Councillors have expressed concern that plans to erect a sculptural montage of ancient buildings of Rome on a Ripon bypass roundabout could cause traffic accidents.

The five-metre high cast resin sculpture, with information plaque and lighting, is planned to celebrate Ripon Cathedral’s 1,350th anniversary.

But there are concerns it may distract motorists and cause accidents.

The cathedral plans to commission five major art works over a four-year period.

The proposed location for a boat sculpture depicting St Wilfrid’s sea travels.

Three of the works require approval from Harrogate Borough Council and a planning application has been submitted.

Under the theme of From Rome to Ripon, they will tell the story of the city’s patron saint and cathedral founder St Wilfrid.

The concept is supported by Ripon City Council, but at a meeting on Monday evening, they agreed to seek a meeting with the cathedral’s project team to discuss concerns.

City council leader Andrew Williams said:

“In principal, I fully support the artwork proposal, but I feel that we need to look again at the sculpture proposed for the roundabout.

“The bypass is a very busy road and I am concerned that the artwork with lights on could be a distraction to road users and lead to accidents.

“I also question how sensible it would be to have an information plaque on the sculpture – we wouldn’t want pedestrians to walk on to the roundabout to read it.

“Surely there must be a better location than this for the artwork.”

Fellow councillors agreed there was a need for further discussion with the applicant.

The council will write to Harrogate planners calling for the application to be deferred until this aspect of the plan is resolved.

The other two sculptures requiring planning permission are, firstly, of a boat containing figures that represent St Wilfrid on his sea travels. He made several visits to and from Rome during his time in Ripon.

This would be the first of the installations in June of next year.

The second installation, cast in bronze and standing five metres high, would depict St Wilfrid and a follower, which is planned for the corner of the Market Square that looks down onto Kirkgate.

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It is proposed that this will be in place by June 2024.

The artwork currently earmarked for the Ripon bypass roundabout would initially be installed from June 2025 in the narthex at the the western end of the cathedral, before being relocated.

A farm in Dishforth has created a pick your own strawberry and raspberry experience suitable for older people, wheelchair users and people with prams.

It seems such a simple idea but not many pick your own farms around the country offer it.

Mark and Mary Bean run Beau Fraise’s Fruity Berry Fruit Farm, which can be found on Dishforth Road in Dishforth, near Ripon.

The idea was sparked by Mary’s sister, who uses a wheelchair, as well as some of the farm’s previous customers who struggled with access.

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A lot of work has gone into the project.

It has taken about 11 months, 35,000 welds, 70 tonnes of soil, 4,000 strawberry plants and 1,500 raspberry plants but it is now open to the public six days a week. It is closed on Tuesdays.

Mark, who has done the majority of work himself, told the Stray Ferret:

“We have been doing strawberry picking for about 15 years but we decided we needed to make a change for this year.

“This has been a lot of work, a mammoth task really, but it has also been a labour of love.

“People love it, the word seems to be spreading quite quickly and I have lots of messages from people interested. So we have been quite busy already.”

Now the farm is up and running, Mark and Mary are planning to set aside a day a week when only those who are elderly and disabled can go.

The first of those days was held today when a group from Hampden House care home in Harrogate went for a special visit.

The number of covid patients at Harrogate District Hospital has fallen to two, despite a sharp rise in infections in the district.

In a sign that the vaccination programme is working, Amanda Bloor, accountable officer for NHS North Yorkshire Clinical Commissioning Group told North Yorkshire Local Resilience Forum today there are now fewer covid patients at the hospital than last week, when there were three.

The number of cases of the Delta variant in the Harrogate district has nearly quadrupled in the last two weeks. The district’s seven-day rate of infection is now 155 per 100,000, just below the England average of 159.

Despite the steep rise, the hospital has not faced the same pressures as in previous waves. At the peak in February, there were 68 covid patients at Harrogate hospital.

According to the latest NHS England figures, the hospital’s last covid-related death was reported on April 11.

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Ms Bloor also said today that Ripon racecourse vaccination site, which opened in February, is due to close in August.

The closure of the Great Yorkshire Showground vaccination centre in Harrogate this month has seen many people travel to Leeds, York or Bradford for jabs, although there are pharmacy sites in Knaresborough and Pateley Bridge.

Ms Bloor said pop-up vaccination sites could open in the district this year.

She said:

“We want to be able to flex the programme as sites and vaccines allow.”

Carys Peedell is following in the footsteps of leading British actors by winning a place on the National Youth Theatre summer course.

The Ripon Grammar School sixth form student will be treading the boards where the likes of Dame Helen Mirren, Daniel Craig and Orlando Bloom developed their acting talent.

Carys, 17, won the highly-prized place following a two-stage virtual audition.

As well as entitling her to become a member of the National Youth Theatre company until she is 25, attendance on the course will open the door to casting auditions and opportunities for productions up and down the country.

Carys Peedell plans a career in acting

Carys has dreamt of being a star of stage and screen from an early age.

She said:

“I’ve loved acting for as long as I can remember – when I was little, I would constantly dress up and make films with my sister.”

Being a quiet child, she was only offered minor parts in primary school productions but she confesses she wrote her own version of a play at nine years old to guarantee a leading role.

Through performing, Carys has conquered her shyness. She said:

“I found I could be loud and confident when playing someone else. People saw me in a different light and that’s when I decided I wanted to be an actor.”

The National Youth Theatre now beckons. She said:

“It’s an amazing opportunity and has been the launch pad for many successful acting careers.”

Carys, who studied acting, dance, singing and musical theatre with Upstage Academy in Ripon, achieved distinctions in all her London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art exams, including grade eights in solo acting, duo devising drama and group acting.

One of the highlights of her acting career so far has been, along with acting partner Alfie Davies, winning at the Harrogate Competitive Festival for Music, Speech and Drama last year.

A regular in Upstage Academy’s Harrogate theatre summer musicals, Carys most recently played the part of Elle Woods in Legally Blonde and is now preparing to film High School Musical, in which she is to play Sharpay Evans.

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She is also working on a production of Two by Jim Cartwright with a cast of keen Ripon Grammar School actors, to be performed at Ripon Grammar School on July 19.

Previous school roles include parts in Toy Story, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Oliver and A Midsummer Night’s Dream, for which she also won awards.

Pressure is growing for urgent work to take place to improve the state of some of Ripon’s busiest roads.

Ripon City Council voted unanimously last night to write to North Yorkshire County Council calling for resurfacing work to be carried out as a matter of urgency.

The principal areas of concern are parts of the Market Place roads where block paving has lifted and cracked because of the volume of traffic.

North Yorkshire County Council has carried out temporary repairs by putting tarmac over the worst-affected sections, leaving the surface looking like a patchwork quilt.

Councillors want to see comprehensive repairs to the city centre roads, as Market Square is the focal point of entertainment and activities, including the weekly Thursday and Saturday markets.

At last night’s meeting, two Conservative county councillors joined independent city councillors to call for urgent repairs.

Councillor Stuart Martin, who is chairman of North Yorkshire County Council, and Cllr Mike Chambers, are also Ripon city and Harrogate district councillors.

They said they have been pushing for repairs to the Market Place East and West roads and other roads in the city.

Councillors say roads around Ripon Market Square are unfit and unsafe

Speaking about the long-term calls for repairs, Cllr Martin, who represents Ripon South on North Yorkshire County Council, said:

“You can’t defend the indefensible. We have been consulting about the east and west carriageways for some time and they need to be sorted out.”

Cllr Chambers, who represents Ripon North at County Hall, added

“We have been pushing for repairs to the road surfaces and will continue to do so.”

The county councillors were responding to a call from city council leader Andrew Williams for North Yorkshire County Council to use reserve funds to pay for work.

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Last week, in response to Stray Ferret questions about the state of city centre roads, Barrie Mason, North Yorkshire County Council’s assistant director for highways and transportation, said:

“Ripon Market Place is being considered for future funding within our forward programme for 2022/23.

“A number of the areas of most concern are associated with poorly performing utility reinstatements and we are seeking urgent action on these from the companies concerned.”

But Cllr Williams told last night’s meeting:

“We can’t wait until next year. The roads around Market Square are unfit, unsafe for motorists, cyclist and pedestrians and unacceptable.”

The square will also be a key venue for next year’s events celebrating the queen’s platinum jubilee.

North Yorkshire Police is appealing for witnesses after at least 15 sheds and storage units were broken into at allotments in Ripon.

Thieves struck at Fisher Green allotments, which has 80 plots close to the city’s racecourse, overnight between Friday night and Saturday morning.

Tools were stolen although not all the buildings suffered losses.

A police statement said the culprits also caused “considerable damage” to windows and doors when breaking in.

They are asking for anyone who might have witnessed the incident or has been offered tools for sale to get in touch by dialling 101 and quoting reference number 12210147470.

You can also email James.Skaith@northyorkshire.police.uk.

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There will be one fewer empty store on Ripon’s high street with the addition of a Yorkshire Cancer Research charity shop.

The charity, which was founded in 1925, raises funds to help prevent, diagnose and treat cancer in the county.

Its fourth branch is part of plans to open a network of stores locally. This is the second in the Harrogate district, after the Knaresborough shop opened in 2019.

Taking over the former Fulton’s Foods premises at The Arcade, the shop is expected to raise more than £100,000 a year.

The size also means it can accept and sell small furniture and household items.

The charity is planning to open the shop in autumn 2021 and is inviting local volunteers to register their interest.

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Juliet Glendinning, director of brand and relationships at Yorkshire Cancer Research, said:

“We are thrilled to be opening our latest shop in this fantastic location in the heart of such a thriving community.

“They become a key part of the community, providing both employment and volunteering opportunities and contributing to a busy high street by putting otherwise empty premises to good use.

“As well as boosting skills, our volunteer roles help to combat isolation and loneliness in local communities.”

The store will sell clothing for men, women and children as well as toys and home furnishings.

Independent Ripon councillors have accused North Yorkshire County Council of getting its road repairs priorities wrong.

They have asked the highway authority to explain the rationale behind resurfacing rural lay-bys instead of repairing city centre roads.

Ripon City Council leader Andrew Williams told the Stray Ferret:

“Along a 16-mile stretch of road between Hawes and Leyburn, lay-bys have been re-surfaced to a very high standard, while many roads in Ripon are in desperate need of major work.

Pictured above is one of the recently re-surfaced lay-bys on the A684 Hawes to Leyburn Road and below is a section of Market Place East in Ripon

Barrie Mason, North Yorkshire County Council’s assistant director for highways and transportation, said:

 “The improvement work to lay-bys is funded by the government’s Safer Roads Fund, which has the aim of reducing the number of people killed and seriously injured on the county’s roads.

“The Safer Roads Fund can only be used on certain roads within the county which meet the strict government criteria and is not to be used for routine maintenance.

“We have a comprehensive programme of planned maintenance schemes based on annual surveys of the whole road network that has produced a long-term trend of improving road condition.

“Ripon Market Place is being considered for future funding within our forward programme for 2022/23.

“A number of the areas of most concern are associated with poorly performing utility reinstatements and we are seeking urgent action on these from the companies concerned.”

Cllr Pauline McHardy said:

“We want all roads in the county to be safe and it is my view that the four roads around Market Place and other parts of the city centre are a danger to motorists, cyclists and pedestrians, because of the state they are in.”

Her fellow city and Harrogate district council colleague, Sid Hawke, added:

“We keep asking for proper repairs to be done and while we wait, the road surfaces get worse and worse by the day.”

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For next year, Ripon is planning a major programme of events to celebrate the Queen’s platinum jubilee.

Mayor of Ripon, Cllr Eamon Parkin, said:

“I just hope that the roads in and around the city centre have been fixed by then.”

Dr Laura Allan has been appointed as community curator of Ripon Museum Trust, which runs the city’s three museums.

Her role will involve working with local organisations, community groups and residents to increase engagement, promote creativity and generate a sense of place and improved mental health and wellbeing.

Dr Allan joins from Severndroog Castle in Shooter’s Hill, London, where she was employed as heritage manager. The castle is a community-run organisation and she was hired to reopen the building to the public after being closed for 30 years.

She has also worked and volunteered at various museums, including the Durham Light Infantry Museum, Leeds Museums and Galleries, the Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich and Whitehall (a Tudor house) in London

Dr Allan will increase community engagement with Ripon’s museums

Helen Thornton, director at Ripon Museum Trust, said:

“We’re delighted to welcome Laura to our team. She brings a wealth of experience and ideas to her new role.

“Her skills in community engagement will be a huge asset to us at the trust, and to Ripon generally, as we work together with local people and organisations to recover from the pandemic.”

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Dr. Allan said:

“I grew up in County Durham and have been looking forward to moving back up north to be closer to my family.

“I can’t wait to explore the North Yorkshire countryside through walking and other outdoor activities. Combining this love of nature and the arts is really important to my work, promoting positive wellbeing in our local community.”

Dr Allan studied for a BA in history at Sunderland University, a MA in art gallery and museum studies at Leeds University and completed her PhD in the public history of the criminal justice system with the Open University.

She has presented at conferences in New Zealand, Vienna and Scotland, discussing the differences between academic and museum interpretations of criminal justice history.

Ripon’s Workhouse, Prison and Police and Old Courthouse museums are open from Tuesday to Sunday.

Moorside Primary School and Nursery has become a nationally recognised School of Sanctuary after demonstrating an understanding of refugees.

The Schools of Sanctuary programme is a network of over 300 primary and secondary schools committed to supporting refugees in the UK.

Schools join the network if they can prove over a period of time that children learn what it is like to be a refugee and this is embedded in the curriculum in subjects such as  geography, history and religious education.

They are then reassessed on a three-year rolling basis.

Other schools in the Harrogate district to have achieved School of Sanctuary status include Grove Road Community Primary School, St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School, Springwater School, and Outwood Primary Academy Greystone.

Moorside’s award certificate was presented during last week’s national Refugee Week.

Claire Rowett, headteacher at Moorside, said:

“At Moorside, we have established an inclusive and welcoming ethos, where the importance of safety is embedded across the curriculum.

“Learning about people across the world and their contrasting environments and experiences to our own in Ripon, has taught our children that our one rule, to be kind, is not just associated with school, but is a rule for life, and that nobody should feel alone.”

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Schools of Sanctuary is organised by City of Sanctuary UK, an organisation established in 2005 to promote the UK as a welcoming place of safety for all.

Yvonne Jefferies, the lead for Schools of Sanctuary at Ripon City of Sanctuary, which is part of City of Sanctuary UK, said:

“This award is not given lightly. Schools work very hard to demonstrate that they understand what it means to be a refugee and to arrive here in the UK, likely friendless and very anxious.”