A nursing home in Harrogate has said it is making improvements after it was given the lowest score in a food hygiene inspection.

Bilton Hall Nursing Home scored just one on the five-point rating system when environmental health officers visited its kitchen.

The inspectors’ report, released by North Yorkshire Council last week, said:

“Overall, a disappointing visit. I have little confidence in food safety management within the kitchen. My inspection revealed poor levels of cleanliness to all food areas and equipment. A deep clean and disinfection is required without delay.”

The inspector also said:

The report called on the care home, part of the We Care Group, to act on the findings “without delay”.

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A return visit was held two days later, at the beginning of March, when the inspector confirmed the deep clean had been completed.

That report – also released by the council last week – said a food safety system needed to be implemented and all food handlers had to be trained.

Responding to the report on Friday, Bilton Hall Nursing Home manager Steve Edgar said:

“We had staffing issues at the time of the inspection and the agency staff were not following our home’s kitchen protocol, which led us to achieve a 1 in the inspection.

“The kitchen was also due to have the flooring changed which had been arranged but unfortunately did not happen prior to the inspection by [environmental health].

“The building is a listed building therefore has posed a few structural challenges with regards to refurbishment; however, we are making the appropriate changes necessary.

“We have since had another unannounced inspection from [environmental health] and, since making the changes, the inspector expects us to achieve a 4 when we are next scored.”

Bilton Hall Nursing Home is on Bilton Hall Drive, off Knaresborough Road. Photo: Geograph / habiloid

Mr Edgar said the revisit had found the “comprehensive” food safety management system was in place and available for inspection, with monitoring records “much improved”.

Vacancies in the catering department had been filled, he said, and additional training completed by members of the team.

The kitchen floor was expected to be replaced this month, he said, adding:

“We will need to request another official visit in which the published score will change for the public to see; as of this week we have applied to North Yorkshire Council for a rescoring [environmental health] visit.”

This story is sponsored by Harrogate Family Law.

A Harrogate lawyer says the enthusiasm of his latest three recruits has transformed the working culture of his firm. 

Andrew Meehan, who is founder and director of Harrogate Family Law, has hired a solicitor apprentice and two paralegals over the last few months to help the firm service an expanding client list. He said: 

“The best thing about them is their enthusiasm. They’ve come straight from school and university and their keen interest in things we take for granted is infectious. They’ve really invigorated the rest of us.” 

At 19, Freddy Wharton is the youngest of the bunch. He was spotted by HFL director Laura Mounsey when she gave a careers talk at St Peter’s School in York, where he was a sixth-former. Recognising his potential, HFL offered him a contract as a solicitor apprentice, and he started the programme in January. 

Andrew said:

“Freddy works four days a week on the job, and does a mix of online and face-to-face learning one day a week at the University of Law in Leeds. He’s mature beyond his years and is doing very well. In six years’ time he’ll qualify as a solicitor with a law degree. It’s a great way to enter the profession.” 

Harrogate Family Law’s two new paralegals are Tija Purandere, who earned a first-class degree in law from the University of Liverpool and took a Masters degree at Durham University, and Charlie Main, who graduated from the University of Leeds last year with a first-class degree and a prize for excellence in European Union law. 

Both started at HFL in November and will complete two years of on-the-job training, passing their Solicitor Qualifying Examinations (SQE1 and SQE2) before being signed off as fully-qualified solicitors by Andrew. 

Andrew said: 

“We find it difficult to find good, trained solicitors who are still in their 20s and want to work in Harrogate. So, we identified fresh talent straight from education and train them the way we want to. 

“When we’re looking for someone new, we look for people who are very bright, personable and empathetic, and Freddy, Tija and Charlie all fulfil that brief very well. 

“Taking them on makes good business sense too. From an internal perspective, it’s reinvigorated the team, and from a client’s perspective, it’s cheaper to have the more routine work done by paralegals rather than by me. Everybody wins.” 

Andrew Meehan founded Harrogate Family Law in 2010. The firm has grown significantly over the last couple of years, almost doubling in size to cope with client demand. The firm is consistently ranked as a leading law firm for divorce and family law in Yorkshire by prestigious legal guides Chambers UK and Legal 500. An office move to bigger premises to accommodate the growing team is planned for the summer. 

Find out more:

When going through divorce, getting the very best legal advice can make a huge difference to your future.

If you think you may benefit from a free telephone consultation with acknowledged experts, call Harrogate Family Law on 01423 594 680. 

Harrogate Borough Council has defended its decision not to transfer some staff to the new North Yorkshire Council.

Five audit services staff recently discovered they would transfer to Veritau, a shared service group owned by local authorities in Yorkshire and north-east England.

Public services union Unison said on Tuesday it was “dismayed” by the decision, which it said came after more than a year of talks in which it was expected all staff would transfer to the new super-council under TUPE terms.

Unison Harrogate branch secretary Dave Houlgate said it had raised a dispute and called on Harrogate Borough Council to “stand by its staff and resist this late change”, adding:

“We object in the strongest terms to this late change of plan which shows total disregard for the staff involved, denies them the opportunity to move on to new terms and conditions negotiated and agreed by Unison and ignores established procedures and protocols that are in place.”

A council spokesperson said today:

“Engagement with staff, and consultation with trade unions, has taken place at every stage of the transition to North Yorkshire Council. This will continue, ensuring staff are kept informed of progress and have the opportunity to raise concerns. All staff also continue to be offered support.

“The audit service for the new council will be provided by Veritau, a company created in 2009 by North Yorkshire County Council and City of York Council. Veritau has provided audit and other specialist services to the authorities, as well as other organisations, for many years. Providing income that will continue for the new council. Veritau already provides services to five of the seven district and borough councils that will be replaced by North Yorkshire Council.

“It is proposed staff currently providing the service in Harrogate will move to Veritau on April 1. Employment protection ensures that they will transfer on their existing terms and conditions. Individuals will have the option of choosing Veritau’s terms and conditions, should they wish to do so.”

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Security staff have been employed for the first time at Harrogate District Hospital in response to a growing number of reports of aggressive and abusive behaviour.

The security officers work overnight, particularly focusing on the accident and emergency department, to offer reassurance to staff.

Speaking at a meeting of North Yorkshire County Council’s Harrogate and Knaresborough area constituency committee today, Jonathan Coulter, chief executive of Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust, said:

“We were always reluctant to have our own security service on the hospital site because we felt we were a health service, not anything else. I know other trusts went much more quickly into having dedicated security personnel on site.

“We have in the last six months introduced, between 7pm and 7am overnight, our own security service, which is a bit of a shame that we’ve had to do that, but it was something that made the staff feel safer, particularly in the early hours with the emergency department where Harrogate has never had a problem before, but has had an increasing problem.

“I wouldn’t say it’s anything like we get lots of these incidents, it’s a handful of incidents but they don’t need to happen very often for it to be disturbing and for people to get concerned about it.”

Mr Coulter was responding to a question from Cllr Michael Schofield, who said he had read about an increase in verbal abuse from patients and visitors when they were asked to wear face masks.

Cllr Schofield, a Liberal Democrat who represents Harlow & St George’s division, added:

“I find it quite alarming that staff and volunteers have to deal with this situation.”

Mr Coulter said compliance with mask-wearing was “amazingly” high early in the pandemic and at the beginning of each lockdown, but had dropped since then and some volunteers were being verbally abused for asking people to put on masks.

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A Harrogate lawyer has issued legal advice to companies wrestling with the thorny issue of whether to give staff time off to watch the World Cup.

Football fever is building after England’s 6-2 opening match defeat of Iran on Monday.

Many games are taking place during UK office hours, prompting firms to consider the best way to handle the situation.

James Austin, a partner and employment law specialist at LCF Law in Harrogate, said many firms wanted to be flexible to foster goodwill but “some staff may feign illness or try to book holidays”.

He said it was sensible for companies to inform staff what is allowed and what is expected, adding:

“It’s important to remember that normal holiday rules apply, but businesses may want to relax the rules if they think they will be quieter during certain matches. It could also be a nice way to reward employees who will be grateful and give even more back to the business in return.”

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Mr Austin said no business had to let staff watch matches but if they allowed them to do so at work they “must check that the required license is in place and carry out a risk assessment”, adding:

“Employees of different nationalities must be treated equally as allowing England fans to watch England games but not allowing Welsh fans to watch Welsh games, for example, could lead to claims of discrimination.

“Employees should be reminded that they are still at work, so are expected to behave professionally and that derogatory comments about different nationalities, or sexist or racist remarks will not be tolerated and may result in disciplinary action.

“Employers should also carefully consider whether to allow alcohol to be drunk during matches viewed in the workplace and bear in mind the problems this may cause.”

Sick leave and working from home

Mr Austin warned companies to be wary of taking action against staff who phone in sick. He said:

“Whilst managers may have their suspicions about an employee being sick on certain match days, whether any action can be taken will depend on any evidence that they were not truly sick.

He added holding back to work interviews, for all sickness absence, can help deter people from feigning sickness.

He also cautioned firms against being heavy-handed against staff working from home who they suspect are tuned into matches.

“If a business chooses to monitor work output via technology and monitoring system logins, they will need to comply with data protection rules including GDPR. This will involve informing staff in advance of what they intend to do and why, as well as how long they will retain any information.

“An alternative approach could be for managers to send a reminder that watching football during working hours is not acceptable and may result in disciplinary action.”

Harrogate Business Improvement District manager Matthew Chapman will leave the organisation in November to take up a new position at North Yorkshire Council.

Mr Chapman, who took up the role in May last year, was previously Leeds BID operations manager in 2016 before becoming Huddersfield’s BID manager in November 2019.

Businesses within Harrogate’s town centre pay the BID 1.5% of their rateable value a year on top of their usual business rates.

Harrogate BID brings in around £500,000 from local firms, which it spends on projects to improve the town and increase the number of visitors.

During Mr Chapman’s 18 months in Harrogate, BID campaigns include power washing 80,000 square metres of the town centre, painting drab walls with colourful murals and buying over 500 pieces of outdoor furniture for businesses to use.

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He is set to take up a managerial role within North Yorkshire Council, which is the new council that will replace Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire County Council from April.

Harrogate BID chair Sara Ferguson paid tribute to Mr Chapman in a statement and said the search for his replacement had begun.

“Since joining us in May 2021, Matt has been a highly effective, dedicated and extremely popular BID manager. I have certainly enjoyed our working relationship, and that is echoed by all my fellow directors.

“During his time with us, he has become one of the most recognised faces in the town centre. He’s built terrific relationships with the district and county councils, business organisations and business owners and their employees.

“We will be extremely sorry to see Matt go, but the good news for us, and the town centre, is that he will continue to play a role within the organisation, offering guidance and support to the board and BID team, within a part-time role to aid the recruitment process and ensure a smooth transition and handover.

“The BID team is now primed to continue delivering the high impact projects which benefit the town as a whole, and the job of finding Matt’s replacement has now begun.”

The turnover of Harrogate Borough Council staff has been described as “uncomfortably high” as the authority enters its final months.

A combination of uncertainty over jobs and rising living costs resulting in staff leaving for higher salaries has led to a turnover rate of 16% at the council, which will be abolished in April.

The rate is calculated from the number of leavers as a percentage of total staff – and is up from 10% in 2020/21.

It comes as the council is preparing to hand over all of its responsibilities to a new unitary authority covering the whole of North Yorkshire in what will mark the biggest change to local government in the county in almost 50 years.

Cllr Graham Swift, deputy leader of Harrogate Borough Council, told a meeting on Wednesday that it was “no surprise” staff were looking for new opportunities – despite them being given reassurances about their roles.

He said:

“Sixteen percent is starting to get uncomfortably high.

“Although all eight councils involved in the local government reforms have made it very clear about the plans and TUPE needs for staff in the future, uncertainty is one of the few things humans manage poorly.

“It is not a surprise therefore that you see some people are not necessarily comfortable in an uncertain world.”

The council has over 1,000 staff – and a total of 146 have left over the past 12 months.

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The departments which have seen the highest percentage of leavers include organisational development and improvement, Harrogate Convention Centre, and place-shaping and economic growth.

ICT, legal and finance perform the best at staff retention.

As well as the high turnover, the council has struggled to recruit staff because of competition from the private sector.

This has been the case since the start of the covid outbreak in 2020 when the council introduced a recruitment freeze to keep costs down during the pandemic.

Pay concerns

Union officials have also complained that council jobs are unattractive because of pay.

David Houlgate, secretary at the Harrogate branch of Unison, previously said: 

“Local government pay must be increased to match the cost of living squeeze our members are now experiencing on the back of year-on-year below inflation pay increases.

“Without a decent above inflation pay rise to help workers meet soaring costs, vital council services will struggle to hang on to skilled staff which could put some services at risk.

“Indeed this is already happening.”

Almost all council workers except some senior staff have been told they will transfer across to the new North Yorkshire Council under Transfer of Undertakings Protection of Employment (TUPE) regulations.

Those which won’t include the current eight chief executives whose roles will be subsumed into one. That top job is to be taken on by Richard Flinton who was appointed into the role this week.

Mr Flinton, who is the current chief executive of North Yorkshire County Council, will receive a salary of between £180,000 to £197,000 and have responsibility for an annual budget of £1.4 billion and a workforce of 10,500 staff.

North Yorkshire County Council leaders have pledged they will not be “printing money” to boost its workforce’s wages despite facing its highest staff turnover on record and struggling to recruit staff .

A meeting of the council, which employs some 15,000 people, heard that many staff had left for higher salaries, resulting in a turnover rate of nearly 16 per cent.

The Tory-led authority’s executive heard the county’s significantly lower unemployment level than the region was exacerbating the recruitment issue, and despite launching innovative recruitment campaigns finding staff remained “a significant challenge”.

Liberal Democrat group leader Cllr Bryn Griffiths said that because local government pay had been “significantly suppressed” over austerity and recent pay rises had been outstripped by the private sector. it was not surprising the council had an issue with filling job vacancies.

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Cllr Gareth Dadd, the authority’s finance boss, replied the council had to find a way to respond to workforce competition,

He added while the council had set aside £375,000 in bonuses to boost social care recruitment, “it’s no good just printing money”.

Gareth Dadd

He said it was important the council highlighted the benefits of working in the public sector, adding: 

“Sooner or later local government generally has got to recognise that perhaps its policies and offer isn’t in many cases what it was 40 years ago, we are competing with the private sector.”

Condemning the RMT union’s railway strike as “absolutely disgraceful”, Cllr Dadd said the cost of living crisis was not just confined to transport workers.

He revealed a cost of living crisis action plan would be considered by the authority’s executive next month, coupled with a revised list of priorities, such as council tax reductions, benefits and revenues.

Cllr Dadd said: 

“From that I am confident we will see our priority will be helping those that are really struggling. It is only a small part, but nonetheless it flags up the commitment.”

People in crisis

The meeting heard the council’s Local Assistance Fund, designed to help people in crisis, would be used as part of the initiative, and while the fund had spent almost £200,000 more than its £675,000 budget last year, it would not be capped.

Stronger communities executive member Cllr David Chance said: 

“If there is a need we will consider it.”

He said the council was working in numerous ways to help with the crisis.

Alongside the council injecting funds into the Citizens Advice network, school holidays programmes and a domestic property improvement scheme to reduce fuel bills, and as petrol prices continue to soar trading standards officers were visiting numerous “more remote petrol stations to ensure the equipment they use it accurate”.

He said the authority’s Income Maximisation Service, which works to ensure residents receive the best benefits they can from government, has gained about £45 million in additional funds for the county’s residents.