees HVO fuel as the ideal stopgap before the electric revolution takes hold:

“We need to do something quicker. Electric is brilliant but we haven’t got the technology yet.”

Skyfall

The world is changing, and Mr Marcron hopes other tradespeople will get on board with the new fuel.

He lives in Whixley in a house called Skyfall — fittingly, James Bond is set to drive an electric Aston Martin in the next installment of the franchise.

He added:

“After the pandemic more people want to be green. HVO is the perfect solution. I look at Yorkshire and I want to see our cities and towns go green.

Do you have an interesting project or passion that improves the environment and could feature in Green Shoots? Contact thomas@thestrayferret.co.uk

Stray Foodie Review: General Tarleton

Stray Foodie reviews are written by Michelin-starred chef, Frances Atkins. In 1997, Frances opened the Yorke Arms near Pateley Bridge, where she was the owner for 20 years. During her ownership, she held her Michelin-star status for 16 of those years.

Frances independently chooses which restaurants she will visit. This week, Frances reviews the newly refurbished General Tarleton in Ferrensby.

 

Visiting the GT on a hot sunny day produced memories of Provence, on arrival to a quiet car park with hayfields and a gentle breeze. The GT looked well curated. Wafts of lavender and a glass of chilled Rose came to mind. This was everything it was supposed to replicate when Denis Watkins transformed it from an ordinary pub in the mid 90’s.

After much love and dedication given by John and Claire Topham, the GT has always had a great reputation for its food and hospitality. It’s now in the hands of a new father and daughter team, and no expense has been spared on the venue.

As I walked through the door I felt a spacious sense of calm and creativity, everything was aimed at perfection.

Sitting outside on the Terrace on very comfortable rattan furniture, I waited for my young man. Smart waiting staff offered me the Bar and Terrace menu which consisted of a choice of Small Plates, Brunch Plates, Large Plates and Sides.

Mushroom and truffle arancini (top) and smoked mackerel pate croustini (bottom)

All small plates are £5.00, brunch plates £12.00 and large plates £14.00 – £17.00. What an extensive menu. An example of the small plates on offer were mushroom and truffle aranchini with spring onion dip, smoked mackerel pate croustini, herb aioli and basil, confit duck leg Kievs, brown butter hollandaise.

An example of the Brunch Plates were avocado on griddled rosemary toast, poached eggs, pumpkin seed dressing, spinach, cherry tomatoes and garden leaf, eggs benedict with warm crumpets, poached eggs, sliced ham, curried hollandaise sauce and chives.

The Large Plates included market fish of the day served with crushed ratte potatoes, herbs and lemon, seasonal greens and tartare sauce hollandaise or a summer salad of vegetables, feta, nasturtium pesto, pine nuts and mint. Oh what choice! All things to all men.

The Bar and Terrace puddings consisted of brownies, sticky toffee pudding, posset, cheesecake and cheeses. All puddings are between £8.00 and £10.00. What more could you want?!

If you have a penchant for hollandaise sauce and a love of decadent food, this is your place!

The market fish of the day: sea bream

The market fish of the day turned out to be sea bream, a deliciously oily fish usually served with fresh crispy greens. This was slightly different but cooked with care and knowledge. The crushed ratte potato looked like a roast potato, and the seasonal greens as one would have expected to be fresh and light was piece of vintage blanched Broccoli. Once again the hollandaise sauce made its popular appearance here.

The summer salad of vegetables turned out to be red chicory and mature heritage tomatoes with cress. It was beautifully presented, but somewhat lacking was the nasturtium flavour and other vegetables.

Summer vegetable salad

This menu on a busy day is ambitous but I am sure exceedingly popular.

I was told that the beer was superb, Landlords Special, by my young man and there was a comprehensive and good wine list.

Ralph’s Tasting Menu is on offer for 7 Courses at £55.00 which seems to be exceedingly good value. It includes smoked salmon, chicken liver mousse, coronation crab, beef, brioche, strawberries and chocolate. Once again an exciting and complex menu with a lot of work.

The Verdict: 3 stars

Given the shortage of chefs in hospitality at the moment, to produce such a choice of food will require a brigade of many hard working chefs to keep freshness and consistency at the level expected of the atmospheric General Tarleton.

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Delight as Harrogate Parkrun returns after more than a year away

Runners were left delighted this morning as the Harrogate Parkrun returned after more than a year away.

Parkrun, which has events held across the country, fell victim to the covid pandemic in March 2020.

It left runners without the free weekly 5k run on a Saturday morning for 16 months.

The event has seen numerous false starts in returning, including a delay last month after the government pushed back the lifting of remaining covid restrictions until July 19.

But, parkrun returned this morning with hundreds turning out on the Stray to take part.

Walkers, joggers and runners all turned out for the long-awaited comeback.

Ted Welton, event director volunteer at Harrogate Park Run.

Ted Welton, event director volunteer at Harrogate Park Run.

Ted Welton, event director volunteer at Harrogate Park Run, told the Stray Ferret that he was delighted to have the run back.

He said:

“It’s just amazing. We had so many false starts where we thought we were going to come back and it didn’t.

“Now feels like the right time. Outdoor exercise is probably the safest thing people can be doing. We have put in a load of mitigation measures so people are staying apart.

“It’s just awesome to be back.”

Read more:

 

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.