Organisers of the Great Yorkshire Show have said they are hopeful the event will still go ahead despite other large events being cancelled in the district.

Yorkshire Agricultural Society (YAS) has said it is continuing to plan for the event but will only go ahead “if it is safe to do so”.

The Great Yorkshire Show is planned for July 13-15.

This week, Ripley Show was cancelled. The event was due to take place on August 8 but organisers said it would be impossible to enforce social distancing reasonably.

To welcome its usual visitor numbers of over 100,000, the Great Yorkshire Show is reliant on a positive outcome from the government’s trial events in the coming months.

A spokesperson for the YAS said:

“The safety of show visitors, exhibitors and staff is paramount, and we are continuing to discuss how we deliver the most covid safe show possible.

“We await the outcome of the government’s pilot events in anticipation of further guidance on the staging of larger events after existing restrictions are lifted on June 21.”

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The organisers have not given a date for an official decision to be made but said it will be reviewed alongside government guidance.

The Yorkshire Agricultural Society has released similar comments previously suggesting that the show is under constant review. However, this has raised questions about the vaccination centre.

The showground, which can carry out up to 1,800 vaccinations a day, has been the Harrogate district’s main vaccine site since December.

A spokesperson for YAS said organisers were still in discussions with the NHS over the centre.

The organisers of this year’s Ripley Show have announced it will be cancelled due to the pandemic.

On a post on their website, organisers said despite the roadmap out of lockdown and vaccination numbers offering a positive outlook the “proposed conditions are near impossible to comply with on the show ground”.

The show is organised by Ripley and District Agricultural and Horticultural Show Ltd, it said it had explored every avenue to hold the show but said it had to put the health and safety of visitors first.

The event was set to go ahead on Sunday, August 4. But the committee has said to keep the character of the show visitors have come to love it would not be reasonable to enforce social distancing.

The show was also cancelled in 2020 and is usually held on the Ripley Castle Estate.

The show has been going for over 170 years making it a tough decision for the committee to make. Chairman Michael Smith said:

“The committee and I are deeply disappointed to admit defeat, despite our best efforts. We are proud of our fantastic show and giving our visitors and competitors the experience they have come to know and love over the last 170+ years.

Sadly we can’t guarantee a covid-secure show ground and feel it would be unwise for us to go ahead.”

A date for 2022 has already been set, August 14.

The committee at Ripley Show said it wanted to thank Ripley Castle Estate, our loyal sponsors and volunteers, competitors, trade stands, contractors, spectators and the wider local community for their continued support.

Shows, elsewhere in the district, such as Birstwith, Weeton, Tockwith and Nidderdale are still hoping to go ahead.

Plans for the Great Yorkshire Show are being reviewed regularly. Some of the venue is currently being used as a vaccination centre.

Read more:

• Weeton Show set to go ahead in July. 
• Birstwith Show set to return in July. 
• Tockwith Show asks volunteers to come forward to ensure the event goes ahead. 
• Organisers optimistic for this year’s Nidderdale Show.
• Great Yorkshire Show looks set to go ahead in July.