A fall from a horse in 1958 which left Baroness Masham of Ilton paraplegic ultimately contributed to her death, an inquest has heard.
The Baroness, who also held the title Countess of Swinton, died from sepsis on March 12 this year, four weeks after being admitted with breathlessness.
Her inquest in Northallerton today heard a statement from Dr David Spence, a consultant at the Friarage Hospital in Northallerton. In a statement read to the court, he said:
“She developed sepsis which failed to respond to antibiotics. She was placed on end of life care.”
The inquest heard Baroness Masham, who was born Susan Lilian Primrose Sinclair, had been competing in an event in Cirencester when her horse took a jump badly. She fell and her horse landed on her, leaving her with a fractured vertebra in her back.
As a result, she became paraplegic – yet went on to live a “full and active life”, including competing in the Paralympics and founding the Spinal Injuries Association.
She was made a life peer and continued to campaign for disability rights. She remained in generally good health, the inquest heard, until she felt unwell in February and was admitted to hospital.
Dr Spence added:
“Her paraplegia was a contributor to her general frailty in later life.”
Dr Spence said he viewed the paraplegia as an underlying factor in her death. He said she had myelodysplasia, a rare type of blood cancer where the bone marrow does not produce enough health cells, and the sepsis that developed was of unknown origin.
Her condition deteriorated after admission to hospital and she died there on March 12. She was 87.
In a statement read at the inquest, her daughter Clare said:
“The doctors and all nursing and care staff were in our opinion exemplary. Information about her treatment and care was delivered professionally, with great compassion and calmness at all times.”
Assistant coroner Alison Norton concluded her cause of death was accidental, stemming from her riding accident 65 years ago.
Baroness Masham was married to David Cunliffe Lister, who became Earl of Swinton in 1972. The couple adopted two daughters and were part of Cunliffe-Lister family, which has owned Swinton Park near Masham since the late 19th century.
New tourism body ‘not in the interests’ of North Yorkshire, says Masham councillorA councillor who owns Swinton Park Hotel near Masham has said a new tourism body for North Yorkshire is “not in the interests” of the hospitality sector.
Felicity Cunliffe-Lister, the Liberal Democrat councillor for Masham and Fountains, said an organisation should be created for the whole of Yorkshire instead.
Cllr Cunliffe-Lister was speaking at a full meeting of North Yorkshire Council on Wednesday.
The council is coordinating a new tourism strategy to boost the county’s £1.5 billion tourism industry, which is home to popular destinations like Castle Howard, Fountains Abbey and Bettys tea rooms.
A draft destination management plan is due to be finalised by the end of June before a bid is submitted to government to become a Local Visitor Economy Partnership, which would open the door for funding.
LVEPs are replacing destination management organisations, such as the former Harrogate Borough Council’s Destination Harrogate, following an independent review.
Visit Hull and East Yorkshire was awarded LVEP status last month and Cllr Cunliffe-Lister said having more than one LVEP in Yorkshire risked wasting taxpayers’ money as LVEPs would compete against each other to attract tourists.
The councillor also referred to Welcome To Yorkshire, the tourism body for Yorkshire that entered administration in 2022 following a high-profile expenses scandal. It still exists but is no longer funded by public money and is now owned by private business Silicon Dales.
Cllr Cunliffe-Lister said:
“The Yorkshire brand is well-established and well-regarded nationally and internationally. It’s not in interests of the hospitality sector that this is fragmented.
“Should North Yorkshire achieve LVEP status it will not deliver value for money if it is then used to be pitched as a competitor destination against East Yorkshire or other regions in Yorkshire.
“What is being done to establish a generic county-wide brand that all regions will subscribe to and support and what steps are being taken to co-ordinate with other councils to achieve this?”
In response, Conservative executive member for open to business, Derek Bastiman, said “work is being carried out on that” but added it will take time as the council is still only in its second month of existence.
Cllr Bastiman added that workshops were taking place across North Yorkshire for people and councillors to add their input into the new tourism strategy.
He added:
“It’s vitally important as much work is done on the coast as is done in the Craven area to Richmondshire or Selby.“
Speaking this month, Conservative council leader Carl Les called the development of the new tourism strategy a “major milestone“ for the authority.
He said:
Guide to bonfire and fireworks displays in the Harrogate district“We have such a breadth of tourism businesses and attractions which we can be rightly proud of, but we want to ensure that the sector can grow and flourish in the future and help support the region’s wider economy.“
This story is sponsored by Belmont Grosvenor School which will be holding a Bonfire Night Party on Friday, November 4. There will be s’mores round the campfire, music, hot food, a licensed bar, stalls and more. Gates open at 6pm, the bonfire will be lit at 6.30pm and the firework display starts at 7.20pm.
Tickets can be purchased at the gate and cost £10 for adults (children under the age of 18 are free). Get them in advance by emailing kaye.walker@bewonder.co.uk.
Bonfire night is fast approaching so we have put together a list of events coming up in the Harrogate district.
They all take place over the weekend of November 4, 5 and 6.
Let us know if we have missed your event and we will add it to the list. Email contact@thestrayferret.co.uk or call us on 01423 276197.
Belmont Grosvenor School Bonfire Party
Where: Belmont Grosvenor School, Swarcliffe Hall, Birstwith, Harrogate, North Yorkshire, HG3 2JG
When: 6pm start, 6.30pm fire lit, 7.20pm firework display
Tickets: £10 with children under the age of 18 entering for free
Ripon Rowels Rotary Charity Bonfire and Firework Display
Where: Ripon Racecourse, Boroughbridge Road, Ripon, HG4 1UG
When: 5.30pm start, 7pm fire lit, 7.30pm firework display
Tickets: adults £6, children £3, family (2 adult, 2 child) £12, under 3s free
Spofforth Village Firework Display
Where: Spofforth Cricket Ground, School Lane, Spofforth, HG3 1BA
When: Gates open 5pm, 7pm-7.15pm firework display.
Tickets: Family pre-paid £12:50 and on the gate £15. Adult pre-paid £4 and on the gate £5. Child pre-paid £2:50 and on the gate £3.
Swinton Bivouac Silent Bonfire Night
Where: Swinton Bivouac, Masham, Ilton, Ripon, HG4 4JZ
When: 6.30pm bonfire lit. There will be no fireworks or loud bangs.
Tickets: free entry, food and drinks available from the Bivouac Café
Aspin Park Academy Fireworks Night, Knaresborough
Where: School grounds
When: 5.15pm start, 6.30pm firework display
Tickets: Advance online booking – adults £4, children £3, family ticket £12, preschoolers free. On the gate – adults £5, children £4
Harrogate Stray Bonfire and Fireworks, Harrogate Round Table
Where: Oatlands Stray, Harrogate, HG1 1BJ
When: 5pm start (there will be entertainment), bonfire lit 5.30pm, 7.15pm firework display
Tickets: free entry, donations welcome
Upper Nidderdale Scouts Group Pateley Bonfire
Where: Pateley Bridge Showground
When: 6pm start, 6.30pm torchlit procession and bonfire lit, 7pm fireworks
Tickets: free entry, donations welcome
Kirkby Malzeard community village bonfire
Where: North Close Farm, Ripon Road, Kirkby Malzeard
When: 6pm start, 6.30pm bonfire lit, 7pm fireworks
Tickets: Free entry but donations welcome to fund next year’s event. Parking is available at North Close Farm. No sparklers allowed. Bring a torch.
Yolk Farm Bonfire and Burger Night – dog-friendly
Where: Yolk Farm, Minskip Road, Minskip, York, YO51 9HY
When: 5.30pm start, 6.30pm bonfire lit, no fireworks
Tickets: free entry for the event, advanced bookings only for Burger Night in the restaurant – 5:30pm and 8pm sittings
Staveley Arms Bonfire
Where: The Staveley Arms, Greenfields, North Stainley, Ripon, HG4 3HT
When: 6pm
Tickets: £5 per person to include a choice of hot dog or cup of soup
Business Breakfast is sponsored by Harrogate law firm Truth Legal.
Two hotels in the Harrogate district have won national awards.
Grantley Hall in Ripon won hotel of the year for 2022/23 at the AA Hotel and Hospitality Awards.
Meanwhile, Swinton Estate near Masham won the sustainable award at the ceremony, which was held at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London.
Iain Shelton, chief executive at Swinton, said:
“We are delighted to be recognised for the work we are doing and look forward with working with the AA over the next 12 months in championing sustainability and launching their new initiatives.”
A Harrogate company has been awarded £762,522 of government funding to carry out a project to make heat pumps cheaper.
GenGame, which is based at Hornbeam Park, has outlined a scheme to use data from smart meters to help optimise the running of a heat pump in a household energy system.
The project comes as part of funding from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.
A total of 24 projects in England and Scotland have won funding in the second round of the Heat Pump Ready programme.
Lord Callanan, business and energy minister, said:
How to beat the Blue Monday blues: Top tips from a Harrogate life coach“In light of rising global gas and oil prices, getting low-carbon heating technology into homes is a priority for this government as it will help households ditch the costly fossil fuels that are driving up bills.
“Heat pumps are a proven, reliable technology that uses cheaper renewable energy produced in the UK.”
The festive season is over, payday seems like a lifetime away and there is often a sense of pressure to make big life changes at this time of the year.
And all of that is made worse by the fact it is still cold, dark, wet and miserable outside, with months to go until summer comes around.
So it is no surprise that Blue Monday – the ‘most depressing day of the year’ — falls in January.
Blue Monday usually falls on the third Monday of January, which this year is the 17th.
It appears to have originated in 2005 after a press release from Sky Travel used an equation to calculate the dreaded date.
So what should we do this year to beat those Blue Monday blues?
Harrogate life coach Lisa Duffield, owner of the Lisa Duffield Centre, has four tips.
“I wanted to share a little insight I have found within the clients I work with.
“Individuals that are suffering from what is branded the ‘January blues’ are all so focused on comparison.
“Comparison of this month to last month, this year to last year…
“You and your family’s goals or plans, compared to the family next door, or the family who you spend all your time watching on Instagram that you will never meet. And from this insight I bring you my first pill-free prescription to beat the case of January blues.
“Comparison is the single biggest waste of your time.
“Next time you find yourself comparing yourself to others or your life to others etc. just stop take a breath and if you insist on comparing yourself at all, think about you, how far have you come, what have you learned since yesterday, last year or even an hour ago.”
Harrogate life coach, Lisa Duffield.
“January blues can also shine through goal setting and unrealistic expectations.
“For some reason many of us believe that when the clock strikes 12 on January 1, you change into a new person, fitter, healthier, wealthier.
“Old traditions even show that we wish our first foot “all the wealth, health and happiness” for the New Year. While this is very kind, it does not mean that you have to become an overnight fitness fad and a self-made billionaire.
“Here comes the second tip, make realistic goals that you know you are able to achieve.
“You may have a big dream and that is amazing, but break it down into incremental chunks.
“Make smaller goals that you know will get to. They could be ‘eat more green veg’ or ‘move for an extra 30 minutes per day’, rather than ‘complete a bodybuilding competition and win in three months’.”
“Spend time with those who make you happy.
“Over Christmas many of us spend a lot of time with family and friends, we make the effort to go and see relatives that we haven’t seen since the year previous, or we say Merry Christmas to people in the street and smile.
“This makes us happy because we have also made others feel happy. Why stop?
“You can still spend time with ones you love and you can still engage with people in the street. A simple good morning or hello will work wonders.”
“Last but not least. We’ve all heard it. ‘Insanity is doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting different results’.
“It’s time to try something new.
“If you are looking for a different result in 2022 and maybe you are feeling a little deflated, step out of your comfort zone and try something new.
“You will be surprised the paths this teeny act can lead to, you meet new people, learn and experience new things.”
Nidd Gorge, is one of the many scenic walks that explore nature in the Harrogate district.
In the Harrogate district, we are fortunate enough to be surrounded by stunning countryside. We really are spoilt for choice and personal favourites are Thruscross Reservoir, Nidd Gorge and Hookstone Wood. You also can’t beat a walk around the grounds at Fountains Abbey or Knaresborough waterside.
So lace up those walking boots and head out into the great outdoors. Fresh air and being amongst nature will boost your mood.
If you’re at work, grab a coffee and go for a stroll on your lunch break.
Rudding Park Spa.
If you want to really spoil yourself, book into Harrogate’s Turkish Baths or enjoy a spa session at Rudding Park, Grantley Hall or Swinton Park.
If money or time is tight, nothing beats a good bath and a book.
A ‘festival of wellbeing’ is being held in Harrogate.
While it’s not taking place on Blue Monday itself, OneWellness, in Mowbray Square, is hosting a second Festival of Wellbeing on Saturday, January 15, to help boost mental health.
The free festival from 9am until 4pm, which is being run in association with Mind Harrogate, Sweaty Betty and Hustle & Co, will offer a range of fitness, nutrition and health classes and talks.
From mindfulness and wellbeing, relax and de-stress yoga, to Pilates, barre, and dance cardio classes, the wellbeing experts at OneWellness have tailored each lesson to suit everyone and help boost physical fitness levels whilst increasing positive wellbeing.
Betty’s Harrogate.
The Harrogate district has some of the best coffee shops and tearooms in the country, including lots of amazing independents and the famous Betty’s.
Arrange to meet a friend for a catch-up and lots of laughs. After all, laughter is good for the soul. Oh and don’t forget the cake. That’s essential.
