This week, we have a selection of photographs showcasing some Christmas scenes across the Harrogate district taken in the December snow.
Photo of the Week will take centre stage from January 2 in our new-look nightly email newsletter. The newsletter drops into your inbox every evening at 6pm with all the day’s stories and more.
To subscribe click here.
Erica Johnson
Heather Middleton
Jeannette Wilson
Photo of the Week celebrates the Harrogate district. It could be anything from family life to capturing the district’s beauty. We are interested in amateur and professional photographs, in a landscape format.
Send your photographs to letters@thestrayferret.co.uk for a chance to be featured next week, we reserve the right to adjust and crop images to fit into our format.
Ripon coffee shop Messy Buns closesMessy Buns, on Duck Hill in Ripon, closed its doors on Tuesday.
The café, which opened in 2017, served cakes, coffee and sweet treats.
Owner Lydia Peters posted a tearful video on Facebook to announce the news yesterday.
She said her electricity bill tripled at the start of 2023 and, with the increasing cost of food and ingredients, the business was no longer viable to run.
“I can’t just keep getting more and more into debt because that’s where I am now.
“The reality is they [supplier] are probably going to cut my electricity off any day now.”
Ms Peters told the Stray Ferret “less and less people” came into the café every week, but hopes her video would make people realise “how hard it is to run a business”.
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- Harrogate restaurant and hotel under new ownership
However, she urged people to continue supporting other Ripon businesses:
“I feel lucky to have lasted as long as we have because you see incredible businesses close.
“Please keep supporting business owners in Ripon, because otherwise they’ll go.”
Ms Peters will continue to offer cake-making and catering services despite the closing the café. She told the Stray Ferret:
‘Disgruntled’ patient stages protest outside Ripon dental practice“I feel quite overwhelmed but I just want to say thank you to everyone that has supported my for the last seven years.”
A patient refused to move his van from the entrance of Ripon dental practice this morning.
The Stray Ferret contacted Bridge House Dental Practice on Bondgate Green and was told by an employee, who wished to remain anonymous, the man “sat in his van and refused to leave”.
They said the man, who arrived at around 10am, became “disgruntled” but “not aggressive”, adding:
“He was telling people how rubbish and how bad our service is when they walked in.”
North Yorkshire Police told the Stray Ferret the force was called to “reports of a confrontation” at around 11am. It added:
“Police officers attended and spoke to a man, who agreed to leave the area.”
The employee said the man left the scene two hours later at midday.
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- Council said Knaresborough wall was safe three time before it collapsed
- Ripon Grammar School teacher Helen Mackenzie retires after 18 years
Trees down as Storm Pia hits Harrogate district
Gusts of over 60 mph are causing disruption in the Harrogate district this morning. A Met Office weather warning is in place for wind until 9pm but the strongest gusts are forecast this morning, with Greenhow Hill near Pateley Bridge already recording 63 mph.
A tree came down on the A59 Knaresborough Road near Mother Shipton’s in Knaresborough and rail operator Northern has said its trains are running at reduced speed on several lines and to check before travelling.
Let us know how the storm is affecting you by emailing us at contact@thestrayferret.co.uk.
2.05pm – Harrogate ice rink closed for rest of day
The Ice Rink Harrogate will be closed for the rest of today due to high winds.
A Facebook post from the operator said:
“The Ice Rink is closed for the rest of the day (21/12/23) due to the high winds. We will open as usual tomorrow.
“All people booked on any session affected will be contacted by email to change their booking to another day before the 8th of January.
“Thank you for your understanding.”
1:23pm Tree down on the Oval in Harrogate
Storm Pia has caused a large tree to fall down on the Oval in Harrogate.
12.10pm Harrogate ice rink closed
High winds forced the closure of Ice Rink Harrogate, the temporary Christmas feature in Crescent gardens.
“Due to the high winds the Ice Rink is closed until 2:30pm today. A further review will take place at noon. All people booked on any session affected will be contacted by email to change their booking to another day before the 8th of January.”
11.58am: 40,000 customers affected, says Northern Powergrid
Northern Powergrid, which delivers electricity on behalf of suppliers, has said 40,000 customers in the north-east, Yorkshire and northern Lincolnshire have been affected by Storm Pia. It said in a statement:
“Our teams responded quickly and have already managed to reconnect more than 28,000 of those who have been impacted. We will keep customers updated regularly via text message, on our website and on our social media channels.”
It added West Yorkshire had suffered the most impact so far.
10.55am: Local attractions closed today
Remember, Mother Shipton’s in Knaresborough and the National Trust-owned Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal near Ripon are closed today due to high winds. The horticultural charity RHS Garden Harlow Carr has also cancelled its Glow event tonight and offered a full refund to people who had bought tickets.
9.25am: Storm damage at Crowne Plaza in Harrogate?
A reader has sent us these photos of apparent storm damage at the Crowne Plaza hotel in Harrogate.
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- Harrogate heroin and cocaine dealer jailed for over three years
9.05am: Tree down on edge of district
Bus driver Jonathan Ruston, pictured below, has been helping with clearing a fallen tree he encountered this morning.
He said it was on the A659 going into Otley, past the garden centre, just before Otley town centre.
Pic Jonathan Ruston
7.30am: Four stalls open at Ripon Market
Most stallholders have kept away from Ripon Market, which usually takes place on Thursday, except for a fruit and veg stall, a fishmonger, baker and a cheese seller.
Fishmonger Martin Carrick out early this morning serving regular customers Darren and Janet Ratcliffe.
Fishmonger Martin Carrick, whose family has been working at the market for 80 years, said:
“We will. be here for he full day, we have a large vehicle that isn’t affected by the wind like the stalls are and we are looking forward to serving people with their Christmas orders.”
His brother Kevin Carrick, who operates a fruit and veg stall, was also on duty as normal. He said:
“This is our most important market of the year in Ripon and I hope people read the Stray Ferret and know that we will be here all day.”
Kevin Carrick at his fruit and veg stall this morning.
The Stray Ferret has been monitoring Storm Pia and previously reported the closure of several local attractions, including Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal, near Ripon and Mother Shipton’s in Knaresborough.
Harrogate’s RHS Garden Harlow Carr has cancelled its Glow event amid the weather warning.
Stay tuned for further updates.
Read more:
- Storm Pia to bring 61mph gusts to Harrogate district
- Harrogate heroin and cocaine dealer jailed for over three years
Storm Pia to bring 61mph gusts to Harrogate district
The Harrogate district could see gusts of up to 61mph as Storm Pia moves in tonight and tomorrow.
The Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning from midnight tonight until 9pm tomorrow.
The forecast shows Pateley Bridge will see the worst of the storm, with gusts reaching 61mph in the early hours of tomorrow morning.
Winds will reach 54mph in Masham, while Harrogate, Knaresborough and Ripon will see up to 50mph.
Disruption
The Stray Ferret reported yesterday on the disruption already caused by the wind throughout the Harrogate district — now another local attraction has followed suit.
The National Trust announced on social media today that Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal, near Ripon, will also be closed tomorrow. It said:
“It’s already getting rather breezy here at Fountains. With wind speeds set to increase overnight and throughout tomorrow we’ve made the decision to close the site tomorrow, Thursday 21 December.
“We don’t like to disappoint anyone, but the safety of our visitors and team is always our top priority.”
The charity advised people to “check our social media channels and website” for updates.
It comes after Mother Shipton’s in Knaresborough announced yesterday it will close tomorrow, while Harrogate’s RHS Garden Harlow Carr cancelled its Glow event amid the weather warning.
The weather warning is in place for the north of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Read more:
- Harrogate district attractions to close amid wind warning
- Kidnapped Forbidden Corner owner released after kidnapping
The Little Beauty Rooms wins Ripon Christmas window contest
Ripon Business Improvement District yesterday announced The Little Beauty Rooms as the winner of its Christmas window competition.
The salon, which is on Westgate, was decked out with pink and silver baubles, pink reindeer, festive green garlands and Christmas lights.
Owner Lynne Stewart told the Stray Ferret the team had decorated the window at the start of November, meaning people had plenty of time to enjoy it. She added:
“This is the first time we’ve entered.
“So many people have told us how much they love it.”
A total of 34 local businesses entered the competition, which first ran last year, and the public voted for their favourite.
Last year’s winner, The Wakeman’s House Café, came second and Saint Michael’s Hospice took third place.
The salon’s team.
Ms Stewart added:
“We’re just so grateful to everyone who voted for us – thank you!”
The salon, which offers a range of traditional beauty treatments and services, has also won an advert in Review Ripon magazine as part of the competition.
Lilla Bathurst, manager at Ripon BID, added:
“We were thrilled that so many Ripon businesses took part in this hotly fought competition.
“The aim with all Ripon BID’s trails and competitions is to get locals and visitors exploring the city and discovering new businesses.”
One lucky local also won a hamper from the Ripon Hamper Company as part of the competition.
Read more:
Call for lessons to be learned after Ripon mum dies from sepsis at Harrogate hospital
A Ripon family has called for lessons to be learned after a mother died from sepsis at Harrogate District Hospital.
Angela Laybourn was admitted to the hospital on January 17, 2022, after suffering from lack of appetite and dehydration for around a week.
Blood tests showed she had metabolic acidosis – a build-up of acid in the body. However, this was not documented when she was assessed on a ward, an NHS investigation found.
Ms Laybourn was wrongly sent home three days after being admitted. However, she was readmitted to Harrogate hospital on January 22. She was incoherent and disorientated.
Further blood tests indicating metabolic acidosis weren’t acted upon. She died aged 62 in the early hours of January 24.
Following Angela’s death, husband David, instructed medical negligence lawyers at Irwin Mitchell to investigate his wife’s care under Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust.
David, aged 64, has now joined his legal team at Irwin Mitchell in calling for lessons to be learned.
Megan Walker, the specialist medical negligence lawyer at Irwin Mitchell representing David, said:
“Angela was a much-loved wife, mum and grandma, whose death has had a profound effect on all her family.
“Sadly, worrying issues in the care she received, and which contributed to her death, have been identified.
“While nothing can make up for what’s happened it’s now vital that the hospital trust learns lessons from the issues in this case to improve patient safety for others.
“We continue to support David and his family at this distressing time.”
Call for lessons to be learned
Ms Laybourn, who was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1999 and was paralysed from the neck down, died in the early hours of 24 January, 2022, after suffering a cardiac arrest.
Her cause of death was sepsis and metabolic acidosis caused by kidney stones.
She had a history of kidney stones. In December 2021 she underwent surgery to try and remove them. However, doctors were unable to remove all of the stones because of the complexity of the procedure.
Following legal submissions by Irwin Mitchell, the trust admitted that there was a failure to recognise and treat metabolic acidosis following her first admission on January 17. She shouldn’t have been discharged on 20 January, the trust acknowledged.
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An internal investigation report by the hospital trust into Angela’s care identified a total of 18 key findings, root causes and contributory factors into her care.
These included that blood tests that showed metabolic acidosis following her initial hospital admission were not documented when Angela was assessed on a ward.
Mr Laybourn, who was Angela’s carer for 15 years, added:
“The only way I could describe losing Angela was total devastation. As a family, we couldn’t believe that she was really gone. The grandchildren were knocked for six. Angela’s whole life was based around her grandkids and kids, everything she did was child orientated. She has been taken from all of us.
“The first time that I was aware that Angela had been suffering from metabolic acidosis, was when we received her death certificate. We searched online for the term and were just in complete shock as looking at the symptoms that Angela had they fit the box of metabolic acidosis.
“We just felt let down that no one had picked up on this and that Angela could have been treated for this.
“I miss her all the time. The loss of Angela has created an emptiness in my life which will never be filled. All I can hope for is that by speaking out improvements in care can be made as I wouldn’t want others to go through the pain our family is.”
Trust apologises
Dr Jacqueline Andrews, executive medical director at Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust, said:
New bridal boutique to open in Ripon“We would like to offer our sincere condolences to the family and friends of Mrs Laybourn.
“We failed to deliver the level of care Mrs Laybourn and her family should have been able to expect and for this we would like to sincerely apologise.
“We are committed to learning from what has happened and are implementing new systems and processes to reduce the likelihood of important blood test results being missed to ensure we do all we can to prevent such incidents from occurring in the future.”
A bridal boutique offering new and second-hand dresses will open its doors in Ripon on Friday.
Gail’s Wedding Boutique, which can be found in Duck Hill Shopping Quarter, will sell pre-loved dresses which have been repaired to sell on, as well as new dresses and sample cut dresses.
Owner Gail Byrne, who lives in Ripon, has been a seamstress for more than 30 years. She decided to venture into the bridal industry after paying for her daughter’s wedding dress last year, which set her back more than £2,000.
She told the Stray Ferret:
“Don’t get me wrong it was worth every penny, but I couldn’t help but think how expensive it was for just a few hours of wear.
“It’s so much money which a lot of people don’t have, and I wanted to help those people.”
Ms Byrne will also offer repairs and alteration services, for both new and second-hand dresses, which would take “no longer than two weeks to turn around”.
Some of the dresses in store.
There will be a range of designer brands in stock, she added, but these will vary dependent on which dresses are brought in to re-sell.
“Brands and individuals bring their pre-loved dresses to me to repair and then sell on.”
Ms Byrne also said she has placed affordability at the forefront of her newest venture, with all dresses costing £1,000 or less.
She will also sell bridesmaids dresses and evening wear.
Gail’s Wedding Boutique will open on Friday, December 22.
It will be open Monday to Friday from 1pm – 4pm. The shop is appointment-only on weekends and after 4pm on weekdays.
Read more:
The Stray Ferret Christmas Appeal 2023: An important message from Dementia Forward’s CEO
This year’s Stray Ferret Christmas Appeal is to raise money for a minibus for Dementia Forward in the Harrogate district.
The appeal is kindly sponsored by Vida Healthcare.
Please give generously to support local people and their families living with dementia. Let’s not forget who needs our help this Christmas.
Today, we spoke to Dementia Forward’s founder and CEO, Jill Quinn.
“I sometimes feel national charities have lost touch with local communities.
“The need for dementia support was huge and the funding was usually decided in London.
“We felt we could do a better job by being rooted in the community.”
It was this realisation that prompted Jill Quinn MBE to improve local dementia support in the Harrogate district.
Jill, who previously worked for two national dementia charities, said she wasted many years in retail management before realising that the voluntary sector was where she belonged.
Dementia Forward was born in 2012 after Jill and other founding members left their previous healthcare jobs on a Friday and launched the charity the following Monday.
The team places need at the centre of the charity – something that can’t be done from 200 miles away. She added:
“People know when they put their pound in the pot, they’d be getting better services in the local area.
“You can’t design a service to be delivered in the local area from an office in London.”
It began with just seven members of staff. The team were donated second-hand laptops and worked from a small office in Ripon.
Now, with a flagship hub in Burton Leonard, 64 employees and more than 250 volunteers, Jill was right – Dementia Forward can serve the local community better.
It now covers the whole of North Yorkshire and helps more than 4,000 families.
“It was meant to a small, fluffy, local charity, but we hit a model that works.
“I like to believe every single person at Dementia Forward is just as passionate as me.”
Some of the Dementia Forward team.
Jill and her team made – and still make – it their mission to help those living with dementia and the people around them from the very early stages, all the way until end of life.
“We meet people, we gently inform them of what may come in the years ahead, and then we’re here for them going forward.
“We don’t hold hands with people because they’re independent enough, but we’re just an arm’s length away.”
The charity also educates people in the wider community on dementia, as Jill felt general awareness of the disease was very poor when it started, and has worked with transport companies, shops and churches to increase knowledge.
She has also led the charity to receive various awards for its work, including the Queen’s Voluntary Service Award and the King’s Fund Impact Award.
The Dementia Forward team receiving the Queen’s Voluntary Service Award in 2021.
Jill said:
“It’s hard to describe what Dementia Forward means to be – it’s just my life.
“I’m so proud of what we’ve done, but there’s still a lot to do, and some things are harder to fundraise for than others – like a minibus.”
Dementia Forward offers various social events and groups to combat loneliness and bring those living with dementia together. The groups go on regular trips out and many use the minibus service to access the support services.
However, Dementia Forward’s current bus is old and tired and urgently needs to be replaced. The charity would seriously struggle to afford a new one, which is why they need your help to keep this vital service going. Without it, many people living with dementia wouldn’t be able to access the help and support they need.
Every donation to our campaign will go directly to Dementia Forward, helping us hit our £30,000 target to buy the charity a new minibus and improving the lives of those living with dementia and the people around them.
Please give generously to those who need our help this Christmas. Click here to donate whatever you can – you never know when you, your family or your friend may be in need of Dementia Forward’s help too.
Thank you.
If you need urgent help or have a dementia-related enquiry, call 0330 057 8592 to speak to a helpline adviser.
Boots pharmacy in Jennyfields to close next yearThe Boots pharmacy inside the Co-op at Jennyfields in Harrogate is set to close next March.
The move comes after Walgreens Boots Alliance, its US-based parent company, announced the closure of 300 UK stores in an earnings call in June.
In a separate report, Boots said it will “consolidate a number of stores” in order to “concentrate its team members where they are needed”.
It added:
“[It will] focus investment more acutely in individual stores with the ambition of consistently delivering an excellent and reliable service in a fresh and up to date environment.”
The report also said the stores affected are “in close proximity” to other Boots sites.
The retailer declined to comment on the Harrogate store closure, however staff at the Jennyfields pharmacy told the Stray Ferret they have been “given options” about employment going forward.
Following the closure, the nearest Boots pharmacies will be in Harrogate town centre, Knaresborough Market Place, the St James’s Retail Park near Knaresborough and at Market Place West in Ripon.
The Co-Op at Jennyfields
Twenty UK stores, including four in Yorkshire, have already closed following the announcement.
Read more: