Harrogate school pupil’s flower bed design for Queen’s Jubilee wins trophy

A pupil of Ashville College in Harrogate has won the Harrogate in Bloom award for his flowerbed design to celebrate The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.

Children from schools across the town took part in the competition to design the flowerbed in Valley Gardens.

Jack Baier’s winning entry of more than 3,300 plants won the top award.

At the ceremony, year 7 Jack was presented with the Hammond Mann Trophy by former Yorkshire Agricultural Society chief executive Nigel Pulling.

The evening was attended by more than 60 guests, including the mayor of Harrogate, Cllr Victoria Oldham, and was the culmination of Harrogate BID’s Floral Summer of Celebration.

Jack’s colourful, winning design

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Other winners on the night included Helen James Flowers, Horticap, the White Hart Hotel, and Vivido.

To create the flowerbed, Harrogate Borough Council’s park and gardens team planted 800 Super Olympia Pink Begonias, 1,100 Super Olympia Red Begonias, 650 Non-Stop Yellow Begonias and 800 Mambo Mid Blue Petunias.

Pam Grant, Harrogate in Bloom President, said:

“We were delighted with the response to this particular competition category, and congratulate Jack on his winning design.

“Once translated from paper to flowerbed, it looked absolutely stunning, and was a fitting floral tribute to honour our dearly departed Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.”

Yorkshire Agricultural Society appoints new chief executive

The Yorkshire Agricultural Society has appointed Allister Nixon as its new chief executive.

Mr Nixon, who has been chief operating officer at Castle Howard Estate Limited for the past six years, will replace Nigel Pulling in the role.

He has also held positions at multinational companies, such as Global and Kanter Media Audiences.

Mr Pulling is retiring at the end of the month after 20 years in charge of the society, which organises the annual Great Yorkshire Show in Harrogate.

Its other businesses include Fodder, Yorkshire Event Centre, Pavilions of Harrogate and the Harrogate Caravan Park and Springtime Live.

Mr Nixon, who is a chartered accountant, said:

“I am delighted to be joining this outstanding organisation which does so much invaluable work for the agricultural industry. There is a lot of good work to continue and there are many opportunities for the society to develop still further.

“I am really looking forward to working with the trustees, staff and other stakeholders in the industry to ensure that, by supporting, promoting and celebrating the industry as effectively as possible, the exceptional reputation of the Yorkshire Agricultural Society continues to grow.”

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Nigel Pulling

Rob Copley, chairman of trustees, said: 

“On behalf of all the Trustees, council members and all staff we would like to thank Nigel for his hard work, determination and expertise and we are looking forward to welcoming Allister and beginning the next phase of development under his leadership and direction.”

Yorkshire Agricultural Society chief executive to retire in March

The chief executive of Yorkshire Agricultural Society is set to retire after 20 years in charge.

Nigel Pulling will step down from his role in March 2022.

Mr Pulling joined the society in 2001, when the Great Yorkshire Show was cancelled due to the foot and mouth disease outbreak.

It was the first time show had been cancelled other than for the two world wars. The show was then also cancelled after one day in 2012 due to torrential rain and didn’t take place at all last year due to covid.

Mr Pulling has overseen commercial projects such as the building of Fodder, the Regional Agricultural Centre (the society’s headquarters) and the multi-million pound rebuild of hall one in the Yorkshire Event Centre.

This year, he oversaw the Great Yorkshire Show return amid the covid pandemic. Prince Charles was among the guests at this year’s four-day event.

Mr Pulling said there were similarities between the event and the show held in 2002.

He said:

“We overcame the tough challenges on both occasions to deliver successful Great Yorkshire Shows and I couldn’t have ended my tenure on a better show.

“We were devastated to cancel last year and despite the challenges and restrictions placed on this year’s event, it was an incredible achievement for the team. The atmosphere of celebration and enjoyment from both the farming community and visitors was second to none.”

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Mr Pulling added:

“I leave my role on a high, the Great Yorkshire Show is in a strong position ready for next year. 

“Events are returning to the showground after this difficult 18 months, the charitable activities team is stronger than ever before in its support for farming families and promotion of agriculture to the next generation – and I know it will go from strength to strength.”

Rob Copley, chairman of trustees said: 

“Nigel has been a real asset, he is hugely respected in the industry and his leadership has taken the society up to the next level.

“On behalf of all the trustee and council members past and present I want to thank him for all his hard work, determination and expertise.”

Harrogate district farmers fearful of post-Brexit future

Farmers in the Harrogate district have expressed fears for their future as the industry prepares for its biggest shake-up in almost 50 years.

The government confirmed this week farmers will lose 50 per cent of the support payments they receive from the European Union by 2024.

George Eustice, the Environment Secretary, said the government’s new system, named Environmental Land Management, will pay farmers if they prevent floods, plant woods and help wildlife.

But details of replacement support payments when the post-Brexit transition period ends on 31 December remain unclear.

Nigel Pulling, chief executive of the Yorkshire Agricultural Society

Nigel Pulling, chief executive of the Yorkshire Agricultural Society, the farming charity that organises the Great Yorkshire Show, said:

“It has been clear for some time that the current system of support payments will change, but there remains real anxiety about what the government’s future agricultural policy will mean for family farming businesses and livelihoods.

“Many farmers stand willing to embrace the changes ahead, however a lack of practical detail about how new support arrangements will work for farm businesses continues to make it difficult to plan for the future.”

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Mr Pulling added the society “will continue to support the farming community throughout the forthcoming transition” by “offering opportunities for skills development and knowledge exchange” and by promoting agriculture.

Sheep farmers are expected to be among the worst hit if the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

The EU is the UK’s biggest export market for lamb: 90% of all lamb exports go to the EU so the industry could be devastated by tariffs.

This could have severe implications for sheep farmers in the district.

Beckwithshaw farmer David Wilson, chair of the Dalesbred Sheep Breeders Association, said many farmers could go out of business if the situation was not resolved.

Mr Wilson, whose son is the fifth generation of the family farming business, said:

“The future of farming is at stake. We just don’t know what is going to happen. We don’t know if we are coming or going.”

 

 

Yorkshire Agricultural Society faces £2m loss

Yorkshire Agricultural Society, which organises the Great Yorkshire Show, faces a £2m loss this year.

The farming charity, which was founded in 1837, may have to shed staff to cope with the ongoing impact of covid, which has decimated the number of events it can stage.

The society’s income for the financial year ending 31 December 2019 was £11.9m. It has risen every year since 2015, when it was £9m.

But chief executive Nigel Pulling told the Stray Ferret he expected income to be £2m down this year. He said:

“We are looking at reducing our costs and waiting for everything to improve.

“We have about £5m in the bank but we are losing money at a rapid rate.”

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Mr Pulling’s comments further illustrate how strongly the effects of covid on the events and conference sector were being felt in Harrogate.

Last month Harrogate events company Joe Manby Ltd folded after 46 years.

Plans to stage Great Yorkshire Show

The showground usually hosts 700 events a year, with the three-day Great Yorkshire Show by far the biggest.

But Mr Pulling, who has led the society since 2002, said it was operating at “well below 10 per cent” of capacity at the moment.

A rare bright note came yesterday when it was revealed the spring flower show is due to go ahead, albeit with a vastly reduced capacity.

Mr Pulling said the society had been “comparatively well financed” since it sold land to Sainsbury’s for about £15m in the early 1990s.

But an £11m refurbishment of the Yorkshire Event Centre, completed in 2016, put a dent in its finances even though the project had been well received.

Mr Pulling said the first quarter of 2021 “doesn’t look good” but the second quarter was the crucial period for the events sector. Next year, he said, was “up for grabs”.

He said the society still planned to stage the Great Yorkshire Show next summer, adding:

“But it’s too early to be specific about what it will look like.”

The society employed about 100 staff pre-covid. Mr Pulling said this figure had reduced by fewer than 20 due to natural wastage but it had to look at reducing costs further. He said:

“It has been devastating to see the effects covid has had for everyone – and the events industry has been among the hardest hit.”