Business Breakfast: Harrogate manufacturing firm appoints new board member

The Stray Ferret Business Club’s next meeting is an after work drinks event on Thursday, August 31 at The West Park Hotel in Harrogate between 5-7pm. 

The Business Club provides monthly opportunities to network, make new connections and hear local success stories. Get your tickets by clicking or tapping here.

A Harrogate manufacturing firm has promoted a long-term employee to its board of directors.

Belzona Polymerics Ltd, which is based on Claro Road, has appointed Charli Walton to the board after 12 years of service.

Ms Walton joined the company, which is a global designer and manufacturer of industrial repair and protection materials, in its marketing team back in 2011.

Now, she becomes the first female member of the Belzona board.

Mrs Walton said: 

“It is a great honour to be appointed to the board of directors. I would like to thank Belzona for giving me this incredible opportunity, as well as for the extensive investment made into my training and development in preparation for my new role.”

Barry Nisill, chief executive of Belzona, added:

“During Charli’s career with Belzona, she has developed an extensive knowledge which, teamed with her boundless enthusiasm, has seen her become an important member of the Belzona leadership team.

“On behalf of everyone at Belzona, I would like to congratulate Charli and wish her every success for the future.”

Knaresborough building society celebrates first anniversary with grant award

A building society in Knaresborough has celebrated its first birthday by offering a £3,000 grant to Henshaws Arts and Crafts Centre.

Newcastle Building Society opened its doors in the town’s library last summer.

As part of its anniversary, it has offered a grant to Henshaws from the Newcastle Building Society Community Fund.

The funding will help to purchase iPads and art makers, which will be used to support people living with disabilities and visual impairments.

Heather Pearman, manager of Newcastle Building Society’s Knaresborough branch, said: 

“Since opening our Knaresborough branch we’ve developed a strong relationship with Henshaws.

“Colleagues have lent their time to volunteer with the charity at some of its largest annual fundraising events, including Henshaws Bed Fest, with further plans to support the charity later into the year.”

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Knaresborough prepares for three-day beer festival

Knaresborough’s festival feel this month will be lubricated by the return of the town’s annual beer festival.

Beer will be flowing from 5pm on Friday, August 18 to Sunday, August 20 at Knaresborough House. Entry is free.

Knaresborough Lions has once again organised the event as part of the town’s 10-day arts festival Feva.

Drinkers will be able to choose from 22 beers and seven ciders, along with lager, Prosecco, wine, Aperol Spritz and non-alcoholic drinks. There will also be a burger bar.

The beers include local favourites from Harrogate-based Roosters Brewing Company and other Yorkshire breweries as well as ales from further field, including Cornwall and Norfolk.

Ciders range from a traditional scrumpy to a perry or a marmalade-flavoured offering.

The main date is the Saturday afternoon when the beer festival will run alongside Feva’s Picnic in the Park at Knaresborough House.

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Lions president Bob Godsell said:

“We’re keeping our fingers crossed for sunshine again this year.

“Our profits from the beer sales help finance Picnic in the Park, so we’re looking forward to people being able to enjoy the live music with a delicious pint in hand.”

Visitors can buy a starter pack of six tokens for £12 which entitles them to three pints and a commemorative glass. Otherwise tokens will be on sale for £2 each with all pints priced at £4.

Sessions run from Friday 5pm-11pm, Saturday midday-11pm and Sunday midday-5pm — or until the beer runs out.

Further information, including taster notes, is available on the Knaresborough Lions Facebook page.

Photo shows (left to right), Lions Lynn Nudds, Jeremy Crow, Mark Flood, Martin Brock, Jon Smithells, Tony Pedel and Matt Walker

 

Knaresborough man jailed for dangerous driving after high-speed police chase

A serial driving offender has been jailed for putting lives at risk during a high-speed police chase through Knaresborough.

Liam Edmondson, 26, a white-collar boxer, sped off when a traffic officer spotted him driving his VW Golf while using a hand-held mobile phone and tried to pull him over at traffic lights. 

But Edmonson ignored the flashing blue lights and sped off, prosecutor Rachael Landin told York Crown Court.

Edmondson drove at speeds of up to 90mph in restricted zones as he overtook vehicles, shot straight over junctions and at one stage drove on the wrong side of the road in midday traffic.

Eventually, following the chase along High Street and York Road, he abandoned the vehicle in a street of Kingfisher Road, ran off and jumped over a boundary fence in a residential garden into a neighbouring property. 

However, a neighbour’s ring doorbell provided video footage of Edmondson’s escape and he was identified by one of the pursuing officers.

Edmondson, of Pasture Crescent, Knaresborough, was charged with dangerous driving, using a hand-held mobile phone, driving while disqualified and without insurance. 

He ultimately admitted all the offences – albeit claiming he was driving at lesser speeds than alleged – and appeared for sentence yesterday.

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Ms Landin said that Edmondson, a fighter in Ultra White-Collar Boxing, had sped through 30mph and 40mph zones during the chase involving two police vehicles on March 3.

Edmonson had failed to slow down even at junctions as he sped and failed to give way to other vehicles as he drove on the wrong side of the road. He was driving so fast that a pursuing police car, travelling at over 90mph, lost sight of the Volkswagen as they approached a roundabout.

Ms Landin said:

“The defendant’s vehicle was found abandoned outside a property (near Kingfisher Road).”

Edmondson’s eight previous convictions comprised 16 offences including many driving matters and serious violence. They included failing to stop after an accident, driving without a licence and insurance, and careless driving.

In April he received a two-year community order for assault occasioning actual bodily harm after knocking a rugby player unconscious inside a bar in Harrogate.

The victim in that case was out drinking with his rugby mates when he was involved in a “heated discussion” with Edmondson in the men’s toilets. 

Edmondson, a self-employed labourer, struck him in the face and the victim was knocked out. The next thing the victim remembered was being woken by police officers while laid out on the floor. He suffered “severe” facial injuries.

Defence barrister Eleanor Durdy said that Edmondson, a father-of-one, had raised a lot of money for charity through his involvement with Ultra White-Collar Boxing. 

A representative for the charity boxing organisation provided a character reference attesting to the fact that Edmondson had trained very hard for his fights and raised money for cancer research.

Judge Sean Morris blasted Edmondson for his reckless driving which had put the lives of police officers and the general public at risk.

Mr Morris added:

“This was midday and there would have been children about.

“You were undertaking ridiculous driving manoeuvres. You could have killed a police officer and that is why dangerous-driving police chases are so very dangerous.” 

Edmondson was jailed for 11 months and given a 17-month driving ban.  

Equipment from Ilke Homes’ Flaxby factory to be sold

Equipment and machinery from Ilke Homes’ factory in Flaxby near Knaresborough will be put up for sale this month.

The modular house builder fell into administration in June after failing to find a buyer or further investment. A total of 1,150 staff were made redundant.

Administrators AlixPartners has commissioned Hilco Valuation Services to auction off a number of items of machinery on Tuesday, August 17 at 10am.

The equipment from the factory, which closed when the company fell into administration, will be sold online.

It includes electric hand tools, ladders, tipping skips and machinery such as automated wall panel lines.

In a statement last month, AlixPartners told the Stray Ferret that it was in the process of realising the company’s assets.

It said:

“The administrators are now working with a small number of retained employees to realise the assets of the business on behalf of creditors and are soliciting expressions of interest for any or all of those assets.”

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The factory at Flaxby was closed immediately after the company entered administration and all site activities ceased.

Administrators added the firm had “faced the challenges of unprecedented inflation and a lack of land supply linked to planning processes”.

Officials at Ilke Homes said previously that it needed additional funding to fulfil a £1 billion order book and to protect jobs, adding that new investment was needed to build its pipeline of 4,200 new homes.

For more information on the online auction, visit the Hilco Valuation Services website here.

Knaresborough’s 10-day arts festival set to begin — despite Facebook hack

Knaresborough’s annual summer arts festival Feva will begin on Friday with a 10-day programme of about 80 events.

Feva has become one of the town’s main events of the year, with many shops decorated in promotional pink as part of a window competition organised by Knaresborough and District Chamber.

First held in 1996, this year’s line-up include a talk by book editor Ana Sampson on the hidden history of woman writers, an outdoor performance of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night and Status Quo tribute act Status Faux.

Picnic in the Park, a free afternoon event at Knaresborough House featuring bands and DJs, takes place on August 19.

With Knaresborough Lions‘ three-day beer festival taking place on the same weekend, the town will be in celebratory mode.

Shop windows are decorated in Feva pink for the festival.

However, preparations have been hit by the Feva Facebook page being hacked,

Gwen Lloyd, chairperson of the Feva committee, said it had done everything possible to take back control of the site or even get it removed but Facebook had not acted.

A new Feva Facebook page with details of events is available here.

Ms Lloyd said:

“It’s been very frustrating. We’ve had to set up a new page and getting people to realise has been tricky.

“The old Facebook page is now under the control of someone in Vietnam. We can’t even get Facebook to close it down.”

Feva, which was founded by the late Derrick van Zelst and his son Robin, includes a combination of free and paid-for events.

It was initially called Knaresborough and was more of a folk festival, but changed its name to Feva — which stands for ‘festival of entertainment and visual arts — in 2001.

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Polish prisoner jailed after absconding to UK to work in Harrogate hospital

A Polish prisoner who absconded from his homeland and used his criminal brother’s identity documents to land a job at Harrogate District Hospital has been jailed for nearly two years.

Przemyslaw Poltorak, 39, used his brother Lucas Poltorak’s Polish identity cards and driving licence to find work as a cleaner at the hospital, earning over £40,000 during his employment there, York Crown Court heard.

Prosecutor Charlotte Noddings said Poltorak, from Harrogate, had a criminal record in Poland but the UK immigration authorities had not yet managed to ascertain the details.

According to Poltorak, his previous convictions were for fraud, theft, drug offences and robbery. He was sentenced to 11 years in jail in 2004 for a “range of offences” and had served seven years when he fled to the UK under a false identity while on day release in 2011. 

Ms Noddings said if Poltorak were jailed by a UK court, the normal procedure would be deportation to his homeland “to answer whatever matters he has to answer for”.

Ms Noddings said:

“He was serving a prison sentence there, was on day release, and never returned to prison.

“He has no legal basis to be here.”

She added, however, that despite his record, if Poltorak had entered the UK under his own identity at the time in question, when the UK was still part of the European Union, he would have been able to get into the country without a hitch.

In fact, Poltorak, trying to disguise his criminal convictions in his own country, chose instead to use his brother’s identity documents to firstly get into the UK and then land a job at Harrogate District Hospital, where he worked without anyone suspecting a thing.

Poltorak admitted fraud in that between June 2013 and June 2023 he used another person’s ID documents to gain employment and thereby make a gain of £150,000 – his earnings at the hospital and a car-manufacturing company in Knaresborough.

He also admitted using identity documents in March 2023 to obtain a driving licence – which meant he was also driving on the UK’s roads illegally – and using those same documents to obtain employment.

Using brother’s identity

Poltorak, of Malham Drive, Harrogate, appeared for sentence yesterday (Thursday, August 3) after being remanded in custody.

Ms Noddings said Poltorak, who was using his brother’s name and identity, was arrested at Harrogate District Hospital.

Ms Noddings said:

“His brother Lucas Poltorak – the real Lucas Poltorak – is a sex offender in Poland who was arrested at Leeds/Bradford Airport and refused entry to the UK.”

On that same day in November 2022, immigration officials converged on Przemyslaw Poltorak’s home and arrested him. They seized a “driving document related to Lucas Poltorak”.

Ms Noddings said that a driving record in the name of Lucas Poltorak was created on March 9, 2020. Przemyslaw Poltorak had used his brother’s details on his application for a driving licence.

She added:

“Enquiries were made about how he obtained a job at Harrogate hospital.

“He made an application (for a job) in the name of Lucas Poltorak (and) provided a Polish identity card, a provisional driving licence and a utility bill in the name of Lucas Poltorak.”

Poltorak was paid £42,337 during his employment at the hospital. 

However, further enquiries revealed that between 2013 and 2020, he had also been employed by a car-manufacturing firm in Knaresborough which he had secured by using the same false identity cards.

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During his seven-year stint at the car company, he earned £111,631, said Ms Noddings.

Home Office officials reviewed his records and downloaded text messages from his phone which had been seized at the hospital. They showed that Poltorak had been passing himself off as his brother Lucas.

When the real Lucas Poltorak was identified, it transpired that Border Force officials had refused him entry to the UK when he landed at Leeds/Bradford Airport in November 2022. 

Further scrutiny by immigration officials revealed that Lucas Poltorak had been granted the right to settle in the UK in June 2021 but was then refused re-entry a year later when his previous convictions were discovered.

‘Hard working man’

Kevin Blount, Przemyslaw Poltorak’s solicitor advocate, said his client had left prison in Poland on day release and used his brother’s identity cards to travel to the UK with his wife and children, but that in fact he could have done so legally when the country was part of the EU and borderless travel. 

He said that Poltorak had since lived a “law-abiding life” in the UK, “save for the fact that it was in the wrong name”.

Mr Blount added:

“He used his brother’s (name) not to avoid British passport control, but to avoid Polish emigration authorities because he was due to return to serve the end of his sentence.”

He said that a European arrest warrant for Poltorak had still not been issued despite his detention and during the transition period when the UK was in the process of leaving the EU, he still had a right to work in this country “under his own name”.

Mr Blount said that Poltorak was a “hard working man” and even though he had lost his legal status in the UK, his family still had a right to live here.

Judge Simon Hickey said it appeared that Poltorak had fled Poland not just for a “better life for your family”, but also because he would have served a whole jail term for his previous offences in his homeland, whereas in the UK he would have been released at the halfway point.

He said that the “real seriousness of (Poltorak’s offences in the UK) was “working for that vast amount of time and concealing who you were”.

Poltorak received a 20-month jail sentence but will only serve half of that sentence behind bars before being released on prison licence, although his deportation is still in the offing. 

Developer withdraws Knaresborough nine homes plan

A developer has withdrawn plans to build nine houses on the site of one of Knaresborough’s oldest houses and garden.

Paul Franklin tabled the proposal to North Yorkshire Council to demolish the property and build the homes on land off Stockwell Road.

It was met by objections from around 30 residents and Knaresborough Town Council.

They argued that the scheme would cause worsening “gridlock across the railway bridge” on Stockwell Road, the “inadequate” number of parking places in a residential area close to the town centre, a GP surgery and schools.

Meanwhile, Knaresborough Town Council said in a letter to the council that the proposal would be “overbearing and will overlook neighbouring properties particularly gardens affecting other residents privacy”.

The area where the homes would have been built.

The area where the homes would have been built.

The town council urged the authority to consider the proposal at a planning committee.

However, the council’s planning portal shows that the application was withdrawn on August 1.

In response to concerns over the plans, Mr Franklin told the Stray Ferret previously:

“For over 12 months we have been in consultation with the council. Under the guidance of external consultees, we have carefully designed a scheme to provide local people a quality and sustainable place to live and enjoy Knaresborough.

“Comments have been received from local residents mainly covering historically-recurring issues which need to be raised with the relevant bodies – Yorkshire Water, highways authority etc.

“Knaresborough has a rich history, but the site is not a historical asset or listed building and is beyond economical repair despite significant investment during ownership.

“Our garden was cleared of nettles, perennial weeds and thistles and four disease-ridden/choked trees over the past two years. Felling of diseased trees was done outside of nesting season, and no Tree Protection Orders were in place.”

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Pop-up shop offer proves a hit with Knaresborough businesses

A pop-up shop on Knaresborough High Street has proved so popular it has been booked up for the rest of the year.

The owners of Sid Horner and Son decided to offer their former premises as a pop-up for a week at a time to help boost the town’s independent businesses.

After offering the shop at £250 a week including all bills, the company was inundated with interest and, within two days, had filled the calendar until 2024.

Owner Natalie Horner told the Stray Ferret:

“Knaresborough is thriving at the moment, with less than a handful of empty units and lots of new businesses opening.

“We know lots of people want to open a shop in Knaresborough and so want this to be an opportunity for independent businesses to test the water before signing in to big leases.

“We think it will be a great addition to the high street as well as a fantastic opportunity for businesses to trial opening a shop, and hopefully some will go on to open full time in town.”

Mrs Horner said the people who had signed up would be offering a range of products including homeware, clothing, stationery, swimwear, and eco and sustainability items.

The shop, which was previously used by Sid Horner and Sons before becoming a chiropodist’s treatment room, is currently undergoing renovations, including colourful paintwork outside,

The first pop-up is expected to open in mid-September.

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Knaresborough traders set to escalate electric vehicle parking row

Traders in Knaresborough look set to escalate their battle with North Yorkshire Council over electric vehicle parking.

Last night’s Knaresborough and District Chamber meeting discussed the possibility of legal action because of concerns about the legitimacy of the consultation as well as the impact on businesses.

It also heard a petition calling for change had passed the 500-signature threshold, which means it will be discussed by the council’s Harrogate and Knaresborough area constituency committee.

The Liberal Democrat-controlled committee is an advisory body to the council so it cannot change laws but it can put pressure on the council’s Conservative leadership.

Ten electric vehicle charging bays were installed in Chapel Street Car Park shortly before Christmas last year.

Hairdresser Kelly Teggin told the meeting businesses were fed-up at the sight of seeing most of the bays empty while petrol and diesel cars struggled to park, particularly at weekends and on Wednesday market day.

Her petition, which has been displayed by several businesses in town, calls for some of the bays to be made available to all vehicles until demand for electric vehicle charging catches up with supply.

Kelly Teggin and Steve Teggin at the launch of the petition.

Ms Teggin said:

“These bays are still not being used. They are still empty and the town is suffering. Everyone is absolutely fuming. Businesses have had enough and are talking about legal action.

“Something needs to be done now, not in six months time.”

Councillor Matt Walker, a Liberal Democrat who represents Knaresborough West, agreed the situation was inadequate and supported calls for a meeting between local business and residents and council to resolve matters.

Cllr Walker added he understood the council had signed a seven-year contract with a company to provide electric vehicle charging bays in North Yorkshire and was reluctant to change anything through fear of being in breach of contract.

He also said he had also been told there was no date yet for activating the eight electric vehicle charging bays at Conyngham Hall.

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Those bays remain coned off to all vehicles, meaning most of Knaresborough’s 18 electric vehicle charging bays are frequently empty.

This is costing the council parking revenue and driving away shoppers in a notoriously difficult town for parking, said Ms Teggin.

Chamber members said they had been unable to ascertain from the council whether petrol or diesel cars would receive parking tickets for parking in the empty electric vehicle charging bays or even whether electric vehicles that weren’t charging were entitled to park there.

There are no signs in the car park explaining the situation.

Some members even floated the idea of leaving their cars in the charging bays as a test case to see if they received a ticket.

Ms Teggin said:

“The whole idea of this is to stop pollution yet people are driving round and round Knaresborough to park and then leaving. It’s insane.”

Five traffic lights stolen at roadworks in Knaresborough

Five sets of traffic lights have been stolen from one of the busiest junctions in Knaresborough.

The lights were taken from the junction of York Place and King James Road, close to King James’s School.

Northern Gas Networks is carrying out roadworks at the junction. Work is due to end on Friday next week.

The theft of the lights was not reported to police until at least 14 hours after it happened.

A North Yorkshire Police spokesperson said:

“The theft of five temporary traffic lights in Knaresborough was reported at 2.38pm on Monday.

“It happened on King James Road and York Place between 11am on Sunday, July 30 and midnight.”

The Stray Ferret asked how much the lights were worth. The spokesperson replied “thousands of pounds”.

Councillor Matt Walker, a Liberal Democrat who represents Knaresborough West on North Yorkshire Council, said the theft was both unusual and unwelcome. He added:

“It has caused disruption, delays and additional costs to the works.

“I am working with officers on how repeat occurrences can be prevented and a reduction in the town’s vandalism and anti-social behaviour.”

Anyone with information can contact the police by dialling 101 or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

The police reference number is NYP-31072023-0313.

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