Harrogate’s first permanent coronavirus testing site is due to open today just over a week after builders moved in.
The Department of Health and Social Care centre is in the Dragon Road car park, which has been home to the mobile testing centre over the past few months. It will test up to 320 people a day.
It has been replaced with a series of modular buildings with floodlights all linked up to a generator to keep it accessible as the nights turn darker.
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After an initial pilot period, it will be open between 8am and 8pm, seven days a week.
That is far more than the previous mobile testing centre. That had generally been open for four hours a day, two days a week.
People will also be able to turn up on foot, unlike at the mobile testing centres. However, tests must still be booked in advance.
Staff making the finishing touches to the testing centre.
Dr Lincoln Sargeant, the director of public health in North Yorkshire, said:
“We have worked hard to retain and increase the level of testing across the county, so we are pleased that our efforts have resulted in the creation of these two sites, which will be up and running shortly.
“We will continue to lobby for further expansion of testing facilities across the county.”
The Stray Ferret asked the DHSC the cost of building the permanent testing centre in Harrogate but had not received a response by the time of publication.
Harrogate Muslims identify new site for district’s first mosqueHarrogate’s Muslim community has identified a new site for the district’s first mosque after its initial location encountered difficulties.
The Harrogate Islamic Association had hoped to convert the former Nidderdale Children’s Resource Centre in Starbeck, as previously reported.
However, complications relating to change of use and parking has led the association to set its sights instead on a former church hall in Harrogate.
This former children’s centre in Starbeck was the first choice for the mosque.
The hall is attached to the Trinity Methodist Church on Park Drive close to the Stray and town centre.
FSS Property is advertising the former church hall as “well maintained” and “fully functional for its current intended use”.
Read more:
- Harrogate’s Muslim community raises £85,000 for first Mosque
- Extension plans for Ripon Cathedral on display
The 2,000 square foot building is on the market for £575,000, whereas the former children’s centre in Starbeck was expected to cost about £425,000.
Zahed Amanullah, from the HIA, told the Stray Ferret he was hopeful it would have enough funds:
“We have been fortunate in that, even after we finished fundraising for our first mosque, people have been getting in touch to offer money.
“The biggest thing for us was to see that support from the community. We are confident that this new place will not be contentious.”
He added that although the former church hall does not have a garden or kitchen like the site in Starbeck, it has a bigger prayer space.
The Harrogate Islamic Association is growing in popularity.
The HIA, which started in 2011 and now has 100 members, began publicly fundraising for £85,000 in September to achieve the shortfall in funds,
Its appeal currently has almost £102,000.
If all goes to plan Mr Amanullah hopes the group will be able to open the mosque around March to April next year in time for Ramadan.
Harrogate embraces zero-waste shoppingAn increase in people wanting to live more sustainably has prompted the Refilling Station in Harrogate to move to larger premises.
The business reduces waste by asking customers to bring their own containers to buy products such as household cleaning products, dried food and toiletries.
The shop was originally based on Grove Road but outgrew the space as the concept took off.
It remained open during lockdown and this month relocated to larger premises on Cold Bath Road.
Lydia Ross, manager of the Harrogate store, said she was overwhelmed by the number of customers supporting the business. She said:
“We’re more visible now and we have lots of other shops around us. It was really tough during lockdown, we were just bombarded; we had queues outside the old shop and we were limited for space.”
The increase in customers has enabled the shop to extend its product range.
Customer numbers have continued to grow in the new premises, enabling the shop to expand its products.
Kirsty Dodds, who owns the Refilling Station stores in Harrogate and Chapel Allerton in Leeds, said:
Harrogate Nightingale ‘could open with five days notice’“At the beginning people were saying it was a good idea but it was a new concept in town, but it’s growing now.
“It is becoming more normal to shop this way.”
The Harrogate Nightingale hospital will be ready to take patients at five days notice by the end of the week, according to its medical director.
Dr Yvette Oade said it was “hard to predict” when the hospital, which was set-up at a cost of £27m to cater for covid patients in Yorkshire and the Humber, might be needed.
But she said people should be “very concerned” because the infection rate was rising rapidly across the region and hospital admissions were increasing.
The government said last week the Harrogate Nightingale was being put on standby.
Speaking on BBC Look North last night, Dr Oade described the hospital as “an insurance policy” that would be required if hospitals in the region reached maximum capacity. She added:
“You only draw on your insurance policies when things have not worked to plan.
“Right now the hospital isn’t needed, our colleagues are doing a great job around the region.
“People should be very concerned. Infection rates in Yorkshire and the Humber are one of the highest in the country. We’ve seen hospital admissions rising quickly.
“By the end of this week we will be ready to open to patients if given five days notice.
“Right now the hospital isn’t needed. It’s hard for me to predict when this hospital might be needed. The important thing is if we are needed then we will be ready.”
Read more:
- Exclusive: Harrogate Nightingale hospital unable to open safely
- Harrogate Nightingale hospital put on standby
Last week Lord Newby, the Ripon-based Liberal Democrat leader in the House of Lords suggested the hospital might not be able to open fully because it “simply does not have the staff available to allow it to operate safely”.
Asked about staffing, Dr Oade said the Harrogate Nightingale would need staff from other NHS organisations.
She added:
Harrogate face mask litter a ‘sign of the times’“If we get to the stage where we need the Nightingale hospitals it’s likely that because our acute trust will be so full that some of those procedures that they are currently doing will need to be halted.”
A Harrogate resident who takes pictures of discarded face masks believes they are a “sad sign of the times”.
Glyn Hambrook, a retired university lecturer, has built up a collection of images over the past couple of weeks.
He doesn’t go out of his way to find them littered on the ground but has still managed to snap 17 on his daily school run.
The official guidance in England is to wear reusable masks when possible. If you use a single use mask you should dispose of it in a black bin bag.
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However, Mr Hambrook has noticed an increasing amount thrown on the floor, leaving them to others to clean up.
He told the Stray Ferret:
“I am by no means an environmental activist but I noticed how, as coronavirus restrictions eased, the truce we had with nature seemed to become lost. To me, these images I have taken are quite poignant. They blend the tragedy of the pandemic with the melancholy of autumn.”
Besides creating a sad sight on the streets, the masks pose risks to wildlife. The RSPCA has encouraged people to “snip the straps” of masks amid concerns about the number of animals caught in litter since lockdown.
Have you noticed face mask litter on your street? Send in your pictures and stories to contact@thestrayferret.co.uk.
Image Gallery: Ripon and Harrogate resplendent in readiness for remembranceIn the run up to this year’s Remembrance Day, almost 40,000 knitted poppies have appeared around Harrogate and Ripon.
Between 25,000 and 30,000 poppies can be seen at prime locations throughout Ripon, after people involved in the Ripon Community Poppy Project spent thousands of hours making the stunning displays.
Many of the poppies were put in place over the weekend. The cascading display on the walls of the town hall (below), was installed with help from a Ripon fire station crew.
The ones seen in Harrogate town centre were donated to the Poppy Appeal campaign last year.
They were put up this morning by a small socially distanced group including Harrogate Mayor Cllr Stuart Martin.
Fiona Burks, of independent business Yarn Etc helped to coordinate the effort, and will be offering poppies to businesses for their window displays.
Cllr Stuart Martin said:
“The comments we’ve had since putting them up this morning are just tremendous. People are so pleased that we’re making an effort for Remembrance Day and you can’t help but smile when you see them.”
Cllr Martin is encouraging people to commemorate Remembrance Day on November 11 by observing two minutes of silence from their doorstep, and placing poppies in windows.
In Ripon …
Cascading display down Ripon’s town hall.
The entrance to Spa Gardens.
Volunteers in Ripon fitting the knitted poppies to the railings along Kirkgate.
Along the shopping street of Kirkgate.
Spa Park. Credit: Cllr Stuart Martin
Along the railings outside the Wakeman’s House.
Ripon bus station. Credit: Cllr Stuart Martin
In Harrogate …
Across from Harrogate war memorial. Credit: Cllr Stuart Martin
Along the railings outside of Bettys cafe in Harrogate. Credit: Cllr Stuart Martin
On the corner of Cambridge Street, Harrogate. Credit: Cllr Stuart Martin.
Harrogate borough councillor Rebecca Burnett has stepped down from her role as cabinet member for planning.
The council said in a statement today Ms Burnett had left the position with immediate effect to concentrate on her full-time job as marketing manager at bus company Transdev Blazefield.
She will be replaced by High Harrogate councillor Tim Myatt.
The news comes just over a week before the council is due to begin a judicial review in London’s High Court with the developer Flaxby Park Ltd.
Conservative councillor Ms Burnett previously worked in Harrogate and Knaresborough MP Andrew Jones’ office as a caseworker.
Cllr Burnett will continue to serve as a councillor for the Harrogate St Georges ward in Rossett, a position she has held since 2014.
She was made cabinet member for planning in May 2015, taking over from Cllr Michael Harrison, and oversaw the development of HBC’s local plan, which was adopted in March 2020.
Harrogate Town fans criticise number of people allowed in stadiumHarrogate Town supporters have raised concerns about the number of people allowed in the club’s home ground on Saturday to watch the team play.
With spectators banned from attending matches due to covid, many fans paid £10 to watch a livestream of the game against Barrow.
Town won 1-0 and many fans in the Harrogate Town Supporters Facebook group hailed the team’s performance at the EnviroVent Stadium.
But 15 fans posted comments in the group about what they considered to be an excessive amount of people in the stands.
Although fans are not permitted to attend fixtures, club directors and staff, media and match volunteers, such as ballboys and girls, are allowed in.
One fan said it “was an absolute joke the amount of people in the ground today”.
Another said it was “not fair on the fans” and one described it as a “kick in the teeth”.
Harrogate Town declined to comment when approached by the Stray Ferret.
The club has won a lot of praise recently for its off the pitch initiatives as well as its performances on the pitch.
Read more:
Earlier this month, club chairman Irving Weaver told the Stray Ferret it was a “big loss” not having supporters in attendance during the club’s first-ever season in the English Football League.
Do you think there were too many people at Wetherby Road on Saturday? Watch the highlights below and judge for yourself.
Harrogate International Festivals cuts more than half of jobsHarrogate International Festivals has laid off more than half of its staff after missing out on an estimated £850,000 due to covid.
The arts charity, which was set up in 1966, now has just four staff remaining.
in a statement today, it warned of “further difficult decisions ahead”.
The charity was forced to cancel its entire summer season of events in March, causing a huge loss of income from ticket sales and sponsors.
Fiona Movley, the chair of HIF, said:
“Whilst we are often recognised as an extremely resilient organisation, agile and adaptable for over 50 years, times are still extremely challenging and HIF unfortunately did not qualify for the recent emergency Arts Council England grants that have been reported in the media.”
Harrogate Theatre received £250,000 from Arts Council England. Also, £238,590 was awarded to Deer Shed Festival near Topcliffe, £117,500 to Ripon Museum Trust and £54,339 to Ripon Amateur Operatic Society.
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HIF has said it will need to raise funds to “secure its future”, having used its reserves to support individuals and the creative community.
Sharon Canavar, chief executive at HIF, said:
‘Dangerous’ highchair recalled two years late, says Bilton grandma“We are more than a series of events; we are at the heart of Harrogate’s cultural life and have been a magnet and income generator for local tourism for more than 50 years.
“If we are to survive we urgently ask for your continued support and appreciation of Harrogate International Festivals and its crucial role in our town’s cultural, economic and social future.”
A grandmother from Bilton has raised concerns after the “dangerous” highchair she returned to Argos two years ago has only just been recalled.
Liz Carnell bought the Cuggl Plum Deluxe highchair from Argos in Sainsbury’s on Wetherby Road, Harrogate, in July 2018.
One day when her grand-daughter was sitting in the chair, the back of it collapsed. Liz said:
“One Sunday lunchtime the baby was in the highchair when there was a loud ping and a spring shot across the floor as the back of the chair collapsed. If she had been on her own, she would have fallen out.”
The grandmother has accused the retailer of being aware of the danger for nearly two years but failing to act. She returned it in January 2019 to the Harrogate store and was assured a hazard form would be filled out.
She received another chair from the same range, the Little Sheep model, in exchange.
These three models have been recalled from Argos after testing showed they “could fail”.
Not only has that model now been recalled, but the one which Liz reported to be dangerous two years ago has only just been recalled as well.
Argos recalled three Cuggl models – Plum, Little Sheep and Pumpkin Deluxe – last month, saying “in some cases the back of the highchair could fail, resulting in a child falling from the highchair.”
Liz added:
“I’d like to know why Argos didn’t act on this problem much sooner and what happened to the hazard form I was told would be completed?
“I was lucky that as the original buyer of the highchair I received the recall notice, but there may be many families out there who bought them second hand who won’t know of the danger.”
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Argos said it received a small number of reports regarding the design of the back of the product but only within the 2020 batch of chairs. The design was the same as the one purchased by Liz in 2018 so it was recalled as well.
A spokesperson for Argos said:
“The safety of our products is our highest priority and we have processes in place to ensure any issues with an item are immediately investigated. Unfortunately in this case our product safety team has no record of this customer’s experience and we are looking into this.”