Motorists and businesses face several more weeks of traffic misery in Knaresborough due to an ongoing project to install a full-fibre network.

CityFibre, which is installing gigabit-speed wifi services across the Harrogate district, has been carrying out roadworks at Bond End in Knaresborough.

Temporary traffic lights at the site, which have caused major traffic disruption, are set to continue for the rest of the month.

CityFibre also has a permit to work on Boroughbridge Road and High Street in Knaresborough until the end of June.

It is then due to move to the streets around Ash Tree Road, Whincup Avenue and Park Row for another three to four weeks.

Residents reported last week the works were causing slow traffic on Ripley Road and Boroughbridge Road, causing some to even turn back around. Some have questioned why the work is not being conducted overnight.

Businesses are also unhappy about the impact of the roadworks.

Steve Teggin, chair of Knaresborough Chamber of Trade, said;

“The feeling in Knaresborough is appalling right now, there are roadworks everywhere, from blockades to cable laying.

“If this work was being done in Harrogate, it would have been finished long ago.”

£46m project

CityFibre is spending £46m installing full fibre networks in Knaresborough, Harrogate and Ripon, which it says will meet the needs of businesses and residents “for decades to come”.

Kim Johnston, regional partnership director and city manager for HKR at CityFibre, said:

“Digital connectivity has never been more important in Knaresborough, Harrogate and Ripon, as our data consumption grows, the current network infrastructure will become increasingly unfit for purpose.

“We’d like to thank residents for their support and patience while we continue these works, and offer reassurance that this investment aims to deliver long term benefit for all.

“As an essential digital utility, full fibre boosts households and businesses alike, it will not only unlock access to the fastest and most reliable network technology available, for example, it will provide the essential foundations for smart city technologies that make communities safer.”

You can find out more about the full-fibre installation here.

Temporary traffic lights are in place at the junction of York Road, Chain Lane and Wetherby Road as part of other roadworks.

Social distancing cones for pedestrians have also removed parking spaces in the town centre, causing further problems for motorists.

An adventurous Sphynx cat has been found in Knaresborough — 35 miles from her home in Wakefield.

It’s not known how India, who is two and has no fur, managed to cross county lines but one theory is she snuck into a delivery van that was doing the rounds in the area.

Gareth Cole found the cold and shaking feline outside his home in Knaresborough at 2am one night recently.

He said:

“I looked over and could see this…thing.

“I realised it was a cat. We got some milk for it and it was so friendly.”

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Gareth and his partner Katie took the Sphynx, which cost on average £1,500, to Pets at Home, which managed to track the microchipped moggy’s owner in Wakefield.

She made a one-hour drive to collect her yesterday.

Gareth and his son Hugo playing with India.

Gareth said the owner was “very, very happy” that India was returning home and had a huge smile on her face when they were reunited.

He added:

“I have to say we fell in love with her so much and would have kept her in a heartbeat if the owner had not have been found. We we are truly grateful and over the moon we found her family and could reunite them.”

However, one family member was less pleased about the reunion… Gareth’s three-year-old son Hugo burst into tears when he was told the cat had to return home to West Yorkshire.

Fresh plans have been submitted for a major new retirement apartment complex in Knaresborough, after a similar scheme was refused by Harrogate Borough Council’s planning committee earlier this year.

Adlington, part of the Gladman group, wants to build 68 apartments with additional care facilities on land adjacent to the single-track Grimbald Bridge on Wetherby Road, alongside the River Nidd.

Cllr Phil Ireland, who sits on both Knaresborough Town Council and Harrogate Borough Council, criticised the original application for 69 apartments when he spoke at the planning committee in February. He said:

“The size and scale of the development is overpowering. The visual intrusion will be evident to all entering Knaresborough”.

Councillors on the committee agreed and voted overwhelmingly to reject the bid.

Grimbald Bridge is a pressure point for congestion and the original proposals also faced objections from both Knaresborough Civic Society and Knaresborough Town Council on transport grounds.

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In planning documents attached to the new application, the developer said it “strongly refutes” the reasons for refusal:

“The fact that the proposal would introduce a substantial building on the site, does not mean that it would lead to the building being dominant, inappropriate in its setting, or harmful in views, just because it would be visible in parts”.

The developer has made changes to the original plans including removing four apartments from the top of the building to reduce its height and adding ten electric vehicle car parking spaces. The housing mix will be changed to regain the lost apartments.

It said the need to provide this type of accommodation for older people in the area was “critical” due to an ageing population.

HBC’s planning committee will consider the scheme at a later date.

Police said today they have fined one man and cautioned another following an incident in Knaresborough involving Sheffield United striker Oli McBurnie.

McBurnie was arrested last month after a viral video showed a confrontation between the 24-year-old professional footballer and a 21-year-old man on High Street in Knaresborough, towards Bond End.

The incident happened on Saturday, May 8, at about 8.20pm.

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North Yorkshire Police said today it had completed its investigation and was no longer appealing for information.

It said in a statement:

“Following an investigation, a man in his 20s has been cautioned for a public order offence, namely using threatening behaviour.

“A second man, also in his 20s, was issued with a penalty notice for a similar offence.

“Police are no longer appealing for information.”

This weekend was supposed to see one of the biggest events of the Harrogate district calendar — the Knaresborough bed race.

Sadly, covid forced the event’s cancellation for the second year running.

So here’s a look back at how it all started in 1966, courtesy of some photos by Knaresborough amateur photographer, the late Bill Hardacre, whose son Roy sent them.

The puppeteer Harry Corbett, who created children’s TV character Sooty, fired the gun to start the race.

Acker Bilk, the jazz musician, started the 1967 race. Does anyone know how they were tempted to Knaresborough?

Do you recognise any of the people seen in the photos, or have favourite memories of the madcap event that grew so big?

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Roadworks near the Bond End roundabout in Knaresborough have caused delays all day, with some commuters stuck in traffic for more than 15 minutes.

Temporary lights are in place at the bottom of the high street, near Bond End, due to telecoms works.

These lights have caused slow traffic flow along Ripley Road and Boroughbridge Road throughout the day heading towards the town’s high street.

The congestion even forced some drivers, coming from Ripley, to turn around rather than continue to sit and wait.

This afternoon’s rush hour is set to be no different, with similar levels of traffic and delays expected.

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A new wine shop has opened in Knaresborough with a pledge to showcase Yorkshire’s artisan suppliers.

Reuben & Grey is a new retail brand that plans to open a chain of wine shops and delicatessens in Yorkshire.

The shop, in Old Town Hall in Market Square, will sell hundred of wines from around the world as well as local beers and spirits.

Luke Morland, the Knaresborough-born co-founder of Reuben & Grey, was part of the front-of-house team at Goldsborough Hall and also ran the Bay House Inn gastropub in Goldsborough for five years.

The company plans to open a complementary delicatessen in the coming months, and is looking for premises in the Knaresborough and Harrogate area.

The wine shop opened in the refurbished Grade Two listed building on Saturday.

Mr Morland said:

“Over the last year, we’ve seen a real shift in the way people shop and eat. Consumers are shopping more intelligently and wisely – they want to know the story behind what they buy.

“They are now concerned with picking items correctly and ensuring that they have been locally sourced, and we want to be a vehicle to enable them to do this.

“Our plan is that the Reuben & Grey name will be synonymous with the best of local, ethically-produced food and drink. We believe that there is real public support for an initiative like this.”

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Mr Morland will manage the Knaresborough shop, which is expected to create two more jobs.

He added:

“We are fortunate that Yorkshire has become a centre of excellence for artisan food and gin producers and we want to celebrate this by offering well-sourced products.

“People seem to have re-discovered their love of fine food and wine over the last year, and we are looking forward to helping them to continue that journey.”

The wine store will be open Monday to Saturday from 10am-5pm, and on Sunday from 11am-4pm.

Jayne Jackson began maintaining the Knaresborough Cemetery after feeling Harrogate Borough Council wasn’t doing enough.

Mrs Jackson has been working on the grounds for almost four years but now ill health means she has to pack away her tools.

As a regular visitor to the cemetery, near King James’ School, to visit her parent’s graves Mrs Jackson said she was getting “frustrated” by its condition.

She said there were a host of issues including; long grass, overgrown bushes and tree roots causing graves to collapse.

Mrs Jackson has reported issues over the years including a leaking tap and damaged graves, to the council, but said these often went ignored or took a long time to be repaired.

Mrs Jackson said she knew she had to do something for the town she has lived in since she was seven years old.

Her lone volunteering turned into a large undertaking costing her “100s of pounds of my own money”. She would tackle the overgrown foliage and keep weeds at bay.

It was also important for Mrs Jackson to carefully maintain the baby and war graves. Her aim was to create a peaceful place for others.

Jayne Jackson left this note for the cemetery’s visitors.

But now, she has been left questioning why she continues to work on such a large space alone:

“It was important for me to keep it tidy. Over the years there’s been less and less maintenance, lots of the graves have just been left to overgrow. I’ve enjoyed doing it and met some lovely people too but a little help from the council would go a long way.

“I’ve got so frustrated I now just think what’s the point?”

Mrs Jackson has said she hopes Harrogate Borough Council take the same care she did to maintain the cemetery.

Councillor Andrew Paraskos, Harrogate Borough Council’s cabinet member for environment, waste reduction and recycling, said:

“On behalf of the council’s bereavement services, I’d like to say thank you to Jayne Jackson for her work at Knaresborough Cemetery, it has been very much appreciated.

“We have a regular programme work, across all of the district’s cemeteries that we manage, and when specific issues are raised we work to address these.

“Visitors to several of the cemeteries across the district may also start to notice some areas that are being left to grow and not mown. We want to encourage biodiversity so are working with parish councils to leave specific areas to grow, attract pollinators and create habitats.

“We will of course continue to mow the grass along pathways and around gravestones so that mourners can pay their respects to their loved ones.”

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Opened in 1876 the graveyard holds over 3,000 graves.

Her hard work has not gone unnoticed with numerous local residents thanking her on a Facebook post after she left a note in the cemetery to say she was stopping her work.

Mrs Jackson says it is her time to step away after noticing her arthritis makes some of the jobs too difficult.

Fifty-six years ago, BBC reporter Julian Pettifer came to Knaresborough to cover the legend of Mother Shipton, while looking at the dropping well and caves.

A teddy bear, pair of baby booties and a top hat are seen dangling under the roof of the well, which is also known as a petrifying well, being slowly turned to stone by the water.

Standing at the top of a ladder leaning against the dripping roof, Mr Pettifer strings up a glove alongside the other items.

He says:

“The water of this spring contains so much calcium that, well, looks what happens to Teddy. He’s been in here for three years and he’s far from cuddly.”

He adds:

“This has been a tourist attraction in Knaresborough since 1630, and now the tourist trade has developed so much that in the summer 5,000 people come here every week to have a look at it.”

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Mr Pettifer goes on to make a wish at the wishing well, retell the legend of Mother Shipton and her prophecies, and interview the great-granddaughter of the man who turned the site into a tourist attraction.

The video was first broadcast on February 22 1965, as part of Tonight, which covered the arts, sciences, topical matters and current affairs. The clip is is now part of a BBC film archive.

Developers behind a plan for 12 new homes in Knaresborough have submitted final design proposals for the development.

The proposal was given outline approval for the site off Bar Lane back in 2018.

At the time, the developer said in its planning documents that proposal had been “carefully considered to provide an appropriate level of mix of housing”.

It added:

“Overall the proposed scheme provides a high quality development in a sustainable location with good links to local facilities.

“The proposed scheme has a clear identity and is sympathetic in density, scale and style to the surrounding context.”

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Now, Rouse Homes Ltd, based in Leeds, has submitted a reserved matters application for the design and landscape of the development.

It would see bungalows and two, three and four bedroom homes built on the site.

Harrogate Borough Council will make a decision on the proposal at a later date.