Two Knaresborough companies announce new appointments

Knaresborough medical manufacturer appoints new chief executive

Neo G, which makes medical-grade orthopaedic supports, has appointed a new chief executive.

Dan Jones (pictured above) will take over the role from founder Paul Starkey, who will become the company’s chairman.

Mr Jones was previously its commercial director and has helped Neo G to become a leading UK manufacturer in the UK of orthopaedic supports, holding contracts with Boots, Tesco, Walgreens and CVS.

The company is based at Knaresborough Technology Centre on Manse Lane.

Mr Starkey said:

“Dan has demonstrated his commitment to Neo G and our Medical Grade strategy. Over the last seven years, he has helped define and establish the company as the number one brand in the UK, and the fastest growing brand in the US.

“I am very proud of the way he has grown in the company and adopted the Neo G mantra as his own. I know he will take Neo G to new heights, and I will do everything I can as the chairman to support all of his and the teams’ efforts.”

Knaresborough digital agency appoints new co-director

Sophie Sanders

Eden Agency appoints co-director

Knaresborough-based Eden Agency has appointed Sophie Sanders as its new co-director.

The 29-year-old has worked at the agency since 2014 and was previously head of client services.

The agency is an ISO 27001-certified digital agency that specialises in UX design, web and mobile development.

Talking about her appointment, Ms Sanders said:

“I’m proud, as a woman in tech, to be given the opportunity to run a digital agency with Andy and I can’t wait to help deliver results to our clients and to help our team grow.”

Managing director Andy Litherland said:

“I have been very fortunate to work with Sophie over the last eight years. Her enthusiasm and passion for Eden Agency is infectious and I’m looking forward to seeing her drive the company forward in the future.”

Crimple adds afternoon tea to the menu

Crimple has launched an afternoon tea offering in time for Mother’s Day this month,

The new addition has been curated by executive chef Tim Kitchen and includes Vichyssoise soup, truffled cream cheese, chive and cucumber sandwiches, blackberry, tarragon and honey pavlovas, and of course scones.

Mr Kitchen said:

“Sticking to the Crimple brand ethos, my mission is to use local wherever possible and this menu reflects that.”

The restaurant and garden centre opened in November after a £6 million refurbishment.

Harrogate man admits throwing ‘brick or stone’ at Knaresborough Fire Station

A 32-year-old man from Harrogate received a conditional discharge today for throwing a “brick or stone-like object” at Knaresborough Fire Station.

Daniel Barnes, of Oakdale Glen, appeared before Harrogate magistrates charged with attempting criminal damage. It was his second appearance in court for the same offence in two weeks.

Barnes pleaded guilty to throwing an object at the door of the fire station on February 16.

Sean Wilson, defending, said his client had thrown a “brick or stone like object” in response to an earlier incident in which someone had driven past and said “I’m going to kill your mum”.

Mr Wilson added:

“Mr Barnes’ recent series of incidents are partly due to him possibly being evicted from his home. He was also diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia at 15 and suffers with ADHD, bipolar disorder and depression.

“His outburst was out of anger at someone in a car yelling ‘I’m going to kill your mum’.”

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Ms Campbell, chair of the magistrates, issued a six-month conditional discharge and ordered Barnes to pay fines amounting to £107, which will be taken out of his benefits allowance.

She said:

“You are not going to be punished today but I am instead putting you on a six-month conditional discharge. Should you do it again in the next six months you will face this charge plus the new charge. You need to keep out of trouble.

“I have taken into account that you pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity and have reduced the condition from nine months to six.”

Ukraine crisis: Guide to how you can help locally

As the war in Ukraine wages on, the Harrogate district has stepped up its response to help those fleeing the conflict.

The Stray Ferret will be providing updates on where to give donations and how the district is responding to the ongoing war.

If you have any details on where to donate to those fleeing the conflict or any other information, write to us at contact@thestrayferret.co.uk.

Harrogate

Ukrainian woman opens house for donations 

Olga Whiting, from Ukraine, is opening up her home so she can take donations to be sent to her Mum’s village in Ukraine.

Ms Whiting now lives in Harrogate but is in regular contact with her mum who has said the items they’re most in need of are:

Ms Whiting has a friend who has been transporting donations into Ukraine every three weeks. Her friend will now add her native village of Nova Borava to his list of drop-off points.

People can drop donations off at anytime at 14 Yewdale Road, Harrogate, HG2 8NF. Ms Whiting has said if no one is in call her on 07307876103 and she will describe a safe place for them to be left.

Tiger Fifty 7 taking donations

The children’s store on Cold Bath Road has opened itself up as a drop-off point for donations.

It is asking for:

For anyone who would rather donate money via JustGiving link, click here.

Boroughbridge

Car dealer accepting donations

Charltons of Boroughbridge is accepting donations for those feeling the conflict in Ukraine.

Items collected will be sent to a large depot at Thirsk and then forward to Eastern Europe.

Organisers will accept:

The dealership has said it is open for donations from 8.30am to 6pm Monday to Friday and Saturday 8.30am to 5pm.

Knaresborough friends fundraise in memory of ex-colleague

Four friends who worked together as teachers have raised almost £2,500 in memory of a former colleague who died of cancer.

Dee Oultram was helped by The Sir Robert Ogden Macmillan Centre in Harrogate and Saint Michael’s Hospice in Harrogate in her final days. She died aged 52 on January 1 this year.

Dee had intended to complete the Yorkshire Three Peaks Challenge with Paula Conroy, Laura Hunt, Fiona Laycock and Steph Cargill to raise money for the two organisations.

The five women taught together at St Mary’s Catholic Primary School in Knaresborough.

Dee Oultam walk

The challenge involves reaching the peaks of Pen-y-ghent, Whernside and Ingleborough in under 12 hours.

The women had to postpone their attempt twice due to covid and Dee died before it could be completed.

Her friends decided to carry on and fulfil the quest to help the organisations that did so much to help Dee and last weekend completed the challenge.

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Ms Conroy said Dee was with them in spirit throughout the day. She added.

“It took us 11 hours to complete the 40 kilometres and around 55,000 steps.

“But every penny donated was worth every single step to go towards helping beautiful people through various stages of their battle with cancer!

“We laughed and we cried, there were ups and there were downs.”

Main pic: (from left) Laura Hunt, Paula Conroy, Steph Cargill and Fiona Laycock on Whernside during the challenge.

Knaresborough hairdresser wins legal battle after customer sues for catastrophic hair loss

A Knaresborough hairdresser accused of causing catastrophic hair loss to a customer has won a ground-breaking legal case.

Mother-of-two Kelly Teggin challenged the customer’s claims that large clumps of her hair had fallen out after bleaching, leaving her with a blistered scalp.

A two-day county court trial, which could have landed Ms Teggin with a bill of more than £100,000, including costs, and damaged her reputation, ruled in her favour.

Court documents summarising the case, which was heard in October last year, state:

“On the balance of probabilities, nothing untoward happened to the claimant in the salon that evening and no concerns were raised that night. It was accepted that the claimant was content when she left.”

Ms Teggin, of Kelly Teggin Hair and Beauty in Knaresborough, has now spoken about the verdict publicly for the first time. She said:

“I was positive I had done nothing wrong and wanted to clear my name.”

Kelly Teggin

Kelly Teggin (right) and assistant Penny Ledgeway

The Leeds County Court judge’s ruling in favour of Ms Teggin has been hailed as a breakthrough for hairdressers struggling to disprove claims that cost insurance companies millions of pounds every year.

‘Hair reduced to stubble in some places’

The claimant, from Boroughbridge, argued her hair started falling out on holiday, a few days after Ms Teggin bleached the roots in August 2019, and continued to fall out until she only had half her hair left, with it being reduced to stubble in some places.

The judge, Recorder Murray, said there was only evidence of minor breakage, which did not demonstrate there had been negligence.

Dismissing the claim, he also pointed out that UV light, heat and mechanical processes could damage bleached hair.

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Ms Teggin’s solicitor, Sarah Pether, said the case could have been settled at the outset for around £6,000 damages and costs. She added:

“Trials in such cases are rare as insurers usually consider it more cost effective to settle at an early stage and pay the low level fixed legal fees.

“I have seen obvious cases of negligence before with ‘chewing gum’ hair, huge clumps falling out, hair turning green etc, where most people would accept the treatment was negligent and those cases should be settled to avoid court costs.

“However, a lot of claims now seem to be based on minor breakage which are not necessarily due to negligence, or do not prove there has been negligence, and with only £3,000 to £4,000 claimed each time the insurers have tended to settle them.”

‘Reputation on the line’

Ms Teggin said afterwards:

“I was putting my reputation on the line and risked losing my business if it all went wrong but I was never going to settle because the story simply didn’t stack up and I knew I had the evidence to prove it.

“I just hope this gives other hairdressers and the insurance industry in general the confidence to stand up against false claims, which are more common than people realise,” added Mrs Teggin.

Expert witness, forensic trichologist Prof Barry Stevens, welcomed the verdict, adding:

“It will hopefully lead to a closer review of claims within the industry.”

Warning retirement flats plan could ‘overload’ health services in Knaresborough

A bid to build a retirement complex in Knaresborough has failed for the second time after concerns were raised over the impact on “massively stretched” health services.

Harrogate Borough Council’s planning committee has today deferred a decision on the latest proposals for 61 extra care apartments near Grimbald Bridge on Wetherby Road after previously refusing the development a year ago.

It follows an objection from the NHS North Yorkshire CCG (Clinical Commissioning Group) which said it was “extremely concerned” that another care facility could increase the elderly population and “overload” local services.

The CCG said in a letter:

“This proposal for a new care facility is not something the local population are in need of, and is being proposed in an area that does not have healthcare staff or infrastructure available to be able to safely manage these patients.”

Defending the plans, Robert Gaskell, planning manager at the developers Adlington Retirement Living, claimed there is a “critical” need for new care facilities in the area and that the impact on health services would be “minimal”.

He told a meeting today:

“The majority of people who move into these apartments come from the local area.

“Our experience is that 80% of residents actually reside in a 10 mile radius. If these people are currently visiting primary care, then the impact is already occurring.

“This development actually helps solve the problem because there are less visits to GPs because people are getting the care they need and are in a supportive environment.”

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Mr Gaskell also said the proposed building had been scaled back from four storeys to three, and also included a new access and footpath upgrades after other concerns were raised.

However, road safety and the risk of flooding has remained an issue for residents and councillors – despite specialists in these areas not raising any objections.

Councillor Phil Ireland, who represents the area on Harrogate Borough Council and Knaresborough Town Council, told today’s meeting that he believed the site was not suitable for any development of this size.

He said:

“The site is subject to flooding as witnessed on Sunday, February 20 when some residents of Nidderdale Lodge Park just downstream had to be physically carried out from their properties.

“This site is unsustainable and totally unsuitable for a development of this scale.”

Resident Steve Benn also described the changes in the latest plans as “minimal” and said many locals in the area were against the development.

Mr Gaskell responded by claiming there were no records of flooding at the site, as he also said the proposed widening and resurfacing of footpaths on Wetherby Road represented an improvement from the previous scheme.

He said:

“The site has not flooded. There is no record from the Environment Agency of the site flooding.

“Indeed, the site will provide some betterment in terms of flooding as a flood basement will accommodate an additional 600 cubic metres of flood water.

“In terms of the highways impacts, these have been addressed satisfactorily and a road safety audit has been conducted.”

Councillors voted to defer a decision on the plans to allow for more information on health services, flooding and other potential footpath improvements to come forward.

The proposals will be brought back to the planning committee at a later date.

Knaresborough charity shop forced to close after fifth flood

A Knaresborough business owner has made made the “devastating” decision to close her charity shop after it flooded for the fifth time in five years.

Rachel Wills runs the Watermill Cafe at The Lido leisure park in Knaresborough.

When her niece Bella was diagnosed with leukaemia, Ms Wills wanted to support the hospital caring for her so she decided to open a charity shop within the premises.

It began as a book table in the corner of the cafe but as more people heard Bella’s story, a bigger space was needed for donations so Ms Wills converted the ground floor cellar and opened a ‘bring and buy’ shop.

Since opening three years ago, the venture and annual summer BBQs have raised more than £10,000 for Alder Hey Children’s Hospital.

But the cafe stands on the banks of the River Nidd, making it a frequent victim of flooding. Now, after last month’s storms, Ms Wills has decided she can’t keep rebuilding the shop.

The high waters during a night of flooding and then a few days later.

Each time it floods she and her partner have to rebuild the shelves and put a call-out for more donations.

Last month’s floods forced the cafe owner to throw away three-and-a-half tips of donations and food stock and pump out more than 500 litres of water.

She said:

“I was watching the waters rise on the CCTV. I could see things dropping into the water. I just knew I couldn’t go through this again, every time it happens it’s harder to build back again.

“If I keep it on and we get flooded again I’m back to square one. It’s an awful decision to make but I will keep holding events to support the hospital but keeping the shop open is just really hard when it floods so regularly.”

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Bella was diagnosed cancer-free in March 2020. Nevertheless, Ms Wills wants to continue finding ways to donate to the hospital.

Each year, she holds a summer barbecue outside the cafe on the river banks, with live music and games, which raises around £1,000 — this will continue.

Business park near Flaxby that could support 2,000 jobs approved

Ilkley-based property developer Opus North and Bridges Fund Management have been granted planning permission from Harrogate Borough Council to build a 600,000 square feet business park near Flaxby.

The business park will be called ‘Harrogate 47’ as it will be built close to junction 47 of the A1 (M). The developer believes it could support 2,000 jobs.

It’s allocated as the main strategic employment site in the council’s Harrogate district Local Plan and already has existing planning permission for more than half a million square feet of employment space.

The new plans include up to 130,000 sq ft of office accommodation, about 75,000 sq ft of tech starter units and approximately 430,000 sq ft for logistics and warehouses.

Ryan Unsworth, development director of Opus North, said:

“This development is key for the Harrogate and wider North Yorkshire economy due to its capacity to transform vacant land into office and industrial space for local, regional and national occupiers, and the vast job-creating potential it has.

“The delivery of Harrogate 47 will allow local companies to expand and grow within the region in addition to attracting inward investment into the district and we are delighted that its potential has been recognised through the positive planning outcome.”

Electric vehicle show comes to Harrogate

A global event that promotes clean energy and electric vehicles will come to Harrogate’s Yorkshire Event Centre in May 2023.

The event is called Fully Charged, the World’s no.1 Electric Vehicle and Clean Energy Show, and is expected to attract 10,000 visitors from May 19 to May 21.

The event will be hosted by Red Dwarf actor and YouTuber Robert Llewellyn.

There will be 120 exhibitors and visitors will be able to test drive some of the latest electric vehicles on sale in the UK.

Dan Caesar, joint chief executive of Fully Charged Live, said:

“Fully Charged Live has been a huge global success, and we are delighted to be bringing the show to the north of England at last. Harrogate is a great location, and the Yorkshire Event Centre, with its indoor and outdoor space, and its sustainability credentials, is a natural partner.”

(L to R) presenter Robert Llewellyn, Richard Moorhouse operations manager at the YEC, Dan Caesar, joint CEO of Fully Charged Live and Ben Chatburn sales manager at the YEC.

Grants of up to £100,000 available for Yorkshire social enterprises

The Social Enterprise Support Fund is now open for the second round of funding and will provide grants of between £10,000 and £100,000 for social enterprises that have been impacted by covid.

This follows the first round of applications in December that saw over 800 applications from enterprises across England, requesting grants worth over £37m.

The fund is available to social enterprises if most of their beneficiaries are in England, and their annual income has been between £20,000 and £1.8m in either of the last two financial years.

Sheffield-based Key Fund supports social enterprises across Yorkshire. Its chief executive, Matt Smith, said:

“The UK’s social enterprises have been at the heart of community survival and recovery during the pandemic. In a post-covid world, where the inequalities within society are even starker, the work of these organisations will be needed more than ever.

“This grant funding has already proven to be a lifeline to many social enterprises and the communities they work in, and so we welcome this second round of financial support.”

Matt Smith, CEO of Key Fund

Knaresborough artist presents lockdown portraits to key workers

Knaresborough artist Shirley Vine presented her lockdown portraits to key workers on Saturday.

Ms Vine started the project to pay tribute to people on the frontline during the darkest periods of the pandemic.

Her 15 subjects included a fireman, a care worker, nurses, teachers, a police officer, refuse collector, dentist, signalman, and foodbank volunteers.

The acrylic paintings have been on display in the Chain Lane vaccination centre in Knaresborough but have now been presented free of charge to the subjects at a reception Ms Vine organised on Saturday at COGS (Centre On Gracious Street).

Ms Vine said:

“Lockdown was fine at first, as it was the time when I usually finish my watercolour classes for the year and spend time sorting the house and garden.

“That was OK for a few weeks, but I soon realised that something more was going to be needed for the future unknown time of covid.

“Tom Croft, a professional portraitist appeared on BBC TV to galvanise any artists to paint their NHS heroes. I took to this and painted 15 local frontline key workers”.

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Receiving the portraits brought back often difficult memories to the key workers who Ms Vine painted.

Deborah and Ian, from anti-food waste community group Resurrected Bites said,

“It has been a privilege and so good to be able to help when so many were desperate”.

Deborah and Ian with their portrait.

Gee, a care worker, said,

“As the residents couldn’t have visitors, we became their family, which was so important”.

Gee and her portrait.

Lesley, a dentist, said,

“Stunning Portraits. A poignant reminder of what we were doing and now feels like a lifetime ago”.

Lesley with her portrait.

Sam from Noah’s Ark Pre-school said:

“It was hard work but rewarding, cocooned within Noah’s Ark. Shirley has captured how children’s learning continued throughout and how parents valued the setting and all of the staff.”

Sam and her portrait.

23 trees in Knaresborough to be felled this week for new leisure centre

A total of 23 trees will be chopped down in Knaresborough this week to make way for the town’s new £17 million leisure centre.

Fencing has been placed around the affected area, which includes the play area where the new centre will be built. Work to remove the trees is expected to begin today and take five days.

Once work is completed, the play area will reopen.

A letter from Harrogate Borough Council to councillors says the trees “will be replaced in due course with native species at a ratio of at least 2:1 – either on Fysche Field or in Knaresborough”.

It adds:

“Much of the wood removed will be turned into wood chippings and used in the parks and open spaces we manage.

“The larger trunks that can’t be chipped will also be used in other ways such as natural bases for signs, benches or habitat creation to ensure the continuation of biodiversity on site.

“The carbon capture of these younger native trees, along with the removed trees being repurposed, will encourage wildlife and ecosystems for years to come.”

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The council is undertaking the work as part of a scheme to build a larger leisure and wellness centre in Knaresborough.

The local authority approved its own plans last week to build the new centre, which will include a six-lane, 25-metre pool, activity pool with flume, sauna and steam room, fitness suite and studio, spin studio, café, electric car charging points and bicycle storage.

Its letter to councillors says work on the centre will “start in the coming weeks”.

The centre will be built on the site of the existing play area, and slightly beyond. To compensate for its loss, another play area will be built in front of the new facility.

‘Bit of a shock to people’

Andrew Willoughby, a Liberal Democrat who represents Eastfield on Knaresborough Town Council, said it was sad to lose any trees but the plans were reasonable because of the wider benefits of the scheme and the fact that twice as many new trees will be planted.

Cllr Willoughby added that the majority of trees to be lost were planted about 30 years ago when the current pool was built. He said:

“Losing 23 trees is a bit of a shock to people. It’s sad to see any trees go. But I think what they are doing is quite reasonable.”

Cllr Willoughby added it was necessary to remove the trees quickly before birds started nesting in them in a few weeks.