Harrogate hotels vote ‘no’ to tourist taxMajor show extends contract at Harrogate Convention CentreWatch video of newly-released Harrogate Christmas songHarrogate pub hosts free Pancake Day fun tomorrow

A Harrogate pub is hosting free Pancake Day fun tomorrow that gives people the chance to earn the title of ‘fastest flipper in town’.

The Fat Badger will provide pans and pancake mixes and anyone who turns up between 9.30am and 4pm is welcome to make their own treats and then see how quickly they can complete the course.

The event is being held in the pub’s beer garden on Cold Bath Road, adjacent to the footpath so people walking past can see it.

There is no charge to enter and the winner will receive Sunday lunch for two people, including a bottle of wine, at the Fat Badger.

Simon Cotton, managing director of the HRH Group, which owns the Fat Badger, said:

“The rules are simple; it’ll be against the clock and each person will need to make a regular size pancake and successfully flip it twice to be entered.

“One go per person but everyone can enter for free as it’s just for fun and community engagement.”

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Harrogate hospitality group accuses Stray Ferret of ‘misleading’ information

Harrogate Hospitality and Tourism Association Ltd has accused the Stray Ferret of publishing “misleading press reports” in an article about a £3,720 payment for the purchase of the domain name Destination Harrogate.

Yesterday The Stray Ferret published an article about Harrogate Borough Council spending taxpayers’ money to buy the domain name from Destination Harrogate as part of our remit to scrutinise the use of public money.

The association said in a subsequent statement that Harrogate hoteliers Simon Cotton and David Ritson, who are directors of Destination Harrogate Ltd, did not own the domain name and “it was not theirs to sell” because the decision was taken jointly by members.

Mr Cotton is managing director of the HRH Group, which owns the Fat Badger, the Yorkshire Hotel and the White Hart hotel. Mr Ritson is general manager of the Old Swan hotel.

It adds:

“In 2019, HBC approached HHTA and investigated the opportunity to purchase the rites to the brand name and website. All members met and took a formal vote on the matter and agreed to sell the rites to HBC for a nominal sum. At no point did either Mr Ritson nor Mr Cotton have any greater involvement in this matter more than any other association member. It was agreed that Destination Harrogate as a company would be wound up and a newly formed company under the name ‘Harrogate Hospitality and Tourism Association Ltd’ was registered. All assets were transferred to the new company”

The statement continues:

“In setting up the new company HHTA, Mr Cotton stood down as a director and therefore has no direct involvement in this company other than being a member of the association.

“HHTA would like to clarify that they were happy to work with HBC to transfer the domain name and that the transaction was between the HHTA and HBC only, and not anyone personally.”

The Stray Ferret has sought clarification on the statement.

Public records from the council show payment for the domain was made to Destination Harrogate Ltd, not HHTA Ltd.

Companies House records show Destination Harrogate Ltd is still an active company. A notice for voluntary strike-off was issued on January 4 this year. Mr Cotton and Mr Ritson have been listed as sole directors since late November 2019.

Companies House records for HHTA Ltd show the company has been dormant since 2020 with no activity.

In the light of this we asked for evidence of the assets, including the payment for the domain name, being transferred from Destination Harrogate Ltd to HHTA Ltd, as we have been unable to find any record.

We also sought clarification on how the domain name was not Mr Cotton or Mr Ritson’s to sell as they are listed as company directors, and requested further details about the links between Destination Harrogate Ltd, HHTA and HHTA Ltd.

The association, which lists the Crown Hotel in Harrogate as its address, replied to say it “will be making no further comment or response”.

The Stray Ferret contacted Mr Cotton prior to publishing yesterday’s article asking him if he wished to comment on the payment. We have not received a response.

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Council paid hoteliers £3,720 to use name Destination Harrogate

Harrogate Borough Council paid hoteliers Simon Cotton and David Ritson £3,720 for permission to use the name Destination Harrogate for its new tourism body, the Stray Ferret can reveal.

Destination Harrogate is the council’s destination management organisation, which promotes the district to tourists.

The council decided to replace its old Visit Harrogate name last year and give the organisation, which is headed up by Gemma Rio, a facelift for 2022.

However, the name Destination Harrogate had already been used by Mr Cotton and Mr Ritson since 2011 for the organisation behind the Harrogate Hospitality and Tourism Association awards.

Mr Cotton is the managing director of the HRH Group, which owns the Fat Badger, the Yorkshire Hotel and the White Hart hotel. Mr Ritson is the general manager of the Old Swan hotel.

Questions for council

According to the council’s openly available list of expenditures over £250, it paid Destination Harrogate Ltd £3,720 in September 2021.

The council has confirmed to the Stray Ferret that this money was used for the rights to the name Destination Harrogate.

The transaction raises questions about why the council felt this name was worth the money, and why it didn’t come up with a different name that wasn’t already in use, saving the taxpayer thousands of pounds.

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A Harrogate Borough Council spokesperson said other names were considered but “none reflected the purpose of the organisation as well as Destination Harrogate”.

They added:

“Harrogate Hospitality and Tourism Association Limited was paid the sum of £3,750 to transfer ownership and control of the business name and the domain name of Destination Harrogate to Harrogate Borough Council, which included the costs for winding up the company known as Destination Harrogate Limited.

“Destination Harrogate was selected as the most appropriate name for Harrogate district’s destination management organisation as it reflects the ambition of the organisation to showcase the district as an exceptional destination to visit, meet and invest. Other names were considered but none reflected the purpose of the organisation as well as Destination Harrogate.”

Typical sum

The Stray Ferret asked Harrogate-based intellectual property solicitor Andrew Clay for his opinion on the deal.

Mr Clay described the sum paid by the council as typical, although he wondered whether it chose the name before realising it was already in use.

He added:

“What is perhaps a little surprising is that before they adopted the brand Destination Harrogate that Harrogate Borough Council didn’t carry out a Google or Companies House search on the words Destination Harrogate. Either search would have revealed the existence of Simon Cotton’s company.

“Had they done that they could have chosen another equally appropriate available name and saved the tax payer several thousand pounds.”

We have published a subsequent article, which you can read here, after HHTA Ltd published a statement.

Police issue £1,000 fine for illegal New Year’s Eve party at Harrogate hotel

North Yorkshire Police has issued a £1,000 fixed penalty notice for a breach of coronavirus regulations at a hotel in Harrogate on New Year’s Eve.

Last week the Stray Ferret published claims that Harrogate hotelier Simon Cotton flouted covid restrictions by holding a party for himself and 10 friends at the Yorkshire Hotel on New Year’s Eve. Mr Cotton has consistently denied the allegations.

The Stray Ferret spoke to multiple sources who allege the party ate on a single table, did not observe social distancing and that speakers were brought in to play music with bar staff on hand to serve drinks into the early hours of the morning.

The party stayed in the hotel overnight and new staff were then brought in to serve the group breakfast on New Year’s Day.

Our sources say some staff were extremely unhappy at being asked to work but feared for their jobs if they refused.

North Yorkshire Police issued the following statement today:

“An investigation into an alleged breach of coronavirus regulations at a hotel in Harrogate on New Year’s Eve has now concluded. As a result, North Yorkshire Police have issued the person responsible for the venue with a fixed penalty notice of £1,000 fine.”

Government covid legislation gives police powers to issue a £1,000 fixed penalty notice for business-related breaches. This is increased to £2,000, £4,000, and £10,000 for repeat offences.

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The Stray Ferret contacted the HRH Group, which owns the Yorkshire Hotel as well as the Fat Badger and the White Hart Hotel, and Mr Cotton for a response but we had not received one by the time of publication.

Mr Cotton has continued to be active on Twitter since the Stray Ferret story broke, including a retweet that paid tribute to the NHS. He has also posted pictures of himself delivering food to customers from the Fat Badger.

HRH Group silent on illegal party allegations at the Yorkshire Hotel

The HRH Group, which owns the Yorkshire Hotel, the Fat Badger and the White Hart in Harrogate, has so far declined to answer questions about an alleged illegal New Year’s Eve party involving its managing director Simon Cotton.

On Wednesday, the Stray Ferret published claims that Mr Cotton flouted tier 3 covid restrictions by holding a party involving himself and 10 friends at the Yorkshire Hotel on New Year’s Eve. Mr Cotton is alleged to have asked staff to work at the event.

We spoke to multiple sources who claim the party ate on a single table, did not observe social distancing and that speakers were brought in to play music and bar staff were on hand to serve drinks into the early hours of the morning.

Mr Cotton has denied the allegations.

We contacted the hotel group yesterday to ask them a series of questions related to the claims. We are yet to receive a response.

We asked:

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Pressure on the hotel group to make a public statement is mounting after North Yorkshire Police confirmed it was investigating a party at a Harrogate hotel on New Year’s Eve following complaints from members of the public and yesterday the story was covered by other news organisations.

Claims well-known Harrogate hotelier held illegal New Year’s Eve party

The Stray Ferret can reveal claims today that well-known Harrogate pub and hotel manager Simon Cotton held an illegal New Year’s Eve party for himself and 10 friends at the Yorkshire Hotel, flouting covid rules.

It’s alleged Mr Cotton asked staff to work for the party on New Year’s Eve and then the following morning to serve breakfast to the group. We understand the party was reported to the police on New Year’s Day.

Mr Cotton has denied the allegations.

Simon Cotton is the managing director of the HRH Hotel Group, which runs the Yorkshire Hotel, the Fat Badger, and the White Hart in Harrogate.

Harrogate moved into tier 3 on News Year Eve at short notice which prohibited people from meeting socially indoors except with their support bubble or people they live with.

The higher tier put paid to many festivities on New Year’s Eve and upset local hoteliers, including Mr Cotton, who went on ITV Calendar that night to say they had not been given enough time to cancel events without losing money.

Simon Cotton delivering pizza to NHS staff last year.

The Stray Ferret has spoken to multiple sources independently who all wish to remain anonymous. All were in some way involved in the event and have given similar accounts of what happened. We have been shown evidence supporting their claims that Mr Cotton hosted the event at the Yorkshire Hotel on New Year’s Eve breaking covid rules.

They allege the party ate on a single table, did not observe social distancing and that speakers were brought in to play music and bar staff were on hand to serve drinks into the early hours of the morning.  The party stayed in the hotel overnight and new staff were then brought in to serve the group breakfast on New Year’s Day.

Our sources say some staff were extremely unhappy at being asked to work but feared for their jobs if they refused.

It is not clear how many staff were asked to work to serve the party but we believe it to be around 7.

Mr Cotton keeps a high profile on social media. He has frequently appeared on national and local TV news talking about the impact of covid on the hospitality business. He gained a lot of publicity last April by serving pizzas to staff who built the NHS Nightingale hospital in Harrogate.

Our sources describe Mr Cotton of “acting irresponsibly” and said holding the party was a “massive error of judgement”.

Another added:

“A lot of the staff felt put in a position that wasn’t right.”

And:

“’Flouting the rules yourself is one thing but involving staff is another.”

The Yorkshire Hotel, Harrogate.

It’s claimed Mr Cotton told staff that Harrogate Borough Council had given him authorisation to have the New Year’s Eve event.

We asked Harrogate Borough Council if this was possible. A spokesperson said:

“We do not have any evidence of any parties, nor do we authorise anything that is considered to be breaking the law.”

Mr Cotton declined our request for an interview.

There is no evidence or suggestion that anyone more senior than Mr Cotton in the HRH Group sanctioned the event.

Temperature checks introduced for Harrogate drinkers

People entering some popular Harrogate food and drink venues will be required to have temperature checks from today as part of new measures to combat covid.

The Fat Badger pub, the Yorkshire Hotel, the White Hart Hotel and the restaurant Scran will all operate temperature checks.

New machines will instantly record the body temperature of visitors by scanning their wrists.

If anyone’s temperature exceeds 37.5 degrees centigrade, a red light will appear and the machine will beep loudly to indicate a high temperature – one of the main symptoms of covid.

The person will then be asked to leave the building for 15 minutes before having a second test, in case the first result was an anomaly caused by, for instance, carrying heavy shopping.

If their temperature remains too high they will be refused entry.

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Simon Cotton, managing director of the HRH Group, which owns the venues that have installed the new technology, said:

“We think it’s the right time now with covid cases increasing to be stepping up our measures. We want to do it before we are instructed to do so.”

Besides installing the machines, which Mr Cotton said cost several hundred pounds each, HRH Group venues have also required staff to wear face masks in public areas unless they are working behind protective screens.

Who else has tests?

Rudding Park and The Ivy are the only other two Harrogate venues believed to check temperature on entry.

Peter Banks, managing director of Rudding Park, said:

“Guests feel reassured by the machines. You don’t want people with a raging temperature coming in and coughing over everyone.”

David Straker, the owner of William and Victoria restaurant and wine bar on Cold Bath Road, said its current safety measures, which include table bookings and no standing at the bar, were working well. But he added:

“We are always looking at ways we can improve.”

Alan Huddart, treasurer of Bilton Working Men’s Club, said its reopening had gone smoothly and the cost of new equipment, such as temperature scanners, could be prohibitive to some venues. He added:

“We are open to looking at anything but we have had a professional risk assessment done and are following it closely.”