For the third successive year, Ripon Together and its partners have arranged  a programme of free activities for young people this summer.

The four-day Funfest starts on Monday August 14 and offers something for everyone at locations across the city and at Studley Royal Cricket Club.

Activities range from storytelling to juggling, mindfulness and formal sports coaching in cricket and football.

While the events are free, those planning to attend need to book for many of them and further details can be obtained by clicking here

At Studley Royal Cricket Club on Monday, August 14, there will be relay races and an obstacle course, alongside coaching from Ripon Runners and cricket coaching.

On the same day, Ripon Library will have a smoothie bike in place, so that people can use pedal power to make their own healthy drinks. There will also be stories and games for young children, followed by a film evening for teenagers.

On Tuesday, August 15, in addition to the cricket and athletics at Studley Royal, Ripon Spa Croquet Club will also be running a come and play session.

Spa Park is the venue for August 16, where there will be football coaching, circus skills training and crazy golf.

The Funfest finale will be staged Studley Royal Cricket Club on Thursday August 17 with a large inflatable obstacle course in place, sumo wrestling and croquet.

Inspire Youth will be providing mindfulness, table tennis, football penalties and other activities. There will also be free food.

David Ingham, a director of Ripon Together, said:

“We are massively grateful to our local councillors, Morrisons, The Jepson Trust and Ripon Girls Club for our funding.  The programme is also a great example of how Ripon Together can bring the community together to deliver for the city.

“Studley Royal Cricket Club, Ripon Spa Croquet Club, YMCA and others have been so supportive in delivering this programme for the children of our city.”

Staff, volunteers and supporters of Ripon YMCA, gave up their warm beds to sleep outdoors on a cold, wet evening to highlight the issues of youth homelessness.

The Sleep Easy event staged at the weekend in the grounds of the city’s Workhouse Museum, carried the theme ‘Sleep out so others don’t have to’ and was designed to raise awareness and funds for the charity to help those who do not have a home of their own.

Jayne Shackleton, the YMCA’s community and development manager in Ripon, told the Stray Ferret:

“This is just a small taste of what it’s like for people who, for reasons such as family breakdown, find themselves with no roof over their head and no bed to sleep in.”

Her colleague, Bryony, who is a housing support worker, knows from personal experience about the crucial role that the charity plays in supporting the young and vulnerable who are facing difficult situations.

She said:

“At 16, I went to Ripon YMCA and over the two years that I lived there, I was given the encouragement to believe in myself, while providing the stability that I needed to put my life back on track.”

Bryony lived at Ripon YMCA for two years and now works for the charity

Bryony, added:

“I went on to study for a Youth and Community Work degree and with that qualification, I was proud to be able to return to Ripon to help people facing the same issues that I did when I was younger.”

Ripon Cathedral which, through its C3 Community Connections programme works closely with the YMCA , was represented at the Sleep Easy event.

Canon Matthew Pollard (pictured above, front centre), who joined the cathedral in the autumn, was among those who braved the elements.

He said:

“I have taken part in sleep outs for charities in Nottingham, Huddersfield and Bridlington, so this is my fourth.

“It is important to raise awareness of the YMCA as well as money to support the vital work that it does to support homeless people.”

In the past year the YMCA in Ripon has seen young people staying in cars, sleeping on a kitchen floor and in a shed, with many more ‘sofa surfing’.

The charity provides housing for 22 young people and  offers individual support, skills and training, designed to help them reach their full potential.

Anybody who would like to support Ripon YMCA,  can find out more here

The issue of homelessness and the hard times that go with it will be in focus on Friday night when Ripon YMCA holds its Sleep Easy event at the city’s Workhouse Museum.

Staff from the YMCA, along with volunteers, will be sleeping outside in the grounds of the former workhouse on Allhallowgate to raise awareness of youth homelessness, while raising money to support the charity’s work with young and vulnerable people.

Jayne Shackleton, community and development manager for Ripon YMCA, said:

“In the past year we have seen young people staying in cars, sleeping on a kitchen floor and in a shed, with many more ‘sofa surfing’.

“Homelessness is often hidden in society and small communities such as Ripon, where young people who have no fixed home will often find themselves sleeping at a friend’s house on a sofa or the floor.”

Ms Shackleton, pointed out:

“We provide housing for 22 young people and help enable them to be free from danger, hunger and isolation. We provide individual support, skills and training to help them lead an independent life and reach their potential.”

All fundraising or donations from the Sleep Easy event will go directly to Ripon YMCA to support its work.

Figures for England and Wales provided  by the YMCA, show that 47% of youth homelessness is caused through family breakdown.

A total  of 278,110 people were declared homeless or threatened with homelessness in 2021 and of these 56,080 were aged 16 to 24,

Anybody who would like to support Ripon YMCA,  can find out more here

Donations to the Sleep Easy event can be made via JustGiving here.

Eight organisations in the Harrogate district have benefitted from a share of £94,000 worth of grants provided by the Freemasons.

Freemasonry is a male only, fraternal organisation that traces its origins back to the local guilds of stonemasons.

A total of 40 grants have been distributed to organisations across Yorkshire, with many charitable organisations, including youth clubs, food banks, community groups and schools.

Those Harrogate District organisations benefiting from the latest round of grant giving were:

• Artizan Café and Creative Space, Harrogate, £5,000
• Henshaw’s Society for Blind People, £3,395,
• Harrogate Hospital Radio, Harrogate, £3,000, for broadcasting software
• Coppice Valley Primary School, Harrogate, £2,748, for outdoor playground equipment
• Ripon’s Men’s Shed, Ripon, £2,000, for woodworking equipment
• Girlguiding Birk Crag Centre, Harrogate, £2,000, for shop storage, display units, seating and furniture
• Supporting Older People, Harrogate and Knaresborough, £1,586, for warm comfort packs
• Ripon YMCA, Ripon, £1,000, for branded clothing for staff and youth leaders
• Staveley Sports Association, Staveley, Knaresborough, £1,000, for football goal posts, nets and equipment

James H Newman, OBE, The Provincial Grand Master of The Province of Yorkshire West Riding, said:

“With these grants we are able to financially support 40 organisations, which are each integral to the local area in their own way, is something I am very proud of.

“Each year, we donate some £200,000 from this specific fund to good causes around the Province, with the money coming directly from our members, keen to help support the community they live and work in.

“These grants were a superb way to end 2022, and the money each of these 40 recipients is receiving will help them continue the work they do in their own individual communities.”

Based on the old West Riding, the Province has around 5,000 members and reaches from Sheffield in the South to Ripon in the North, Goole in the East to Bentham in the West.

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The winners of the Ripon Business Improvement District Christmas windows competition have been announced.

In the online public vote, the silver salver and first prize went to the Wakeman’s House Cafe in Market Place South, while the window display created by young people at Ripon YMCA in Water Skellgate (pictured below) received the judges’ award and silver cup.

Both of the winning entries caught the eye of the independent judging panel, which included the Mayor and Mayoress of Ripon Councillor Sid Hawke and his wife Linda and the Dean of Ripon the Very Revd. John Dobson.

BID manager Lilla Bathurst, said:

“This is the first year that we have run the competition and we were pleased to receive 23 entries from across the city.

“The theme that we set was peace and sanctuary and the judges and online voters were asked to bear this in mind when assessing the window displays.”

The Wakeman’s House Cafe entry with its doves, crib, and small, cosy Christmas houses captured the theme perfectly with a window design created by Jenny MacNair.

Ms MacNair, who works at the cafe, told the Stray Ferret:

“We are absolutely delighted to win the public vote. All members of our team contributed to the display by bringing in ornaments and other decorations.”

Two youth charities aiming to engage Ripon’s young people in positive activities believe they are being hindered by restricted access to recreational facilities.

Fencing installed at the Jack Laugher Leisure and Wellness Centre has made the skate and bike park at Camp Close a no-go area for Inspire Youth’s support vehicle and the outreach sessions delivered from it.

The skate park adjacent to the leisure centre has, in previous years, provided a focal point for meeting with so-called ‘hard to reach’ children.

Jess Ward, founder and chief executive of Inspire Youth, told the Stray Ferret:

“Because we no longer have access to the site with our vehicle, we can’t hold our sessions there.

“That is a blow, because the kids see this as one of few places in Ripon where they can meet with us and talk about their issues, fears and concerns in a confidential way and one in which they will receive a sympathetic hearing.”

Jess Ward, CEO of Inspire Youth (right) is pictured at the Hell Wath football coaching session with Chloe Hickson of Harrogate Town FC (centre) and, from the left, Inspire’s Jodie Edwards, Marie Anderson and Lizzy Wickens

Ms Ward added:

“We are engaging with and supporting young people, some of whom feel they have been marginalised and unfairly blamed for the city’s problems of anti-social behaviour.

“It’s very much a case of giving a dog a bad name, but we are determined that we will not turn our backs on children who need help and encouragement, instead of constant criticism.

“They are our future and need to know that they are members of the community with a valuable contribution to make.”

Jayne Shackleton, Ripon YMCA’s community and development manager, said that young people had told the charity that they miss Inspire Youth’s outreach sessions and want to see them back at the skate park.

She added:

“We will continue to monitor the area and consult with young people and work alongside partners in the hope that the skate park will become and remain a safe, accessible space for young people and meet their needs”.

The original £10.2 million contract for the leisure scheme was to provide a new six-lane swimming pool, a fully refurbished leisure centre, children’s playground, a car park with charging points, in addition to restoration of the football pitch and landscaping of the site.

No ball games this summer at the Camp Close site

More than 14 months after the scheme was initially scheduled for completion, the project is almost £5 million over budget and further, as yet, undisclosed monies are to be committed by Harrogate Borough Council for ground stabilisation work under the leisure centre and provision of a temporary gym on site, while that work is carried out.

In the meantime, the playing fields donated in perpetuity by Alderman Wade for ‘the benefit of the children of Ripon’ will remain fenced off.

Last week, however,  with the support of Ripon Panthers Junior Football Club and Harrogate Town FC coach Chloe Hickson, Inspire Youth organised coaching sessions at Hell Wath and other locations are being sought.

What did the council have to say?

A Harrogate Borough Council spokesperson said that Inspire Youth and the YMCA have not been denied access to the site.

They added:

“The skate park and basketball court are available for everyone to use and can be accessed via Knaresborough Road.

“Our community safety team work proactively with partners in Ripon around engagement with young people. And we encourage both of these organisations to continue do their outreach work in the area.”

In response to the Stray Ferret’s question about when children will be able to play football once more at Camp Close, the spokesperson, said:

“The football pitches will remain fenced off, while we carry out ground stabilisation works at the original Ripon Leisure Centre, to ensure people are kept safe while construction vehicles are moving round the site. This will be restored towards the end of the project.”

The council spokesperson, added:

“The plaque to recognise Alderman Wade will also be reinstated on completion of this multi-million pound investment for the people of Ripon.”

Read more:

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Eight Ripon-based charities are set to benefit from what promises to be a tremendous Transatlantic evening of entertainment in the city on Thursday (June 23).

The famous world championship-winning Black Dyke Brass Band, will be joined by the multi award-winning Lake Wobegon Brass Band from St. Olaf, Minnesota, USA in a concert being held at Ripon Cathedral.

As the bands and the cathedral are waiving their customary fees, all proceeds from the sale of tickets will be divided equally by the charities.

They range from Dementia Forward, which provides support, advice and wellbeing services for people living with dementia, to Ripon YMCA, which offers supported housing for young people aged 16-35 and space for community groups and projects to meet.

The other beneficiaries are: Jennyruth Workshop, Ripon City of Sanctuary, Ripon Branch of Christian Aid, Ripon Community Link & The Walled Garden, Ripon H.E.L.P, and Ripon Salvation Army Food Bank.

The award-winning band is travelling from Minnesota and playing free of charge to help raise money for eight Ripon-based charities. Picture: Lake Wobegon Brass Band

“We are looking forward to a Transatlantic treat, with a fabulous evening of musical entertainment provided by these two magnificent bands.

“Through their tremendous generosity in agreeing to perform without charging a fee, the eight charities, which support so many different aspects of life in Ripon, will gain maximum benefit from the event.”

Events sponsors are Ripon Cathedral, and Phil and Wendy Wilby.

Tickets, at £20 for adults and £5 for children under 16, are still available in the Ripon Cathedral Shop, or online at the Ripon Cathedral website.