Napkin in toaster causes fire in Harrogate

Firefighters were called to a home on Harrogate’s Cold Bath Road last night when a napkin in a toaster caused a blaze.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service‘s incident log said help was summoned at 7.25pm. It adds:

“Crews attended a fire in a residential building. Fire was caused by a napkin inside a toaster. Fire was out on arrival.

“Minor fire damage to toaster and napkin. Crews gave resident advice.”

In a busy night for the fire and rescue service, firefighters were later called to a single vehicle collision near Summerbridge in which a man was taken to hospital with suspected pelvic injuries.

The collision occurred at 9.25pm at Middlesmoor. The incident log says:

“One male was trapped and crews extricated him using hydraulic cutting gear. Male is believed to have pelvis injuries and was taken to hospital.”

Firefighters were also called when a children’s toy car caught fire in a rear yard off Market Place, Ripon, shortly after 6pm. The fire was out on arrival.

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A Nidderdale home at last for refugee family

After a number of frustrating hold-ups, Nidderdale Community Welcome (NCW) has finally found a house for a refugee family from Syria.

The group, founded in late 2020, has raised more than £13,000 to fund the initiative and had originally hoped to bring a family here before Christmas.

But the house they had in prospect did not materialise.

Now there is positive news and NCW chair, Peter Wright, told the Stray Ferret:

“A local landlord has kindly agreed the rental of a three-bedroom property in Pateley Bridge for a minimum period of two years.”

With this key element of the resettlement support  programme in place, NCW has submitted its application to the Home Office, uprating from ‘approval in principle’ to ‘final approval.’

Peter Wright of Nidderdale Community Welcome, anticipates that a refugee family from Syria will be arriving in Pateley Bridge this summer

Mr Wright, pointed out:

“It is anticipated it will be granted shortly, with a view to a family being welcomed into the Dale in early summer.”

He added:

“We have decided to stay with our original intentions of welcoming a Syrian family, many from Syria are still in camps in the Middle East whilst the conflict in their country continues.

“We have every sympathy with those from other countries displaced by war, Afghanistan and Ukraine who we hold in our thoughts and prayers, we believe the support we can offer best suits a vulnerable family from Syria.

“NCW will assist the family to sign up for all the allowances they will be eligible for as part of our national response and commitment to those displaced by conflict.

“Refugees are keen to be a valuable part of the community they move into, and to integrate as soon as they are able, but many also wish to be able to return home as soon as conditions allow.”

NCW is working in conjunction with Ripon City of Sanctuary and Harrogate District of Sanctuary, who will be helping the family learn English so they can become self-sufficient and participate in daily life. Courses will be run both locally and in nearby towns.

People from around the dale and further afield have already provided funding, resources, and their time and skills towards making the NCW project a success.

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Harrogate woman with severe sight loss to walk 100km non-stop for charity

A Harrogate woman with severe sight loss and her friend are set to walk 100km continuously for almost 40 hours whilst tethered together in aid of Retina UK.

Penny Uglow has been losing her sight since she was 13 and is now left with just a 10 pence piece area of her vision in focus. Her condition is called retinitis pigmentosa which progressively breaks down the cells in the retina.

Her sight loss makes the challenge of 100km continuous walking even harder.

But Penny will have the help of her personal trainer and friend James Winder, a crew manager at Harrogate Fire Station, who has to describe each step to Penny and alert her to any obstacles.

Penny chose to fundraise for Retina UK as the charity is currently funding a research trial into a possible cure for her condition. The treatment is attempting to stop the cells dying to maintain as much sight as possible.

Penny is undergoing tests to be part of the trial and although her sight will never return this treatment may help pause any further degeneration.

The pair are taking on the Yorkshire Ultra Challenge and instead of spreading the distance across two days, they have chosen to push through in one go.

When asked why she wanted to take on such a challenge, Penny said:

“I am very excited but also nervous, I don’t know how it will go until I’m there. Maybe it was a slightly crazy plan but I knew it had to be a huge challenge to get people to donate.

“It’ll be such a big achievement for me and that is what will keep me going, especially through the night.”

The pair will be connected by a 60cm tether rope.

Due to Penny’s sight loss and the need for constant guidance the pair expect to walk at a reduced pace of 3km an hour meaning they are likely to be walking for up to 40 hours.

The route is split into two 25km loops going north and south of Pateley Bridge, the pair will walk each loop twice to reach their total distance.

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James Winder said:

“This is a huge challenge for anyone never mind someone with such reduced sight like Penny. When she first came to me with the idea of a marathon for charity I, of course, said yes and then it just progressed. How could I say no when the charity is working so hard to help people like Penny?”

Penny has set her target at £3,500 and has nearly reached £3,000. To donate and support the pair click here.

Daleside Garage in Pateley Bridge to relocate this year

A well-known Pateley Bridge garage is set to move this year.

Daleside Garage, which has been based on Bridgehouse Gate for the last four years, is set to relocate to another base in the town.

The garage, which offers MOTs and repairs, will move to a site on Corn Close off Low Wath Road in September.

It follows plans being submitted by Chartwell Barns Ltd to Harrogate Borough Council to build a three-storey block of flats on the Daleside site.

Carly Haley, who owns Daleside Garage with her husband Glenn, told the Stray Ferret that the business will not be closing and will instead relocate to a new site.

She said:

“We’ll still be offering MOTs, repairs and tyre checks as normal.

“We just wanted people to know that we will not be closing down.”

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The building, which is now owned by the developer behind the apartment plans, has been subjected to various planning applications over the years.

A previous application submitted to the council in 2018 proposed to convert part of the garage into storage space, a laundrette and offices.

The latest plans would see 15 new flats built on the site, along with an electric vehicle charging point and 27 car parking spaces.

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

Ring Ouzels return to Nidderdale moors from Africa to breed

Ring Ouzels have returned to the Nidderdale moors to breed after flying back from winter in the Atlas Mountains in North-West Africa.

The birds are a close relative of the Blackbird but are slightly smaller and slimmer with longer tails and a distinctive white crescent across the top of the breast.

In the UK, Ring Ouzels are of high conservation concern and are classified as ‘Red Listed’ after declining by almost 50% in the last 40 years.

The birds are known as the ‘Blackbirds of the mountains’ and enjoy eating juniper berries. The migration route of the birds follow where juniper berries grow.

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Nidderdale Moorland Group posted on its Facebook page that AONB gamekeepers work to ensure the ground-nesting birds can safely incubate and rear their young chicks when they arrive.

Nesting begins from mid-April when the female lays 3-5 eggs in a nest found on the ground or in moorland gullies, craggy screes or rocky areas.

The female will do most of the incubating, but both parents feed the chicks who fledge after 12-16 days.

AONB moorland gamekeepers recorded the birds’ distinctive call last weekend whilst watching a returning male on the moor.

The males like to find a prominent perch from which the strong, flutey song can be heard.

Listen below to the call of a Ring Ouzel.

Plans to build 15 flats at Daleside Garage site in Pateley Bridge

Developers have lodged plans for 15 new flats in Pateley Bridge.

Chartwell Barns Ltd has tabled the proposal to Harrogate Borough Council to build a three-storey block on the site of Daleside Garage on Bridgehouse Gate.

The proposal also includes an electric vehicle charging point along with 27 car parking spaces.

A total of three one-bedroom, eight two-bedroom and four three-bedroom flats are included in the scheme.

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A previous application submitted to the council in 2018 proposed to convert part of the garage into storage space, a laundrette and offices.

At the time, owner Nidderdale Garages, which owns Daleside Garages, said in a planning statement that the site was “surplus to the business’ requirements” and that the proposal would “make more efficient use of the space”.

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

Full list of election candidates in Harrogate district revealed

The list of candidates standing for election to the new North Yorkshire Council in the Harrogate district has been revealed.

Voters will head to the polls on May 5 to elect councillors to the authority, which will replace both North Yorkshire County Council and Harrogate Borough Council.

The Labour Party, Liberal Democrats, Conservatives, Green Party and independents have all fielded candidates ahead of polling day.

Harrogate Borough Council has published a list of election agents and names of candidates. A full list of party candidates will be published today (April 6).

A total of 21 councillors will be elected from the Harrogate district as the council is made up of new divisions.

The deadline to register to vote is Thursday, April 14. You can register here.

List of Harrogate district election candidates

Coppice Valley and Duchy

Valley Gardens and Central Harrogate

Bilton Grange and New Park

Harlow and St Georges

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Stray, Woodlands and Hookstone

Fairfax and Starbeck

Bilton and Nidd Gorge

High Harrogate and Kingsley

Knaresborough West

Knaresborough East

Killinghall, Hampsthwaite and Saltergate

Oatlands and Pannal

Boroughbridge and Claro

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Spofforth with Lower Wharfedale and Tockwith

Pateley Bridge and Nidderdale

Ripon Minster and Moorside

Ripon Ure Bank and Spa

Washburn and Birstwith

Wathvale and Bishop Monkton

Ouseburn

Masham and Fountains

Drug driver who reversed at police car in Pateley Bridge avoids jail

A driver high on cocaine and cannabis tried to reverse into a pursuing police car – but succeeded only in crashing into a bridge.

Paul Cawthra, branded an “idiot” by a Crown Court judge, tried to evade cops at a relative snail’s pace in his Ford Galaxy as police merely “followed” his vehicle, said prosecutor Rob Galley.

In stark contrast to the usual high-octane police chase, Cawthra’s attempts at shrugging off police on country roads in Harrogate descended into farce due to his “intoxicated” state, York Crown Court heard.

At one stage during the ‘pursuit’ – described by judge Sean Morris as “the slowest police chase I’ve had to deal with” – Cawthra switched his lights off in a futile attempt to evade police.

But then he switched them back on again.

When the inevitable happened and he was at stopped at Turner Bridge on Nought Bank Road in Pateley Bridge, Cawthra’s next move was to reverse at a police car and attempt to squeeze past the vehicle, but he ended up crashing into the bridge. He was then blocked in by the police vehicles and duly arrested.

Cawthra, 44, told officers: 

“Boy, I feel a cxxx for what I’ve done to you.”

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He told officers he had reversed towards the police car because he had been drinking and “to knock the air bag out to get away”. 

But the court heard he was one-and-a-half times the specified limit for cannabis and three times the specified limit for cocaine. 

He was charged with dangerous and drug-driving and ultimately admitted the offences. 

He appeared for sentence yesterday after admitting dangerous driving while over the specified limit for cocaine and cannabis.

Previous convictions

Mr Galley said Cawthra had “deliberately driven at the police”.

Cawthra, of Southlands, Pateley Bridge, had previous convictions for drug possession and cannabis cultivation.

His solicitor advocate Neil Cutte said police had merely followed, rather than chased, Cawthra’s vehicle after he failed to stop, but there was no high-speed chase and no other motorists or pedestrians around during the bizarre, late-night incident. 

He said that Cawthra, a father-of-one who works as a labourer in the construction industry, was remorseful and had since changed his ways. His employer described him as “honest, reliable and hard-working, a really nice bloke”.

Judge Mr Morris, the Recorder of York, told Cawthra: 

“You are an idiot. You got yourself intoxicated on drugs and when police ordered you to stop, you didn’t.

“There was a slow-speed ‘following’ of your car from Pateley Bridge out to the ‘sticks’, late at night. You briefly had your lights out, put them back on again and reversed back towards a police car, crashing into a bridge.

“Ordinarily, everybody who flees from police goes to prison in this court, but ordinarily they are flying through housing estates in built-up areas. There was none of that here and the first thing you did when you got out of your car was to offer a profuse apology to the police officers.”

The judge said that because of this, allied to the fact that Cawthra had pleaded guilty and was a hard-working man with caring responsibilities, he could suspend the inevitable prison sentence.

The six-month sentence was suspended for a year. 

Cawthra was also given a 12-month driving ban and ordered to pay £330 prosecution costs.

The rivers beckon for paddlers from the Harrogate district

Covid lockdowns put a two-year hold on the outdoor activities of the Dales Canoe Club, but members of all ages will soon be taking to the water once more.

The multi-generational, family-focused club has 40 paddlers aged from 11-year-olds to people in their mid-70s, who come from across the Harrogate district..

They keenly await April 28, when they will head for the River Nidd in Knaresborough for their first meet of the season.

Between then and September, the Thursday evening gatherings will be held on rivers and canals throughout the Yorkshire Dales and further afield.

Canoe training at Starbeck Baths

Winter practice at Starbeck Baths.

Fundraiser Jeremy Dunford has been involved with the club since 2015, when his son Reuben started as a novice.

He told the Stray Ferret:

“We had a boost with a successful application to the National Lottery, which brought nearly £10,000 and we have also received financial support from North Yorkshire County Council.

“The money has ensured that we are able to take all the new paddlers on the river at the same time over the summer.

“A key principle of the club is to ensure that paddling is affordable to all and the equipment can be expensive.

“We keep a certain amount of stock but this ages quickly as well as getting damaged. All our new paddlers have access to club kit for as long as they need (including kayaks and paddles).”

Multi-generational canoeing

The club caters for people of all ages, from children to grandparents

Through the winter, members have been practicing at Starbeck Baths, but with the warmer weather and lighter nights they will be back on river banks across the region and ready to go immediately after the Easter holiday.

Educational and enjoyable

Mr Dunford said:

“Paddlers often use their involvement with the club as a springboard to academic progression elsewhere. One is currently studying outdoor adventure sports at uni having done, as my son did, a BTec in outdoor adventure sports at  Askham Bryan and this in turn has enabled them to get places on camp in Canada.

“Some members also use the club as part of BTec course evidence, GCSE Sports Science and D of E awards evidence.

“We welcome, paddlers with conditions such as epilepsy, autism and ADHD, all of whom have had their paddling experience adjusted to ensure their needs are met.”

An aerial view of the canieists

Members enjoy the social, as well as the sporting activities of the club.

Long-term members

The club started in 1976. and Maurice Young, a retired GP now in his 80s who took his sons along from day one, has been chairperson since 1978..

Dave Titchmarsh, who is the second in command, is a paddler in his 70s and has been with the club for many years as well.

One of the club’s senior members, Ted Walton, started as a teenager and is now in his 50s and leads a lot of activities.

The club, which adheres to all safety standards, currently has a full complement of members but opportunities for more people to join in September will open up as some move on to university.

Further details are available by clicking here.

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From the Valley Gardens to owning her own art gallery: Claire Baxter’s road to success

In 2008, Claire Baxter was struggling to get a post as an art teacher.

She was pregnant and needed to work.

So to make money, she turned towards her artwork and started to exhibit with the White Rose Artists, hanging her work on the railings in Harrogate’s Valley Gardens hoping for some sales.

National art award

Fast forward to 2022, Claire is a successful artist with her own gallery in Pateley Bridge and has just been nominated for a national art award.

But the mum-of-two, from Bilton, is the first to admit it has not been an easy road to success.

“I had various jobs after university, where I did a fashion degree, and then had jobs in retail. I then became a teaching assistant and then trained to be an art teacher and eventually qualified in 2007.

“In 2008 I still didn’t have a position. I was not long married, I was pregnant with my daughter and did a solo exhibition in a Harrogate nursing home, Larchfield Manor.

“From there I was asked by a lady who was part of a group called the White Rose Artists, and they exhibited in the Valley Gardens on certain Sundays in the summer and would I like to join them. I did that for 10 years. People started to learn that I would be down at the gardens and it helped me to build up a following.”

Inside Claire’s gallery in Pateley Bridge.

‘I worked every hour possible’

Claire, who was born and raised in Knaresborough, did eventually manage to get a teaching post in 2009.

But after her second child was born in 2012, her career as an artist really took off.

She said:

“I worked every hour possible, painting and developing a distinctive style, bagging greetings cards, creating a website and building up social media following, knocking on gallery doors, booking fairs and making new contacts.

“I started to book shows and fairs, taking more commission bookings and built up a following until I was in a position where I could move house and convert the garage into a purpose built studio.”

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Calendar run

She also remembers personally hand-delivering her calendars to all her customers.

She said:

“I used to announce on social media when I was going to do my calendar run.

“I used to start in Knaresborough at all the addresses of people who had ordered them and for about four hours I would drive the route through Starbeck and back up to Harrogate and home. My car was filled up with calendars and lists of names, a flask of tea and my credit card machine.

“I literally spent all night going from door-to-door. It was things like that which helped me get to where I am today. I used to do shows when I was pregnant and my kids were with me in prams while I was was selling. It has been a self-driven, just chipping away and trying to get acknowledged.”

New gallery

She soon realised she was juggling too much and eventually gave up teaching in 2014, safe in the knowledge she could always go back to it if needed.

She said:

“In January 2019 I was able to take the lease on a gallery in Pateley Bridge. The gallery has been hugely successful and in November 2021, we were able to move to a more prominent position on the High Street, which already has proved to be a huge success.

“It has been a bit crazy as it was never a planned thing to be an artist. It was circumstance, opportunity and hard work that led me that way.”

Claire’s gallery on Patelely Bridge High Street.

Claire is a proud Yorkshire artist and always tried to capture ‘God’s Own County’ in her work, with the real locations and characters all developed through observations. Many of her paintings feature the Harrogate district, which she loves to capture.

Tour de Yorkshire

She was named as the official Tour de Yorkshire artist in 2020, a title she continues to hold despite uncertainty surrounding the cycle race.

She said:

“I finished the work in March 2020 and we went into lockdown.

“Obviously then the Tour de Yorkshire never happened, although the work is complete. In fact lockdown came in the week it was meant to be released to the media. So that was a bit of a blow.

“We don’t know what is happening with the Tour de Yorkshire, so having this national award opportunity is huge.”

National award

Claire is among five finalists in the running for the title of UK’s Most Popular Artist, which has been launched by the Fine Art Trade Guild.

She said:

“I submitted ‘Last of the Summer Wine’, which I painted in oil last year in my usual quirky, fun style. Set in Swaledale, the painting was partly inspired by lockdown.

“It’s a true celebration of getting back out, spending time with friends and enjoying the simple things we had missed.

“The image has proven to be very popular.

“I am absolutely thrilled and very excited to be a finalist. Even if I don’t win, to me, I’ve already won by coming this far. It’s a massive thing for little me.

“I paint because I love what I do and the joy of being able to put my thoughts and visions into the reality of a scene for others to enjoy is very rewarding. I never thought that a national award would be in my reach when I was starting out as it hasn’t been an easy journey.”

Last of the Summer Wine.

Claire has always loved art and studied the subject at both GCSE and A-Level at St John Fisher, before going on to do an art foundation course at Harrogate College.

She said:

“I am actually still in touch with my art teacher from school and it was him who helped me to get some experience to be able to become a teacher myself.

“I don’t think I’ll ever go back into teaching now as I’m just too busy with my art.”

Advice

And her advice for any budding artists hoping to make it a full-time career?

“Build up as much work as you can. Establish your own style and just keep chipping away. It could take a very long time, but it’s worth it in the end.

“It really is a case of not taking no for an answer and it’s sometimes accepting the criticism that you get. It’s really important to listen to the criticism as well as the praise. It’s hard sometimes but you learn from it.”

The award ceremony will take place in Stratford upon Avon on May 13. To vote, click here.