Business Breakfast is sponsored by Harrogate law firm Truth Legal.

A Harrogate marketing agency has made four new appointments after a period of growth.

Extreme, which is based at Windsor House, said it has seen an increase in enquiries from companies despite the tough economic climate.

The firm has appointed account manager Eliza Carroll and delivery executive Josh Parker to its client services team, while Rob Curtis joins as a senior digital designer and Rebecca Bailey as PPC executive.

James Brunyard, client services director at Extreme, said:

“We’re already really looking forward to 2023 and our great new hires are testament to the fact that post-pandemic recovery continues, even with the current climate.

“Brands are ready to invest in their marketing again and we’re in the perfect position to help.”

Black Sheep wins at international beer awards

Black Sheep Brewery won five awards at this year’s International Beer Challenge.

The Masham-based brewery saw its Cry Wolf IPA win a gold award in the IPA category and its Black Sheep Ale pick up silver in the British Style Pale Ales & Bitters (4.1-5%) category.

Black Sheep Brewery staff with the five beers which picked up awards.

Meanwhile, the brewery saw its 54 Yorkshire lager, Milk Stout and its IPA Interrobang all win bronze.

The company said on its website:

“We’re over the moon with these awards, and along with other awards in the bag this year, it’s safe to say we’ve had a great 30th year.”

The International Beer Challenge is held annually and aim to “reward and promote excellent beers from around the globe”.

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Tributes have been paid to Kirkby Malzeard councillor Margaret Atkinson, who has died.

Cllr Atkinson represented the Fountains and Ripley ward on Harrogate Borough Council, which she was elected to in 2018.

She was also recently re-elected to North Yorkshire County Council and was appointed chair of the authority this year.

Conservative leader of the borough council, Cllr Richard Cooper, described her as “the kind of person who lifted a room”.

He said:

“It was such a shock to learn of the sudden passing of Margaret.

“It is hard to imagine a council without her unfailing cheerfulness. She was just the kind of person who lifted a room somehow.

“I know too that she was admired and respected in the communities she represented – a real champion of the farming community.

“The thoughts of all her colleagues are with her husband Mike and their family at this time.”

North Yorkshire County Council’s leader, Cllr Carl Les, said:

“Margaret’s passing is such sad and tragic news, and a huge loss to not just the county council, but North Yorkshire as a whole.

“Margaret’s passion and drive for the county was second to none, and she embraced the role of the council’s chair with the verve and integrity that she became renowned for.

“She was very interested in all the people and groups she met, especially those in the rural communities we serve, as she came from those communities herself, and was a great champion of rural affairs.”

Cllr Atkinson was elected to the county council for the first time in 2013, where she represented the Masham and Fountains division.

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She retained her seat at the local elections in May this year.

The same month she was appointed as the last chair of the county council before it was due to become North Yorkshire Council.

Being appointed chair of the county council this year.

She was described by her colleagues as a “tough cookie” ahead of her appointment.

Fellow Conservative county councillor Cllr Nick Brown told the Stray Ferret she would be sorely missed.

He said:

“She was hugely respected in her area and she was a hard working and determined lady who did good things for her constituents.

“She will be badly missed.”

A life in farming 

Cllr Atkinson was a semi-retired farmer and also the secretary of the Yorkshire and North-East branch of the British Charolais Cattle Society.

She was also a member of the Yorkshire Agricultural Society and the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty’s joint advisory committee.

Born into the well-known Stockil family, her grandparents had farmed at Kiplin and Brompton-on-Swale. She grew up on a farm at North Stainley, near Ripon, with three older brothers and a younger sister.

Initially working in the accounts department at ICI Harrogate, she then attended agricultural college and set up her own agricultural secretarial business, providing services to farming communities across Yorkshire.

Through her charity work, Cllr Atkinson supported cancer research, the Yorkshire Air Ambulance and a farming charity, the Addington Fund.

Cllr Atkinson, who lived in Kirkby Malzeard, near Ripon, leaves a husband, Michael, three children and five grandchildren.

Business Breakfast is sponsored by Harrogate law firm Truth Legal. 

The current state of business will be in the spotlight at a Harrogate District Chamber of Commerce meeting tonight.

Held at the Double Tree by Hilton in Harrogate, the meeting will hear from Paul Mount, Bank of England deputy agent for Yorkshire and the Humber.

Mr Mount, who lives in South Yorkshire, is one of 12 regional agents who engage with business and public sector leaders to understand the environment they face, and to explain the policy stance and work of the bank.

David Simister, Harrogate District Chamber of Commerce chief executive, said: 

“We are delighted to have Paul joining us for our November meeting, when he will give an economic update and speak about the true state of business in the UK.

“With the current state of the economy, many businesses are finding themselves under extreme pressure, and in the last week alone we have sadly learned of the closure of a number of Harrogate restaurants.

“With all the resources of the Bank of England at his fingertips, Paul will tell us exactly what the future holds in store for us.”

Doors open at 5.30pm for open networking with the meeting proper commencing at 6.15pm.

Chamber members and first time guests from the local business community are asked to register their attendance in advance on the Chamber website here.

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Masham brewery partners with Doncaster Knights

A Masham brewery has announced a partnership with Doncaster Knights RFC.

The partnership will see Theakston become the Knights’ exclusive cask partner for the next three years, with the brewery’s Old Peculier ale having been introduced to the club’s concourse bar, now renamed the Theakston bar.

The high-profile partnership will support the Knights’ ambitions of reaching the Premiership by increasing the team’s visibility throughout Yorkshire and helping to attract more punters into its bar.

The Theakston bar at Doncaster Knights.

It marks the latest partnership for the family-run brewery, which has long supported sport across the region, having sponsored the Voneus Village Cup, the Nidderdale Cricket League and Ripon Rugby Club.

Simon Theakston, joint managing director at Theakston Brewery, said: 

“With almost 350 years of combined history, Theakston and Doncaster Knights are two Yorkshire institutions which have not only stood the test of time but evolved in order to find continued success. 

“Given our heritage and shared love for God’s Own Country, the partnership made perfect sense.”

Elliott Horan, head of commercial and media at Doncaster Knights, added: 

“We’re proud to be Yorkshire’s highest ranked rugby union club and we wanted a partner whose values fit with our own.

“As a brewery with almost 200 years of brewing expertise, and a fantastic range of cask ale products on offer, partnering with Theakston was a no-brainer. We’re really proud to have such a strong Yorkshire brand backing us, helping us to fly the flag for the White Rose and support us as we look to secure promotion to the Premiership.”

Plans to convert a disused Methodist chapel near Masham into a house have been approved.

The Old Chapel at Breary Banks, Healey, was built in 1911 for workers building reservoirs that served people in Leeds. Breary Banks was later used as a prisoner of war camp during the First World War.

The slate roof chapel is not a listed building but is considered to be a non-designated heritage asset located within the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

The proposal, submitted by Fred Collin Architect on behalf of Clementine Isabella Godwin, will see  the historic chapel converted into a one-bedroom house.

Harrogate Borough Council has approved the application.

Documents submitted to the authority said:

“The proposal is to convert the redundant former chapel into a single dwelling unit. This will be open plan and the sleeping area will be on an upper mezzanine level.”

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Masham Parish Council supported the application.

Breary Banks village was constructed in 1900 by the Leeds Corporation, which had commissioned the creation of two nearby reservoirs to supply Leeds with water.

The village was designed to house the navvies working on the construction of the reservoirs and their families. By spring 1904 the settlement accommodated 400 men with more huts being built, according to planning documents.

Sixteen men lived lived in each hut.

Halloween is creeping up, with the celebrations and events across the district becoming bigger, better and more ghoulish each year.

This year it falls just after October half-term, so there is plenty going on for little witches and wizards – and big ones too!

So whether you fancy some pumpkin picking on a farm, spooky trails, or haunted houses, we’ve put together a list of five places to enjoy some Halloween fun.

Birchfield Farm Pumpkin Festival – Summerbridge

Birchfield Farm’s Pumpkin Festival is a firm favourite amongst families in the Harrogate district. Is it even Halloween if you haven’t taken a selfie with a wheelbarrow full of pumpkins at the picturesque Summerbridge farm?

You don’t need to book for this one and there are plenty of pumpkins of all shapes, sizes and colours to go around and you can visit everyday until October 31.

There are also lots of activities to do on the farm so you can make a morning or afternoon of it.

After you have picked your pumpkin from the patch – and there really is a huge selection of all shapes and sizes – you then have the option of visiting the farm for £5.95 per person. Then take your kids for a homemade ice cream at the farm’s café.

Activities include:

• A huge carving barn where you can create your pumpkin masterpieces
• Bouncy castles
• Play equipment
• A 6-acre maize maze
• A spooky woodland walk
• Animals
• A giant bale mountain

Creepy Castle: The Spooktastic Halloween Trail – Knaresborough

Soak up the spooky atmosphere at Knaresborough Castle – the setting of the new Creepy Castle Spooktastic Halloween trail.

Set in the grounds of the ancient monument, expect to see see wizard magic shows and spooky characters along the way. There will also be face painting, stories in the castle, cookie decorating and more scary surprises.

Halloween Trail – Swinton Bivouac, Masham

Stately Superstitions: Eerie Encounters at the Castle – Castle Howard, York

Plans have been submitted to build 48 homes in Masham.

Loxley Homes, which is based in Leeds, has tabled the application which would see the houses built on land south of Swinton Lane.

A mixture of one, two, three and four-bedroom homes are included in the plans submitted to Harrogate Borough Council.

As part of the proposal, 19 of the houses would be allocated as affordable housing.

In documents submitted to the council, Loxley Homes said the development would help the authority to meet its housing need while also providing affordable housing.

It said:

“The development will provide additional ‘affordable’ homes for local people in housing need who would not otherwise be able to afford a home in this relatively expensive area.

“The development will provide a ‘mix’ of high quality and energy-efficient homes in a sustainable location.”

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

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Stray Views is a weekly column giving you the chance to have your say on issues affecting the Harrogate district. It is an opinion column and does not reflect the views of the Stray Ferret. Send your views to letters@thestrayferret.co.uk.

‘Inconceivable’ Knox Lane housing scheme can go ahead

Regarding the proposed full planning application for 53 residential dwellings at Knox Lane, it is inconceivable that Harrogate Borough Council are prepared to push forward with this without addressing any of the 313 objections that have been submitted.

I would further add that there are no supporting comments added. Fulcrum to this is the historical use of the proposed site.

Damian Bowen, Harrogate

Knox Lane housing scheme ‘lacks detail’

In reference to the proposed 52 homes on Knox Lane in Harrogate.

I am writing to express my dismay at the decision by the Harrogate Borough Council’s planning officer to recommend the application be deferred for approval at the next planning committee meeting on Tuesday.

How can the Harrogate Borough Council planning committee have any confidence in the quality of this application given the current documentation submitted contradicts itself and contains a total lack of required detailed information regarding retaining walls, limited traffic, ecology and contaminated ground surveys and no electric charging point locations?

Given this lack of assessment of public and professional comments, surely the planning department could be leaving themselves open to a judicial review?

Stephen Readman, Harrogate

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Voters ‘have to be realistic’

We have to be realistic. Anyone who is appalled at Liz Truss’s approach to sorting out the economy. i.e giving vast amounts to the rich in the hope that it will trickle down to the poor, has to realise that the only way to get the Tories out and restore fairness and our public services is to vote for candidates most likely to defeat them. 

In Harrogate, the only way is to vote for the Lib Dems. If the other parties don’t realise it’s in their interests to stand down, then we the electorate have to take the only way open to us to get rid of the Tories, which in Harrogate means voting for the Lib Dems.

Barbara Penny, Harrogate

Do you have an opinion on the Harrogate district? Email us at letters@thestrayferret.co.uk. Please include your name and approximate location details. Limit your letters to 350 words. We reserve the right to edit letters.

Masham Young Farmers’ Club is fundraising in memory of two local farmers who died after contracting sepsis.

Hannah Brown was in her twenties when she cut her hand and the wound became infected.

David Cooke thought he had covid but also ended up dying of sepsis, which occurs when your immune system overreacts to an infection.

Masham Young Farmers’ Club is working with the UK Sepsis Trust this year to spread awareness of the condition and raise money.

A tractor run in May generated £2,500, now the club has organised an auction of promises, which will take place at Masham Town Hall on October 14. People will bid for donated prizes, which range from a family ticket to the Forbidden Corner to a quad bike package.

Jack Jobling, chairman of the club, which has about 40 members, said sepsis was a cause close to the heart of the farming community. He said:

“Sepsis, if diagnosed early can be treated successfully, however if people are unaware of the signs of the illness it can rapidly become very serious and untreatable.

“Masham Young Farmers’ Club is aiming to not only raise money for the charity, we are trying to increase awareness of sepsis so that people are able to detect signs of the disease faster and therefore save lives.

“This is particularly important within the farming community as farmers often cut themselves and come into contact with muck and other contaminants in their work, and this is one way that an infection can be brought into the body that can lead to sepsis developing.”

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There are 48 lots on offer at the auction. Profit will be donated to the trust, with a small amount kept to go towards club running costs.

Tickets cost £10 and include a buffet. The event will begin with a short talk and video from a trust ambassador and then auctioneer Kenton Foster will sell the lots.

For more details email mashamyfc@gmail.com, call or text 07521 595412 or call 01677 470353.

Business Breakfast is sponsored by Harrogate law firm Truth Legal. 

Two hotels in the Harrogate district have won national awards.

Grantley Hall in Ripon won hotel of the year for 2022/23 at the AA Hotel and Hospitality Awards.

Meanwhile, Swinton Estate near Masham won the sustainable award at the ceremony, which was held at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London.

Iain Shelton, chief executive at Swinton, said:

“We are delighted to be recognised for the work we are doing and look forward with working with the AA over the next 12 months in championing sustainability and launching their new initiatives.”

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Harrogate firm awarded £762,522 for heat pump project

A Harrogate company has been awarded £762,522 of government funding to carry out a project to make heat pumps cheaper.

GenGame, which is based at Hornbeam Park, has outlined a scheme to use data from smart meters to help optimise the running of a heat pump in a household energy system.

The project comes as part of funding from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

A total of 24 projects in England and Scotland have won funding in the second round of the Heat Pump Ready programme.

Lord Callanan, business and energy minister, said:

“In light of rising global gas and oil prices, getting low-carbon heating technology into homes is a priority for this government as it will help households ditch the costly fossil fuels that are driving up bills.

“Heat pumps are a proven, reliable technology that uses cheaper renewable energy produced in the UK.”

A fine dining restaurant in Masham has been sold to a former head chef at the Tate Modern in London.

Vennell’s, which is based in a Grade-II listed Georgian building on Silver Street, has featured in the Michelin guide, the Good Food guide and the AA Restaurant Guide for the last 14 years.

It was opened in 2005 by by Jon and Laura Vennell and has recently been renovated.

After confirming their decision to sell the property, the couple said in a statement it was “time to pursue our next adventure”.

Now, it has been sold for an undisclosed fee to experienced chef, Jon Atashroo, who is relocating to Yorkshire with his wife Arlette.

Mr Atashroo has rebranded the restaurant as Where There’s Smoke. It opened on July 7.

David Cash, director in Christie & Co’s hospitality team, which handled the sale, said:

“It is a pleasure to have acted for Jon and Laura in the sale of their business and family home. We always discussed that the most likely buyer would be a couple who could step in to Jon and Laura’s shoes and make the business their own.

“We are still seeing lots of demand for hospitality businesses, particularly where the property is freehold.”

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