This week’s photograph was taken by Helena Jakuba, capturing a perfect reflection over the river Nidd in Knaresborough.

Helena Jakuba

Photo of the Week celebrates the Harrogate district. It could be anything from family life to capturing the district’s beauty. We are interested in amateur and professional photographs, in a landscape format.

Send your photographs to letters@thestrayferret.co.uk for a chance to be featured next week, we reserve the right to adjust and crop images to fit into our format.

A new council is set to take over in the Harrogate district next week.

Both Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire County Council will make way for North Yorkshire Council on April 1.

Brimhams Active, an arms length company owned by Harrogate Borough Council, currently runs leisure services in the district.

In this article, we explain what will happen to leisure facilities under the new North Yorkshire Council.

Who currently runs leisure facilities in the district?

Currently, Brimhams Active operates leisure facilities in the Harrogate district.

The company was set up in August 2020 to run swimming pools and leisure centres.

This includes Harrogate Hydro, Knaresborough Pool, Starbeck Baths and the Jack Laugher Leisure and Wellness Centre in Ripon.

Brimhams Active has also overseen major projects, such as the redevelopment of the Harrogate Hydro swimming pool and the construction of new facilities in Ripon and Knaresborough.

What will happen under the new council?

As of April 1, Brimhams Active will transfer over to North Yorkshire Council.

The new council will add Selby’s leisure services to the Brimhams Active portfolio from September 2024.

North Yorkshire Council will also undertake a £120,000 review of leisure services with the aim of creating a countywide model for delivering leisure and sport by 2027.

While people who use the centres may not see an immediate change, the ownership of the company will be different.

Read more:

• Explained: Who will make planning decisions in Harrogate district after devolution?
• Explained: What happens to bin collections in Harrogate after devolution?

A charity that helps children with disabilities enjoy the thrill of riding ponies is appealing for volunteers.

Riding for the Disabled Association enables children from four specialist schools in the Harrogate, Knaresborough and Ripon areas to ride each week.

But each child requires three volunteers to supervise and some children are missing out because of a shortage of helpers.

The charity is therefore hosting an open session on April 25 to allow people to see what’s involved.

It seeks people aged over 16 to give three hours of time on Tuesdays, particularly in the afternoon, during term times.

Experience with horses and children is not essential and training is provided. Sessions take place at Harrogate Riding Centre at Burn Bridge.

Children can only ride if they have three people supervising.

Shona Crichton, principal at The Forest School, Knaresborough, said:

“For some of our children at The Forest School, the experience of being on a pony is transformational. We see children as young as five who have incredibly complex physical and or learning needs overjoyed at the freedom of movement they can’t achieve on the ground.

“Positive mood changes, confidence, social development and building core strength are other vital benefits. We are really grateful to the Riding for Disabled volunteers who give their time to make this happen”.

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Margaret Flannery, who has been volunteering for four years, said:

“I love it. Where else can I get my steps in for the day whatever the weather as we’re in an indoor arena, have a laugh with a great bunch of people, do something different to my normal routine and see what a difference I’m making to the children.

“We really need more volunteers to join us though if we are to keep the sessions running so I hope we can recruit some more much needed volunteers as I’d really miss it if we couldn’t keep going”.

About 10 volunteers are wanted. To find out more, contact Jane on 07786980195 or visit here.

Plans have been submitted to turn an agricultural building in Coneythorpe into five two-bedroom homes.

The proposals for Spring Bank Farm on Shortsill Lane would include creating a “physical buffer” between the barn and the surrounding agricultural land and buildings.

The barn, currently used for storage, is made from a steel frame and block work. The application said the conversion would have vertical cedar wood cladding and aluminium window frames.

The external block work base would be retained, the application said, “ensuring the building retains its utilitarian, agricultural aesthetic as constructed and does not introduce alien or inappropriate elements to its rural surroundings”.

The barn would be converted to a terrace of five homes. Each would have an open plan living, dining and kitchen space on the ground floor, along with a bedroom and bathroom.

Each first floor would include a bedroom with en suite and dressing area, as well as a mezzanine overlooking the living area below.

The application said:

“The site benefits from an established [public right of way] which crosses the farm before connecting to Coneythorpe, approximately [500 metres] to the north of the subject building.

“The footway provides future residents with pedestrian access to the local public transport network with connections from Coneythorpe to Knaresborough, Harrogate, Boroughbridge and the surrounding villages and smaller towns.”

The plans have been submitted to Harrogate Borough Council, but will be decided by North Yorkshire Council after it comes into effect next Saturday.

To view or comment on the application, visit the planning pages of the Harrogate Borough Council website and use reference 23/00859/PBR.

Read more:

• New plans submitted to create 12 flats in former Harrogate care home
• Residents to protest against 73-home plan in Harrogate district village

National chain Pure Gym has confirmed it will open its Knaresborough branch in May, after a delay from its planned opening this month.

The gym, on the site of the former Lidl supermarket on York Road in Knaresborough, is already inviting locals to sign up for membership.

It has an opening offer of £12.99 per month for the first six months, after which the price rises to £23.99.

Pure Gym first revealed it was planning to take on the Knaresborough site last March. In November, it said it planned to be open by March this year but this has been pushed back by two months.

The York Road site was previously a Lidl supermarket until 2018. During covid, it was used as a vaccination site by Homecare Pharmacy Services until it moved to larger premises on nearby Chain Lane in September.

A Pure Gym spokesperson said:

“Following some delays to building works, we can confirm that our contractors are now on site and doing all they can to get PureGym Knaresborough open as soon as possible.

“The brand-new gym, which is expected to open in mid-May, will provide members with an extensive range of first class fitness equipment including a functional zone, free weights area, cardio equipment, fixed resistance and fitness studio – all available with Pure Gym’s affordable and flexible memberships.

“We look forward to welcoming new members to Pure Gym Knaresborough in the coming months.”

Read more:

• Temporary £300,000 gym at Ripon’s Jack Laugher centre to open next month
• Harrogate man wins landmark disabled settlement against major gym chain

Four hundred children from 13 local primary schools will be taking centre stage at Harrogate’s Royal Hall in just over a week for the bi-annual Kids Aloud concert.

The Last Dragon, which is organised by Harrogate Brigantes Rotary, is a musical extravaganza featuring pupils from the Harrogate, Knaresborough and Ripon areas.

The young performers have written a lot of the music themselves, with help from storyteller Guy Wilson and composer Roland Fudge.

Hundreds of pupils take part. Pic: Charlotte Gale

The children have also illustrated a book to accompany the show, which is available from local independent bookshops, Imagined Things in Harrogate and The Little Bookshop in Ripon.

Some 200 children will be involved each night on Saturday, April 1 and Sunday, April 2.

Guy said:

“This is the eighth Kids Aloud concert Harrogate Brigantes Rotary has put on and the first that is entirely original.

“It gives our children a memorable chance to celebrate post-covid freedom with a lung-bursting performance at a full Royal Hall. We’re grateful to all the local businesses who’ve sponsored us and to Arts Council England who’ve given us a Youth Music grant.”

Guy paid particular tribute to This will be the last Kids Aloud for Harrogate primary schools music teacher Carmel Wake.

“As usual, Carmel has brought all her musical and organisational skills to the show. She has sourced and adapted music, conducted performances and coordinated the work of the schools.”

Carmel Wake conducting the choirs in rehearsal. Pic: Guy Wilson

The Last Dragon is a tale of good and evil, courage and victory set in the imaginary country of Rubovernia. It tells how two children, helped by the very last dragon in the country are able to fight off the evil that threatens it.

Any money that’s left at the end will help to fund the next Kids Aloud or go towards local good causes Brigantes Rotary supports.

Tickets are £15 for adults and £5 for under 17s and can be purchased from Harrogate Theatre box office or online here.

Read more:

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All four girls arrested after a teacher was assaulted at King James’ School in Knaresborough have now been released without charge.

North Yorkshire Police said in an update today a 16-year-old who was arrested several hours after the incident on suspicion of affray had now been released on bail.

Police previously said a teenage girl arrested for an alleged assault on a female member of staff and criminal damage shortly after the incident had already been released on bail.

They also revealed two other teenage girls arrested for breach of the peace had been “de-arrested and taken home”.

None of the girls who were arrested is from King James’ School.

Police were called to the school at 3.10pm on Monday when a gang of girls from another school caused a disturbance.

Today’s update said investigations were continuing.

Read more:

• Knaresborough to hold contest to find new town crier
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Headteacher Carl Sugden (pictured above) wrote to parents after the incident saying the girls “came onto the school site with the clear intention of causing trouble”.

Mr Sugden added:

“Our staff were on hand to stop them, they did not gain access to the building, but unfortunately we needed some police support to remove them.

“There were a number of police vans on site at the end of school and this caused some disruption to the end of the day.

“I can assure you that none of our pupils were involved in this poor behaviour and these young people are not known to us.”

North Yorkshire Police is appealing for help to to identify a man captured on CCTV as part of an investigation into shoplifting and assault.

The force issued a statement this afternoon, which said:

“Officers would like to speak to him about a number of shop thefts in the Knaresborough area, including one at the One Stop shop on March 7 when a member of shop staff was also assaulted.

“They believe he may have information that could assist the investigation.”

Anyone who can help identify him is asked to contact North Yorkshire Police on 101, and pass information for incident number 12230042029.

If you wish to remain anonymous, you can pass information to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Read more:

• Knaresborough teacher assault: fourth girl arrested but still no charges
• Knaresborough to hold contest to find new town crier

A fourth girl has been arrested following yesterday’s assault on a teacher at King James’s School in Knaresborough.

Police were called at 3.10pm yesterday when a gang of girls from another school caused a disturbance.

A teenage girl was arrested for an alleged assault on a female member of staff and criminal damage but in an update this morning, North Yorkshire Police said she had since been released on bail.

Two other teenage girls who were arrested for breach of the peace had been “de-arrested and taken home” and would be “interviewed at a later date”, police said.

Today’s update also said a 16-year-old girl was arrested last night, several hours after the incident, on suspicion of affray and remained in police custody.

None of the girls who were arrested is from King James’ School.

Headteacher Carl Sugden (pictured above) wrote to parents yesterday saying the gang of girls were “not connected to King James’s School” and “came onto the school site with the clear intention of causing trouble”.

Mr Sugden added:

“Our staff were on hand to stop them, they did not gain access to the building, but unfortunately we needed some police support to remove them.

“There were a number of police vans on site at the end of school and this caused some disruption to the end of the day.

“I can assure you that none of our pupils were involved in this poor behaviour and these young people are not known to us.”

Read more:

• Teenage girl arrested after teacher assaulted at Knaresborough school
• Knaresborough to hold contest to find new town crier

Police enquiries are ongoing and anyone with information can make a report via the North Yorkshire Police website or by calling 101, option 1.

The crime reference is 12230050161.

Knaresborough residents will get a rare opportunity to audition for the role of town crier next month.

Roger Hewitt, who is part of a lineage dating back to 1680, is to step down from the role after eight years at the end of May.

Potential successors are invited to pitch for the role at the annual Knaresborough Connectors‘ community festival on April 22 at Meadowside Academy on Halfpenny Lane.

Contestants will announce town news and events, deliver proclamations and ring a bell to capture the attention of the public. There will be a pre-prepared shout for all participants and they will also be asked to prepare an original shout.

It will be judged by Mr Hewitt and the mayor of Knaresborough.

Knaresborough and District Chamber member Charlotte Gale said:

“We are seeking a talented individual with a strong, clear voice and a passion for communicating important messages to the community.”

“Don’t miss this opportunity to showcase your talents and become a key part of our town’s heritage.”

The town crier shouts at the town’s ancient Wednesday market as well as other markets and at community and charity events in the town. Knaresborough and District Chamber member manages the role and provides the uniform.

Mr Hewitt offered some words of advice to anyone interested in succeeding him:

“You have to shout but a big voice is not enough. You have to be able to write your own stuff, it has to be engaging.

“It’s all about intonation, accuracy, engaging your audience and doing your best. It’s a good thing that volume isn’t the main thing!”

You can register to take part in the contest by emailing hello@knaresboroughchamber.org and including a brief introduction stating why you would make a great town crier and your connection to Knaresborough.

Top rotary award for Roger

(left to right) Knaresborough Rotary president David Kaye, Roger Hewitt and rotarian Bob Weddall

Knaresborough rotarians surprised Mr Hewitt by presenting him with a Paul Harris Fellowship after he gave a speech to the group.

Paul Harris founded Rotary and the award is the highest which can be given by rotarians.

Rotarian Bob Weddall said:

“Roger is, as town crier, the personification of Knaresborough. A brilliant ambassador for the town he enjoys chatting to visitors and has played a major role in recent events celebrating the platinum jubilee and proclaiming the Queen’s passing and the accession of the new King.

“His unfailing good humour and willingness to serve the community make him a worthy recipient of a Paul Harris Fellowship”.

Knaresborough and District Chamber member Charlotte Gale added:

“Roger has been an exemplary town crier and is a hugely popular and recognisable figure in the town.

“For the past eight years his regular and often witty cries have kept townsfolk informed about all the latest Knaresborough news and he has also opened countless town events and welcomed many new businesses to the town.

“Everyone at chamber would like to extend a huge thank you to Roger for eight years of dedication to the role and wish him well in his retirement.”

Roger’s life and times

Pic: Charlotte Gale

Born in Bradford in1948, Mr Hewitt moved to Knaresborough in 1976.

At 21 he started to train as a teacher but changed his mind and instead joined the scientific civil service but in 1988 he resumed his teacher training and  after a spell in Bradford he spent 23 years at Harrogate Grammar School.

Appointed as a chemistry teacher, he taught physics and biology at key stage 3.

After retiring,  he was appointed as town crier by the chamber of trade and town council in 2015.

His main task is to open the market at 11am each Wednesday wearing the splendid regalia made in Knaresborough by Gill Ford.

In town crier competitions, he has twice won the trophy for best dressed crier.

In the 1980s Roger was a member of Knaresborough Players and also performed as Father Christmas at school events and at the town Christmas market.

For one very challenging Christmas market he was both Father Christmas and town crier, doing quick changes in the stock room of the old chemist shop.