An established bakery is set to open a third outlet in the entrance to Harrogate railway station.

The Secret Bakery, which has been based on Knaresborough Road since before the covid pandemic, is hoping to open the doors of its new shop next Friday, August 25.

Owners Jane and James Spencer said they hope it will prove popular with office staff, commuters and visitors to town – and they are looking forward to the Station Gateway project.

James told the Stray Ferret:

“Because of the changes the council is planning, we’re hoping to take the front of the shop out and put concertina doors in.

“Then we could have it open and some pavement cafe seating.”

The couple took over The Secret Bakery in October 2020, after it was originally founded in a domestic kitchen in the Saints area of Harrogate.

Despite the ongoing covid restrictions, James said it was a busy time, as many customers liked to buy from a small business and avoid the supermarkets.

The new outlet on Station Parade will offer the same range of sandwiches, cakes and drinks for which the Secret Bakery is known.

A second baker has already been recruited to increase capacity behind the scenes, and staff from elsewhere in the business will be moving to work in the central Harrogate shop.

The secret bakery on Knaresborough Road

The bakery on Knaresborough Road will remain open, as will a second unit in Knaresborough‘s Market Place, which opened last October.

James said the Knaresborough shop had a strong start last autumn but has been quieter this year, perhaps down to lower than expected levels of tourism across the town.

However, he is hopeful that being in the centre of Harrogate, close to other businesses and transport links, will prove successful.

The unit was previously occupied by a cafe, but closed around eight months ago. James said the owner of the neighbouring shoe repair and key cutting shop had already been in touch to welcome the new business.

Its opening hours will be long than the other two Secret Bakery shops, with James and Jane hoping to catch commuters from 7am until 6pm, Monday to Saturday.

James added:

“I saw this place originally and didn’t think much of it, but then the cogs started turning. It means we’re in town rather than the outskirts.

“It’s in the process of being refurbished. We weren’t planning on doing much, but then we thought, ‘let’s do it properly before we open’.

“They’re due to finish soon, then we need to get the fridges and things in, and we’re hoping to be open next Friday.”

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As another cricket season gets underway, a team from Harrogate is set to begin its 24th consecutive season with a virtually unchanged line-up.

The players are only about a foot tall and have been in a few scrapes but they remain undefeated.

Thousands of people see them each year in the garden of Kenneth and Lesley Simpson on Knaresborough Road, opposite the One Stop shop.

The statues of eight players, two batsmen, an umpire, a sight screen and a pavilion are often admired by passers-by and have become such a landmark some bus passengers ask for tickets to ‘the cricket pitch garden’ as it’s more memorable than the name of the bus stops.

Kenneth, however, has a confession to make — he’s not a big cricket fan. He’s more of a football man, who supports Leeds United and is a former referee.

He is, however, a canny Yorkshireman who created the design as an easy way to maintain his garden. He said:

“We were going to put a football pitch in but because all the statues of players we could find had balls underneath their arms, it wouldn’t have looked right.”

The view from behind the bowler’s arm

Lesley noticed some statues of cricketers at the Harrogate Flower Show and when she spotted some more on holiday in Skegness they had enough for a display.

Over the years two have been vandalised — one was repaired but the other was too badly damaged and had to be replaced. Kenneth, who has lived in the house for 54 years, said:

“Someone took them down Knaresborough Road and didn’t realise how heavy they are.”

All the statues are now fixed into the concrete. Kenneth paints them every other year but the hardest job is cleaning the green grass that passes as the pitch.

One day a member of Marylebone Cricket Club passed by and was so taken by what he saw that he returned days later with the sight screen, which he made. Many have stopped to take photos and compliment the couple.

Lesley said:

“It’s surprising how many people stop and say ‘what a lovely garden you have’.”

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A long queue of shoppers formed outside Harrogate’s first Lidl supermarket this morning for the grand opening.

On a bright but cold morning, people began queueing well before 8am when the doors opened for the first time.

Work began on the new store in February this year. Today the Mayor of the Harrogate borough, councillor Victoria Oldham, formally announced the store open and cut a ribbon before local residents poured in.

The Stray Ferret was there for a live broadcast on Facebook:

Chris Aldred, the Liberal Democrat councillor for the Harrogate Fairfax ward, said it was important the area had a lower cost supermarket:

“Times are hard aren’t they? We’re all trying to save whatever we can save so having this on the doorstep on this side of town is good.

“It’s also better for the environment as people won’t have to travel long distances to get bargains. I just think it’s really, really good for Harrogate.

“I’ve been really impressed with Lidl’s attitude throughout the process – it was a proper consultation. They went around knocking on doors talking to people and, as a result, there wasn’t a single objection.

They even refurbished the public bench on the pavement which they didn’t have to.”

Pupils from Starbeck Primary School hold up their winning designs after the store held a competition to create a poster for the opening. 

Store manager Martin Hart told the Stray Ferret he was surprised by the number of people outside the store today:

“There was a massive push from the team last night and this morning to get the store ready for customers.

“When I saw the queue I was a bit overwhelmed but excited and it’s great to see how much interest is there and I think the store is going to be good for Harrogate.”

Lidl Harrogate store manager Martin Hart 

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The new Lidl store in Harrogate will open on Thursday, October 13 at 8am, the company has confirmed.

Construction has been under way since February on the Knaresborough Road site, previously home to Lookers Ford car dealership.

The company said the shop will create around 40 new jobs and will offer an in-store bakery, customer toilets including baby changing facilities, and parking for cars and bicycles.

It will be open daily from 8am to 10pm, and 10am to 4pm on Sundays.

A spokesperson for Lidl GB said:

“It is fantastic that we are able to open our doors and welcome everyone into our new store in Harrogate.

“We have received overwhelming support from local residents, and we would like to thank all those that have played a part in delivering this new store. We now look forward to serving our multi-award winning products to everyone within the local community.”

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Two teenagers carrying zombie knives robbed a youngster in broad daylight after he was told to empty his pockets or get “shanked”.

Dillan Bahia and Jamie Richardson, both 18, were loitering on the Stray when they spotted the 17-year-old victim sat on a bench “minding his own business” and waiting to set off for work, York Crown Court heard.

Prosecutor Brooke Morrison said the victim, who is from Harrogate but cannot be named for legal reasons, noticed “three males repeatedly looking at him while looking at their phones”. She added:

“(The victim) got up and started to walk to work (and) the three males followed him.”

Richardson was shouting over at the victim to get his attention and when the youth turned around, they were stood right beside him.

Richardson then lifted his jacket to reveal a zombie knife in his waistband and told the petrified victim: “Empty your pockets or I’ll shank you.”

The victim, who thought it was a steak knife, was “very frightened” and handed over his phone, wallet and e-cigarette.

Richardson demanded the PIN number for his phone while a third robber, a youth from Sheffield who was named in court, searched the victim’s pockets.

Bahia then appeared behind Richardson as all three robbers surrounded the youngster, who was “shaking” with fear.

Richardson then punched the victim in the face, causing his nose to bleed and glasses to smash, before the robbers walked off with his belongings including an iPhone, bank and loyalty cards, and £5 in cash. The incident occurred near Knaresborough Road on the 200-acre parkland.

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The victim went to his workplace and told colleagues what had happened. The matter was reported to police who scanned CCTV footage of the area to identify the robbers, who were found in Harrogate town centre the following day.

They ran off in different directions through the town centre but were caught following a pursuit. They were hauled into Harrogate Police Station where Richardson handed over a zombie knife and sheath to officers.

Bahia was “physically obstructive and verbally aggressive” to police and pushed one officer into a wall.

Officers frisked him for weapons and found a large, red-and-black zombie knife in his waistband and a homemade cosh which he had also been carrying in the town centre. The cosh was a “glass ball in a sock”.

The third male, who can’t be named for legal reasons, was also found to be carrying a zombie knife – a blade with a serrated edge which has gained notoriety in recent years and is also known as a ‘zombie killer’ or ‘zombie slayer’ knife.

All three teenagers admitted robbery and possessing a bladed article in public. Bahia also admitted carrying an offensive weapon, namely the homemade cosh.

Always ‘looking over my shoulder’

In a statement read out in court, the victim said:

“I honestly thought I was going to be stabbed if I didn’t give them my property. I was working hard and saving for a new phone.”

He had suffered from anxiety ever since the incident which occurred at about 3pm on July 23.

He said he was now always “looking over my shoulder” for fear of a similar attack and no longer walked to work from the town centre, relying instead on others to take him. He added:

“I now think twice about where I walk and where I go, and I stay away from the Stray and wooded areas.

“I will never forget what happened to me.”

He said he had a nose bleed and bruising for several days after the attack and had to pay for a new pair of glasses.

The 17-year-old victim now avoids the Stray

Richardson and Bahia, both from Leeds, appeared for sentence today after being remanded in custody.

The court heard that Richardson, of Grange View, Chapeltown, had previous convictions for serious violence, public disorder and criminal damage.

Bahia, of Mexborough Avenue, Chapeltown, had one previous conviction for fraud which resulted in a three-month youth-referral order in June.

‘Difficult early life’

Defence barrister Andrew Stranex, for Richardson, said the teenager had had an “unsettled and difficult early life” and was remorseful for his actions.

Ismael Uddin, for Bahia, said his unemployed client was “less involved” in the robbery and didn’t produce a knife during the incident.

He said that Bahia and his two cohorts had gone to Harrogate “out of boredom” but there was “no specific reason” for them being there.

Judge Stephen Ashurst said the “fearsome” knife that Richardson had in the waistband of his trousers must have been a terrifying sight for the young victim. The judge added:

“He was outnumbered three-to-one.

“(The victim) was left very distressed by the incident and it took him a little while to compose himself and contact police.”

Richardson was sentenced to two years and four months in a young offenders’ institution for his “leading role” in the robbery. Bahia was sentenced to two years in a young offenders’ institution.

The teenager from Sheffield was given a 12-month referral order at the youth court earlier this month.

There are yet more delays for Harrogate’s active travel schemes, which have yet to produce final designs despite being awarded government cash almost two years ago.

North Yorkshire County Council won £1 million for cycling and walking improvements on Oatlands Drive, Victoria Avenue and the A59 near Knaresborough in November 2020, but final designs have yet to be revealed as part of more consultations.

The council previously said designs for the Victoria Avenue and A59 schemes – which include cycle lanes, improved crossings and reduced speed limits – were “likely” to be revealed this summer.

However, this has now been pushed back until at least the New Year.

Victoria Avenue is one of the routes earmarked for better cycling.

And for the Oatlands Drive plans, the council previously said a consultation was “likely to start soon after” Queen Elizabeth II’s platinum jubilee bank holiday weekend in June.

Three months on, the council says it now hopes to ask the public for their views from the start of October.

This comes after original plans for a one-way traffic system on Oatlands Drive were scrapped after a backlash from residents who warned the changes would be “disastrous”.

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It was later agreed that the funding would instead be used for a feasibility study looking into improvements for the wider area.

Councillor Keane Duncan, executive member for highways and transport at the council, said in a statement this week:

“We are still in the detailed design stage for active travel schemes on Victoria Avenue and the A59 near Knaresborough.

“Following discussions and guidance from Active Travel England we would like to amend the designs further for improved pedestrian and cycling use.

“A public consultation with final designs is likely to take place in the New Year.

“The study of Oatlands Drive will review the existing designs and prepare new ones, based on the data we collect, to give us some options for active travel and traffic calming improvements in the Oatlands area that could be trialled.

“We hope to launch the public consultation at the start of October.”

The latest delays come on top of several setbacks for Harrogate’s Otley Road cycle path project which was first awarded funding in 2017. A first phase of the project was completed earlier this year, but a start date for phase two remains unclear.

Otley Road cycle path

There have also been setbacks for the town’s £11.2 million Gateway project which has been hit by a legal threat from a leading property company.

Hornbeam Park Developments made a proposed claim for a judicial review against the council this year over claims that it “failed conscientiously” to take into account the feedback of a previous survey.

This sparked the launch of yet another consultation, which was held in summer and gathered over 2,000 responses ahead of a council decision over whether to submit a final business case for funding.

Elsewhere, plans for a 7km cycleway in Knaresborough and other active travel improvements in Ripon were shelved altogether in summer when a council bid for £1.5 million was rejected by government.