Men charged with theft from Harrogate and Ripon tipsThree men have appeared in court charged with stealing items from household waste recycling centres in Harrogate and Ripon.
North Yorkshire County Council operates the sites at Penny Pot Lane in Harrogate and Dallamires Lane in Ripon.
Lewis Boocock, 23, of Pioneer House, Dewsbury, is alleged to have stolen six laptops from Dallamires Lane and two TVs and two laptops from Penny Pot Lane on March 20 last year.
Mitchell Boocock, 22, of Common Road, Batley is charged with the theft of numerous electrical items from Penny Pot Lane on March 29 last year.
Luke Boocock, 21, of Leeds Road, Ossett, is alleged to have stolen electrical items from the sites at Penny Pot Lane and Dallamires Lane on March 21 and March 29 last year.
The cases, which were heard at Harrogate Magistrates Court yesterday, have been remitted to Lancashire Magistrates Court on April 22.
The three men were granted unconditional bail.
Write-On Ripon stages second open mic eveningLiterature lovers are getting ready for the sequel to Write-On Ripon‘s first open mic evening in February.
The stylish brick-built basement under Curzon Cinema on North Street, will again be the venue for Monday night’s readings of poetry and prose..
Dion Child, who organises the writing group, told the Stray Ferret:
“The first event proved such a success, that we agreed on the night that we would come back for more.
“The 30 people who attended, were able to enjoy the relaxed atmosphere, the great acoustics and the positive audience reaction, to an eclectic mixture of original works.”
Mr Child, himself a creative writer and poet, added:
“I am relatively new to Ripon and am absolutely knocked out by the depth of writing talent that I have seen from people of all ages in this magnificent and inspiring city.
“There is still room for more writers to join us on Monday and whether they want to read a short poem or story they have written, or simply listen to the words of others, all will be given a very warm welcome.”
Write-on Ripon Open Mic II begins at 7.30pm and entry is free. Further details are available here.
Read more:
Rat-hit Ripon playground could reopen by Easter
The play area at Quarry Moor Park, which was closed in September because of rat infestation, could reopen in time for the Easter holidays.
The Ripon City Council-owned and operated playground shut after discarded food items attracted rodents.
Since then the council has tried to eradicate the rats. It has also removed a waste bin and put up a sign at the entrance to the adjacent Quarry Moor Nature Reserve, and park, asking visitors to take rubbish home.
City council leader Andrew Williams told the Stray Ferret:
“Earlier this week, we appointed contractors to carry out the necessary refurbishment work and cleaning ahead of reopening.
“It is our hope that this can be achieved in time for the Easter holiday, but that will be reliant upon all equipment passing rigorous hygiene and safety checks, as the wellbeing of children playing there is of paramount importance.”
This sign was put in place after rat infestation caused the closure of the playground.
Longer-term plans for the playground include replacement of the play equipment and erection of new fencing.
A total of £70,000 from the Ripon parish precept has been set aside for this work and the city council is seeking additional sources of funding, before it proceeds with the refurbishment programme.
Read more:
Quarry Moor Park
The park, just off the A61 on the southern approach to Ripon, was created on land donated to the city by Alderman Thomas Fowler Spence in 1945.
He served as the mayor of Ripon between 1927 and 1929 and was managing director of varnish manufacturer T and R Williamson — a prominent employer in the city since the 18th century.
Alderman Spence donated the 24-acre site on the understanding that it would “be kept for Ripon children for all time”.
It has been held in trust ever since, becoming one of the city’s most valued attractions.
In recognition of its unique geology and rare species-rich magnesian limestone grassland, Quarry Moor was designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest in 1986 and is now managed for both nature conservation and recreation.
Ripon soldiers join United Nations peacekeeping force in CyprusRipon-based soldiers in the 21 Engineer Regiment have begun a deployment in Cyprus as part of a United Nations (UN) peacekeeping force.
The soldiers will spend the next six months carrying out patrols on the buffer zone that runs between the Greek and Turkish Cypriots.
The UN force was set up in 1964 to prevent further fighting between the two island communities.
Sappers from the regiment took up their duties on Monday in a ceremony in the country’s capital, Nicosia.
Lieutenant colonel Perry Bishop, commanding officer of 21 Engineer Regiment said:
“Peacekeeping poses some unique challenges that I have not experienced elsewhere in my career.”
“The Regiment’s soldiers understand the importance of this mission, and are eager to put the British Army’s world-leading training to good effect.”
Read more:
21 Engineer Regiment has three squadrons based in Ripon.
In recent years, it has seen a significant focus on support to UN peacekeeping operations.
This has included deployments to Cyprus, Somalia, and South Sudan.
Snow affects schools and traffic across Harrogate districtSchools and traffic across the Harrogate district were affected by overnight snow.
The Met Office issued a yellow weather for ice across the district, which was in place until 10am this morning.
You can recap our live blog and updates from the Harrogate, Ripon, Knaresborough, Boroughbridge, Pateley Bridge and Masham areas this morning below.
10.10am – Picture of Pateley Bridge this morning
Joyce Liggins has sent in this picture from Pateley Bridge of the town covered in snow.
She said:
“We woke up to a covering of snow this morning and it’s looking like there is plenty more to come by the look of the sky.”
9.31am – Met Office weather warning in place until 10am
The Met Office weather warning for ice remains in place until 10am.
Gritters have been out on main roads in Harrogate this morning during the overnight snow.
9am – Readers’ pictures
Stray Ferret readers have sent their pictures from this morning’s snow. Here is a couple they have shared with us.
If you have any pictures of the snow that you would like to share, you can email us at contact@thestrayferret.co.uk or message us on Facebook and Twitter.
Picture from Jackie Bedford.
Picture from Hornbeam Park this morning. Picture from Vicky Galbraith.
8.50am – St Aidan’s in Harrogate open as usual
St Aidan’s Church of England Secondary School will be open as normal this morning.
8.36am – Only a handful of Ripon Market traders this morning
Only a handful of Ripon Market traders have set up stall this morning due to hazardous conditions on the roads.
Brian Murphy, stallholders’ spokesperson who runs a fruit and vegetable stall, said:
“Because many of the traders come from a distance and travelling conditions are horrendous coming into Ripon, they decided to turn around and go back home.
“I’m keeping an eye on the weather, but will stay open for as long as I can.”
Brian Murphy at his stall on Ripon Market this morning.
8.30am – Heavy but moving traffic on Otley Road
Traffic is heavy but moving this morning on Harrogate’s Otley Road.
Overnight snow has left some side roads treacherous, but main roads in and around Harrogate have been gritted.
8.15am – Rossett Acre Primary School opening at 10am
Rossett Acre Primary School in Harrogate will open at 10am due to the overnight snow.
If your school is affected by this morning’s adverse weather, get in touch at contact@thestrayferret.co.uk.
8am – Harrogate Grammar School delayed opening
Harrogate Grammar School has delayed the start of the school day due to the adverse weather.
The school will begin lessons from period three. Those pupils already on their way to school will still be accommodated and should report to the Hub on arrival.
7.45am – More pictures from across Harrogate
7.40am – Ripley Endowed Church of England Primary School delayed opening
Ripley Endowed Church of England Primary School will open at 10am due to the overnight snow.
The school said that those pupils who arrived before 10am should use the intercom to be let in.
7.35am – RHS Harlow Carr to open at 11am
RHS Harlow Carr gardens will open at a slightly later time this morning.
The gardens will open at 11am due to the snow in order to allow for the car park and pathways to be cleared.
7.30am – Kettlesing Felliscliffe Primary School and Beckwithshaw Primary School to have delayed starts
Kettlesing Felliscliffe Primary School and Beckwithshaw Primary School will both open at 10am this morning.
If your school is affected by this morning’s adverse weather, get in touch at contact@thestrayferret.co.uk.
7.25am – Traffic moving normally in Harrogate
Traffic around Harrogate Town Centre is running normally at the moment.
Gritters have been down York Place and West Park this morning to clear the roads. However, traffic is expected to pick up in the next hour.
7.20am – Is your school affected by the snow?
If your school is affected by this morning’s adverse weather, get in touch and let us know.
You can email us at contact@thestrayferret.co.uk or on Facebook and Twitter.
7.12am: Weather warning in place until 10am
7.03am: Harrogate covered in snow
https://twitter.com/MrsReedGeo/status/1509405530086948865
6.50am: Harrogate district wakes to blanket of snow.
Here’s the scene on Ripon Road in Killinghall. Send your updates to contact@thestrayferret.co.uk.
Five reasons why you should download the Stray Ferret appThousands of you have downloaded our app and use it every day.
For those of you who haven’t, here are the top five reasons people love it and how you can download it today.
1. It’s easy to use
Clean and with simple interface, our app is accessible and intuitive. If you have trouble navigating a smaller mobile screen, then the app is perfect for you to access the news you want more easily.
2. It’s more than just news
With vouchers, competitions, local history and great lifestyle features, it helps you to keep up to date with everything local. Our exclusive vouchers are especially great, so download now so you don’t miss out!
3. Push notifications
We don’t use notifications for just anything, however when there is breaking news or a traffic and travel alert in the area, you will be alerted by the push notifications.
4. One-tap news
No need to browser search for us to find our website. Just tap the app and you have local news at your fingertips.
5. It’s free
We know local news needs to be seen by everyone, so our app, just like our website, is completely free. You won’t get pushed into any “in app purchases either” or find any gated content, it’s all the good stuff.
If all that sounds as great as we think it is, you can download the app for IOS and Android here, or search “Stray Ferret” on your device’s app store.
Police launch crackdown on underage drinking in RiponPolice are to lead a crackdown on underage drinking in Ripon in the latest attempt to tackle the city’s long-running problem with crime and antisocial behaviour.
North Yorkshire Police said today Ripon has joined 240 locations in the country designated as a Community Alcohol Partnerships area.
These partnerships see police work with retailers, schools, neighbourhood groups, Trading Standards, local authorities and other emergency and health services to reduce alcohol problems.
As part of the initiative, retailers will be assessed by Trading Standards and police to check they are not selling alcohol to children.
Intervention work to prevent under-18s drinking will also be carried out.
According to North Yorkshire Police, the partnerships have led to a 61% reduction in weekly drinking by teenagers, a 50% drop in young people hanging round shops and asking adults to buy alcohol, and a 42% decline in anti-social behaviour involving drink.
Ripon Community Alcohol Partnership will officially launch on Wednesday next week.
Read more:
PCSO Helenor Gwatkin, who is leading the launch for North Yorkshire Police, said:
“We’re listening to residents’ concerns about antisocial behaviour in Ripon and we’re addressing them in several ways.
“Our targeted patrols are one part of the solution, but the community alcohol partnership allows us to focus on prevention and early intervention. This stops issues from arising, reduces offences and helps educate young people to make better choices.
“Community alcohol partnerships have been very well supported in other parts of North Yorkshire and I am confident the initiative in Ripon will be just as well received.”
Alcohol education
Police, youth services and other local organisations will provide alcohol-free activities for young people and work with schools to take a proactive approach to alcohol education.
Kate Winstanley, director of Community Alcohol Partnerships, said:
“I am delighted to see the launch of a CAP in Ripon. Underage drinking is associated with school and educational problems, unprotected sex, drug-taking, violence and drinking problems in later life.
“In just over a decade CAP has set up more than 240 partnerships around the UK and our evaluations show they are having a significant impact on reducing children’s alcohol consumption, improving their health and wellbeing and enhancing the communities where they live.”
New co-working space opens in HarrogateHarrogate Borough Council‘s co-working space, Co-Lab, has opened.
Co-Lab consists of new offices, a meeting room and communal space. It’s based on level 3 of Harrogate Convention Centre on King’s Road.
The authority secured £540,000 of funding from the Leeds City Business Rates Pool to fund the project.
It aims to connect digital, tech and creative businesses in the Harrogate district.
Alistair Forbes, Harrogate Borough Council’s in-house growth manager who will support businesses at Co-Lab said:
“Co-Lab will be focussed on digital and tech businesses, but we are inviting anyone interested in collaborating with the business community to talk to us.
“From designers to hardware specialists, technologists, marketers and developers, our aim is that everyone works together to help our community become more successful.”
Ripon butcher wins contract with Selfridges and Fortnum & Mason
Ripon-based online butcher, Farmison & Co has won a contract to supply London stores Selfridges and Fortnum & Mason.
Farmison’s new Saucepan Ready range was curated by the company’s Michelin-starred executive chef, Jeff Baker, who has cooked for the Queen and Barack Obama.
The deal comes after Inverleith LLP, an Edinburgh-based specialist consumer brand investor, acquired a majority stake in the business, so it could press ahead with expansion plans.
Business founder and chief executive, John Pallagi, said:
“It’s a real feather in our cap to get Saucepan Ready listed with these two such iconic British retailers – it’s also recognition of the superb quality of the heritage breed meat our farmers supply.”
As well as the Saucepan Ready dishes, Selfridges and Fortnum & Mason are stocking Farmison & Co’s beef dripping and chicken schmaltz.
Battery storage facility planned for Burton Leonard
Plans have been submitted to build a battery energy storage system near Burton Leonard.
The application has been submitted to Harrogate Borough Council by Harmony Energy Limited. The company also hopes to build a solar farm nearby.
The battery energy facility will store electricity so it can support the National Grid and provide electricity during high demand.
It would be built next to the Wormald Green Northern PowerGrid substation, off Station Lane, Wormald Green.
The storage facility would be built in the field marked in red.
Patricia Jones-Davies will swap the heat of a Ripon kitchen for the arctic chill of Finland when she reaches another significant milestone on Sunday.
The chef manager at Sunnyfield Lodge Extra Care Housing will celebrate her 50th birthday by taking part in the Arctic Marathon, where competitors can expect temperatures as low as minus 12 centigrade.
Ms Jones-Davies leaves for Helsinki on Thursday, carrying the warmest wishes from residents and colleagues because she is running to raise money for Papyrus UK — a charity that prevents suicide in young people. It is a cause dear to her heart.
She told the Stray Ferret:
“My daughter Anne-Dora went to school in Harrogate with Dom Sowa, who very sadly took his own life at the age of 17.
“In his memory, I ran 17 races over different distances, to both raise money for Papyrus and raise awareness of the wonderful work that it does, by helping young people who have suicidal thoughts.
“I will be thinking of Dom and other young people, while I am running.”
Ms Jones-Davies with some of her supporters at Sunnyfield Lodge.
In Ripon, Patricia has a huge team of supporters at Sunnyfield, which provides 40 one and two-bed retirement apartments. She has worked there for three years.
Among those wishing her good luck is 101-year-old Annie Charnley, who takes a keen interest in all her sporting feats.
They include two Manchester Marathons, a Chester Marathon and a virtual London Marathon.
Man of iron – Patricia’s husband Keri Jones-Davies
Husband Keri is also taking part in Sunday’s event.
He is a multi-talented endurance athlete, who has competed at the Ironman 70.3 World Championships, having also represented GB in his age group at triathlon.
The ironman event involves a 2.4 mile swim, a 112 mile cycle ride and a 26.2 mile run, so Mr Jones-Davies is well-placed to assist his wife as she trains for her long-distance runs.
She said:
“When it snowed a few weeks ago, I went straight out for a run. It wasn’t as cold as it will be in Finland, but we are well-prepared and have bought all of the right gear for cold-weather running.”
Read more:
Call for urgent remedy to Ripon residents’ flooding issueRipon City Council is calling for urgent action and a detailed investigation led by the Environment Agency after Storm Franklin brought unprecedented flooding to Hillshaw Park Way last month.
The owners of 11 affected properties, who are still dealing with insurance claims, a clean up operation and months of misery and disruption ahead, are seeking answers about the causes of the flood amid concerns that the drainage infrastructure serving their area is not fit for purpose.
Residents were invited to an extraordinary meeting of the council called by Mayor and ward councillor Eamon Parkin and fellow ward councillor Sid Hawke.
Irwin Blenkiron and his neighbour Andrew Jarvis spoke on behalf of all residents to highlight their concerns and seek remedial action to ensure that a similar incident does not occur in the future.
Irwin Blenkiron (front, centre) and Andrew Jarvis (checked shirt) spoke on behalf of residents of Hillshaw Park Way at the extraordinary meeting.
Mr Blenkiron, an 80-year-old retired civil servant, told the meeting about an urgent pre-dawn phone call he received from a neighbour on February 21, warning that flood water was rapidly rising in the street in front of his home.
With the need for him and his wife Carol to evacuate their bungalow growing by the minute, cars were moved from the drive to higher ground and friends unaffected by the flood who live further down the street, welcomed them into their warm and dry home.
After the council meeting, Mr Blenkiron told the Stray Ferret:
“My wife and I have lived in the street since 1985 and we have never experienced anything like this before.”
Linda Beck, who has lived in the Hillshaw Park Way for 14 years, has written on behalf of affected residents to Yorkshire Water, expressing doubts about the pumping station and associated drainage infrastructure serving the area.
Yorkshire Water’s pumping station, which serves Hillshaw Park Way and Priest Lane.
She and neighbours believe it is no longer able to cope with increased capacity of water caused by more frequent stormy weather. exacerbated by run-off water from developments, including the nearby St Michael’s Retail Park at Rotary Way and the adjacent Cathedral Meadows residential development.
Linda Beck had to throw away items from her garage after they were saturated by flood water.
Her letter was sent to the developers, along with North Yorkshire County Council, Harrogate Borough Council, and Ripon’s MP Julian Smith.
The pressure of water, caused by the February 21 flood, blew the cover off one of a series of storm drains located on land to the rear of Mr and Mrs Blenkiron’s home.
Ms Beck, whose garage, drive and back garden were flooded, said:
“I haven’t suffered the same degree of damage that other neighbours have experienced, but it’s a mess, massive inconvenience and I could have done without this.
“We certainly don’t want to have to put up with this again and it is clear to us that action is required.”
Andrew Jarvis, like other neighbours, is facing months of misery ahead as he waits for his home to dry out.
Those views are shared by Mr Jarvis, who who has lived in Hillshaw Park Way for 30 years. He pointed out:
“We need the causes of the February flood to be sorted out before the next storm arrives.
“The flood waters were totally unexpected and rose so quickly that there was no way of keeping them out of my house and garage.
“Now, along with Mr and Mrs Blenkirion, Linda and other neighbours on the street, I’m having to deal with the clean-up operation, with dehumidifiers around my home on virtually all the time making it hard to sleep.
“I even had to find a temporary home for my tropical fish, because it’s not suitable to have the aquarium here in these conditions.”
Yorkshire Water’s response
In response to the the letter sent by Ms Beck, Anthony Sumner, Yorkshire Water operational complaints champion, said that the flooding in Hillshaw Park Way occurred after the River Ure burst its banks and “the main surface water line out of Ripon had nowhere to go”.
Mr Sumner added:
“We were called to the sewerage pumping station as we had a report from a customer who thought the flooding was as a result of our asset failing.
“We met with a customer and showed that the sewerage pumping station was pumping as normal (by lifting both pumps and checked (sic) the rising main discharge point) .The issue as far as the pumping station was concerned was that it was taking on flood water and surface water (and) as such therefore couldn’t cope.
“There has never been any question for needing to increase capacity at this pumping station under normal conditions.
“Regarding increasing the size of the pumps, when the system was designed it was determined that the size of the pumps would meet the needs of the area, as has been shown under normal circumstances our pumps meet the requirements they were designed for.
“We would not look to increase the size or capacity at this time. Increasing the capacity of the pumps would detriment (sic) residents and communities further down the system especially during exceptional rainfall and severe storms similar to the ones we have recently experienced.”
Read More:
Call for investigation by the Environment Agency
Cllr Hawke said:
“The problem with this response is that weather events like Storm Franklin and before that Storm Dudley and Storm Eunice, are becoming the norm and are occurring more frequently.
“Once you add in the additional waste and drainage water generated by new housing and other developments in Ripon, it is clear that capacities are going to be stretched on a more regular basis.
“That is why we want the Environment Agency, as the rivers authority, to head the investigation into what happened at Hillshaw Park Way in February, so that urgent improvements can can be made.