Yorkshire agricultural society Archives - Page 5 of 6

Meet the showground heroes boosting Harrogate’s vaccine programme

About 20,000 people are expected to receive booster jabs at Harrogate’s Great Yorkshire Showground between December 6 and 22. Another 35,000 are set to follow in the New Year.

Most people who go agree it’s a slick, well-run operation. That it works so well is down to the efforts of 50 staff and 60 volunteers behind the life-saving operation.

The Stray Ferret spoke to some of those on site this week. The 60 volunteers are divided into four teams of 15 volunteers a day supplied on alternate days by community groups Boroughbridge Community Care, Harrogate and District Community Action, Nidderdale Plus and Knaresborough Connectors.

The Boroughbridge team, led by volunteer coordinator Jan Seymour, was on duty when we visited.

Ms Seymour was holding a box of chocolates, donated by a patient. All such gifts get shared between the helpers. She jokes:

“The people we like most are the ones that bring us chocolate and cake!

Jan Seymour

The set-up at the Yorkshire Event Centre is the same as it was from February to August this year when some 120,000 first and second dose vaccines were administered.

The volunteers remain relentlessly cheerful and helpful but there is a wearier feel to the place than there was in spring. Ms Seymour says:

“When we opened in February everyone was absolutely desperate to get it. Now the attitude is ‘I’m a bit busy today, can I come tomorrow?'”.

Volunteers typically do half a day each, either from 8am to 1pm or 1pm to 6pm. They meet and greet people, direct traffic and take people to one of the 16 vaccination pods, which can cater for up to eight vaccinators. Ms Seymour says:

“During lockdown it was easy to get volunteers but recently it’s become harder. Some people are back at work and many volunteers are older people who have childcare duties.

“The majority of patients are absolutely wonderful. They could not be more thankful. We get the odd one who isn’t. One guy had a go at me on Monday when he said ‘why can’t I go to my doctor for this? But that’s unusual. Most people are great.”

Staffing fatigue

Yorkshire Health Network, which is a federation of the 17 GP practices in the Harrogate district, manages the vaccination sites at Harrogate and Ripon racecourse.

Tim Yarrow, operations manager for the network, says the Harrogate site can handle greater numbers of walk-in patients because of its size and abundant parking.

Tim Yarrow

The quietest time, he says, is early to mid afternoon, then numbers soar towards the end of the day as many people try to get in at the end of their working days. The decision to allow walk-ins this week sparked a surge of visitors with queues of up to an hour at peak times.

Mr Yarrow says:

“We set this up in one-and-a-half days. It was easier second time round. We knew the snagging points from last time.

“The main challenge is staffing fatigue. During lockdown we had a lot of people with not a lot else to do. As people have gone back to their day jobs their availability has become more sparse.”

Yorkshire Agricultural Society, which owns the site, has “bent over backwards to enable it to happen”, says Mr Yarrow. When the site re-opens in January, jabs will take place in another building at the showground so the society can resume holding events in the Yorkshire Event Centre.

Moderna provided

Barnaby Roe, general manager of Yorkshire Health Network, oversees the operation at the showground.

In a makeshift office on site, he explains that the 50 staff are comprised of GP practice staff, who are helping for free on their days off, members of Yorkshire Health Network, pharmacists, pharmacist technicians and nurses. Half work the morning shift and half work in the afternoon.

“This programme will be for 20,000 to December 22 then going forward we think it will be another 35,000.”

Barnaby Roe

The site is giving doses of the Moderna booster but also administers some Pfizer jabs to children from immunosuppressed families.

“The people who work here have done it for some time and it’s down to a fine art.”

Booster appointments can be booked at the showground here. The site provided some walk-in appointments this week for over-18s who were eligible for jabs and has yet to decide whether they will be available next week.

Harrogate’s Great Yorkshire Show to remain four-day event

The Great Yorkshire Show in Harrogate is to remain a four-day event next year.

Event organisers Yorkshire Agricultural Society confirmed today next year’s show will be held from July 12 to July 15.

The event was first held over four days for the first time ever this year in order to comply with covid regulations.

It meant a significantly reduced capacity each day but the format proved popular with tickets selling out. Prince Charles paid a surprise visit in glorious sunshine.

Next year’s show will follow the same measures, including limits on attendance and tickets being purchased in advance.

The daily programme of events will be finalised early next year.

Nigel Pulling, chief executive of the society said:

“The pandemic forced us to change the way we did things at the show and there was not one section of the Great Yorkshire Show that was unchanged. This pressed a reset button on our whole operations and some of these changes were so successful, they are here to stay.

“Spreading the event over four days was met with an overwhelmingly positive response from our exhibitors, visitors and staff. Visitors felt that more space to navigate the showground made their whole show experience more enjoyable, while for exhibitors, four days and shorter hours meant they felt less pressurised.”

Tickets will be on sale from November 1.

Yorkshire Agricultural Society chief executive to retire in March

The chief executive of Yorkshire Agricultural Society is set to retire after 20 years in charge.

Nigel Pulling will step down from his role in March 2022.

Mr Pulling joined the society in 2001, when the Great Yorkshire Show was cancelled due to the foot and mouth disease outbreak.

It was the first time show had been cancelled other than for the two world wars. The show was then also cancelled after one day in 2012 due to torrential rain and didn’t take place at all last year due to covid.

Mr Pulling has overseen commercial projects such as the building of Fodder, the Regional Agricultural Centre (the society’s headquarters) and the multi-million pound rebuild of hall one in the Yorkshire Event Centre.

This year, he oversaw the Great Yorkshire Show return amid the covid pandemic. Prince Charles was among the guests at this year’s four-day event.

Mr Pulling said there were similarities between the event and the show held in 2002.

He said:

“We overcame the tough challenges on both occasions to deliver successful Great Yorkshire Shows and I couldn’t have ended my tenure on a better show.

“We were devastated to cancel last year and despite the challenges and restrictions placed on this year’s event, it was an incredible achievement for the team. The atmosphere of celebration and enjoyment from both the farming community and visitors was second to none.”

Mr Pulling added:

“I leave my role on a high, the Great Yorkshire Show is in a strong position ready for next year.

“Events are returning to the showground after this difficult 18 months, the charitable activities team is stronger than ever before in its support for farming families and promotion of agriculture to the next generation – and I know it will go from strength to strength.”

Rob Copley, chairman of trustees said:

“Nigel has been a real asset, he is hugely respected in the industry and his leadership has taken the society up to the next level.

“On behalf of all the trustee and council members past and present I want to thank him for all his hard work, determination and expertise.”

Children learn about food at Summerbridge farm

Schoolchildren enjoyed a different kind of lesson today when they visited a Summerbridge farm to learn how food goes from the field to the dinner plate.

The children visited Birchfield Ice Cream Farm as part of a new initiative from Yorkshire Agricultural Society.

The society launched the Farm to Fork campaign to teach the younger generations about farming, food and the countryside.

The children, from Ashfield Primary School in Otley, enjoyed a trailer ride around the farm as the Whitley family, who run the farm, explained how they look after animals.

The children also got to see farm’s cows, pigs and hens up close as well as visit the farm’s dairy parlour to see how ice cream is made.

Sarah Whitley, of Birchfield Ice Cream Farm, said:

“We’ve loved hosting Ashfield Primary School with the Yorkshire Agricultural Society and hope the children have come away with a real insight into how farmers produce food and look after their animals and crops.”

The children meet the animals.

Ben Nowell, class teacher at Ashfield Primary School, said:

“As a teacher, we try to teach the children to make the best choice they believe in with the information that they have.

“We believe it is important for children to understand where their food comes from and how it is made so they can make informed, healthy decisions for themselves.”

Today’s visit is one of several organised throughout the year. The campaign was launched by the society during last year’s first lockdown.

Nigel Pulling, chief executive of the society, said:

“It is so important to educate new generations about where their food comes from and our Farm to Fork visits are great opportunities to do exactly that.

“Yorkshire has such a wonderful farming story to share and the earlier we can get this message across to children the better.”

Extra safety measures announced for Great Yorkshire Show

Further control measures have been announced today for next week’s Great Yorkshire Show in Harrogate following the increase in Delta variant covid cases.

The Yorkshire Agricultural Society, the farming charity that organises the event, has been working with public health officials at North Yorkshire County Council and Harrogate Borough Council to discuss measures.

It means the 162nd show will be held mainly outdoors and considerably different to previous ones.

Capacity has been limited to a maximum of 26,000 people a day to minimise crowding and to ensure social distancing.

It means about 104,000 people are expected to attend from Tuesday to Friday as opposed to the usual 135,000 that pass through the gates over three days.

Opening hours have been extended from 8.00am to 6.00pm to allow visitors to arrive and leave in a more staggered way to avoid queues.

Ticket sales were temporarily halted while the capacity numbers were finalised, and the final raft of tickets are now on sale via the Great Yorkshire Show website.

Lateral flow tests

Visitors are encouraged to have a lateral flow covid test before they arrive and to download the NHS app before arriving in order to be able to scan QR codes where necessary, such as in hospitality areas.

People working at the show, including catering and trade stands, will be required to have a negative lateral flow test within 24 hours before arriving at the Great Yorkshire Showground.

Tickets can only be bought in advance only and should be printed out as e-tickets. They will not be on sale on the gates.

This year most of the event will be held outdoors and it has been extended to run over four days for the first time in its history.

Show director Charles Mills said:

“This will be a very special Great Yorkshire Show and one we are all so looking forward to after these difficult times.

“It will be a slightly different show to normal but we have done our best to bring you an event which will fly the flag for farming and celebrate our industry.”

Richard Webb, North Yorkshire County Council’s director of health and adult services, said:

“We, along with partners from Harrogate Borough Council, have been working very closely for some months with the Great Yorkshire Show organisers and Public Health England to make sure the event is as safe and successful as possible, being mindful ofcCovid transmission rates and national restrictions.

“However, we recognise the importance of the show, not only for the people of North Yorkshire and Yorkshire but also for the farming community which has played such a vital role during the pandemic with food supplies and keeping the whole supply chain going.”

Sections that will not feature in this year’s show include the fashion show, the WI stand, the pole climbing competition and the cookery theatre in the food hall although the game cookery theatre will go ahead as usual.

Other safety measures this year

• Track and Trace at hospitality points
• Grandstand capacity reduced to 25% – 30% with tickets purchased in advance
• Extra security to disperse any crowding
• One way system around the Food Hall
• Hall 2 closed to public although the entrance will be a celebrity meet & greet
• Face coverings to be worn in all indoor areas, including toilets and the grandstand, and encouraged when in queues
• Enhanced cleaning
• Table service only at bar areas

Great Yorkshire Show to go ahead

The organisers of the Great Yorkshire Show in Harrogate have confirmed the event will go ahead next month after all.

The event appeared in doubt after the government announced on Monday that existing social distancing restrictions will continue until July 19.

The extended period included the show, which is scheduled to take place from July 13 to 16.

This led to two days of uncertainty before this afternoon’s statement from the Yorkshire Agricultural Society, which organises the event. It said:

“We are delighted to announce that the Great Yorkshire Show will take place as planned despite the delay to ending coronavirus restrictions.

“The Great Yorkshire Show was planned under social distancing measures and we are continuing to work closely with North Yorkshire County Council public health to deliver a covid-safe show.

“We are discussing some of the details which may require additional measures to be put in place.

“We have already adapted the show so that most of it is held outdoors this year and it’s been extended to run over four days for the first time in its history.”

Great Yorkshire Show still waiting to hear if it can go ahead

The organisers of the Great Yorkshire Show have issued a statement saying it is still awaiting confirmation that the event can go ahead.

The event is scheduled to take place in Harrogate from July 13 to 16.

All social distancing measures were due to be lifted next week but Prime Minister Boris Johnson said last night current restrictions would remain until July 19.

Twenty-four hours after Mr Johnson’s announcement, the impact of this on the show remains unclear.

The Yorkshire Agricultural Society, the agricultural charity that organises the event, has already included various social distancing measures into this year’s planning.

They include holding the show over four days, rather than three, capping daily visitor numbers to 25,000, reducing the grandstand capacity to 30% and adapting the show to use as much outdoor space as possible.

In a statement today, the society said:

“Further to the Prime Minister’s announcement on Monday night, we continue to await confirmation from North Yorkshire County Council public health that we can deliver this year’s Great Yorkshire Show as planned.

“What we can say is that the Great Yorkshire Show has been fully adapted to be covid-safe and we have been working with the relevant agencies every step of the way.

“The show has also been endorsed by Visit England as part of its Good to Go campaign.

“Measures include adapting the show so most of it is held outdoors this year and extending it to run over four days for the first time in its history.

“A full list of measures are here and these were always going to be in place whether lockdown was extended or not.

“Please bear with us while we await news, and a statement will go out as soon as we have a definitive answer.”

Great Yorkshire Show ‘monitoring situation’ as lockdown announcement looms

The organisers of the Great Yorkshire Show have said they are “monitoring the national situation” ahead of tonight’s government announcement on lockdown.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson is to give a news conference at 6pm tonight.

All social distancing measures are due to be lifted on June 21 but Mr Johnson is expected to say current restrictions will remain in place for four more weeks until July 19.

The Great Yorkshire Show is scheduled to take place from July 13 to 16 so the announcement could impact on its plans.

However, the Yorkshire Agricultural Society, the agricultural charity that organises the event, has already included various social distancing measures into this year’s planning.

This has raised hopes the event will be able to proceed as planned but the situation should become clearer after the ramifications of tonight’s announcement are known.

In a statement today, the society said:

“The Great Yorkshire Show is monitoring the national situation and we are awaiting details from tonight’s announcement.

“We continue to work closely with North Yorkshire County Council public health and Harrogate Borough Council.”

Continuing the best-known name in the Harrogate district

There are few better known names in the Harrogate district than Theakston.

Robert Theakston started brewing beer in Masham in 1827 and his great-great grandson Simon continues the tradition today.

Simon is joint managing director of T & R Theakston, one of two major breweries in the picturesque market town. His cousin, Paul, is in charge of the other one — Black Sheep Brewery.

Despite his strong Masham connections, Mr Theakston is well placed to appraise recent developments in the wider Harrogate district: he lives near Boroughbridge, went to school in Harrogate and represented the Conservatives on Harrogate Borough Council for four terms. He was also chairman of Yorkshire Agricultural Society, the agricultural charity that organises the Great Yorkshire Show, from 2008 to 2016.

But nothing in his long career prepared him for the potentially ruinous overnight impact of covid when the first lockdown began in March. He says;

“We had cellars full of beer that people couldn’t buy and ended up pouring it away.

“Overnight we lost 80% of business. That required us to rethink our business model, baton down the hatches and put ourselves in a position where we could survive as long as possible.”

The furlough scheme saved jobs and the company rapidly converted its visitor centre at the brewery into a fulfilment centre for online orders — something a company that prides itself on tradition had not overly pursued until then. He says:

“Online orders have gone up by a factor of 100, albeit from a modest base.”

Family tradition

The visitor centre is due to reopen on June 21 if the lingering restrictions on pubs are lifted. Monday’s decision will be critical for the industry. Mr Theakston, who is married with two grown-up children, says:

“It’s nice having people going into gardens and seated at tables but it’s much better when people can move freely in pubs.”

Nevertheless, so far the company has survived covid with its 35 staff still intact. It seems a surprisingly low number of employees for an organisation that sells into 20 countries but the business model involves collaborating with other firms, such as Heineken, which handles distribution.

Mr Theakston describes the company as “a medium-sized traditional family brewing company.” And, for all the difficulties of the past year, he remains optimistic.

“Our industry has been through difficulties in the past. We’ve come through two world wars, revolution in Europe, the great crash of the 1930s and all sorts of issues since the Second World War and it just goes to show the robustness of what we do.

“As long as individuals want to meet other people, the role of the pub will continue to be the centre of society.”

Local politics

The future for Harrogate Borough Council, however, is less secure. The local authority, on which he represented Harlow Moor until 2018, is set to be abolished as part of the national government’s devolution agenda. Mr Theakston supports the single council model for North Yorkshire championed by North Yorkshire County Council rather than the east-west split favoured by his former council colleagues in Harrogate. He explains:

“North Yorkshire County Council currently provides about 80% of our services so it wouldn’t be a massive change for it to pick up the pieces. I’m not a fan of lots of layers of bureaucracy.”

Harrogate Borough Council is pursuing numerous active travel plans, such as the £7.9m Station Gateway project and the pedestrianisation of James Street, to reduce traffic and encourage people to walk and cycle. The plans have proved controversial — does he support them?

“I don’t want to see Harrogate being completely pedestrianised because it will end up like any other town in the country. The idea of being able to pop into town is appealing to people like the elderly. Let’s have a bit of pedestrianisation but not lose the ability to drive into town.

“Harrogate’s such a special town and everything we did during my time on the council was to maintain it as special.”

It has been a difficult year for another organisation close to Mr Theakston’s heart — Yorkshire Agricultural Society — which decided to proceed with the Great Yorkshire Show next month when many other events have been cancelled. Was he surprised?

“The Yorkshire Agricultural Society is nothing if not pragmatic. They will be responding to the demands of exhibitions and members of the public who want to go. It’s more than an agricultural show — it’s our county show.”

Crime and cricket

The Theakston name has also become synonymous with the annual crime writing festival organised by the arts charity Harrogate International Festivals. Under its sponsorship, the festival brings many of the leading names of the genre to the town each year.

Arts and brewing may seem an unlikely match but Mr Theakston talks of beer “providing the social lubricant that lets people enjoy being with other people” and the ventures the company supports also encourage people to mingle convivially.

Recently it has also sponsored poet Ben Taylor, also known as Yorkshire Prose, to wax lyrical about the a pint being a metaphor for social interaction.

Mr Theakston is a huge cricket lover so it’s perhaps no coincidence his company sponsors the Nidderdale Amateur Cricket League and the annual National Village Cup in which some 340 villages compete for the chance to play in the final at Lord’s.

It’s little wonder the name Theakston perhaps vies with Bettys as the most well known in the district — and at least we know for certain the Theakstons exist.

There was a time when its familiarity may have faded. The family relinquished control of the business in the 1990s before buying it back in 2003, and Mr Theakston pledges it will remain in the family, in the heart of Masham.

Can he foresee the day when the business no longer consumes his professional life?

“I haven’t thought too much about when I retire. It’s still a huge passion.”

First ever four-day Great Yorkshire Show confirmed

The organisers of the Great Yorkshire Show in Harrogate confirmed today this year’s event will take place over four days for the first time.

The Stray Ferret exclusively revealed yesterday that major changes to the format, which included adding a day, were due to be announced.

The Yorkshire Agricultural Society confirmed the news in a newsletter to members this morning.

“We can now reveal that the show will take place between Tuesday 13 July and Friday 16 July, from 8am to 5pm each day, if it is safe to do so.”

The show usually takes place from 7.30am to 7.30pm on Tuesdays and Wednesdays but finishes an hour earlier on Thursdays.

The newsletter added the event will only go ahead “if the government’s roadmap out of coronavirus restrictions remains unchanged”.

It said government guidelines on large gatherings after June 21 would be informed by a series of pilot events taking place during spring.

“However, we do anticipate there will be a strict cap on the number of people allowed to gather at large events and so by adding a fourth day, more visitors will have the chance to attend safely.”

Read more:

The Stray Ferret understands the number of daily visitors will be restricted to between 20,000 and 25,000 — well below the usual 44,000 average.

in a subsequent press release, Charles Mills, honorary show director, said:

“We are thrilled by the response to our plans for the show this year in what we know will not quite be normal circumstances.

“We do expect there to be a limit on how many people can attend on any one day of the show and so for the first time in our history we believe the best option is to offer a four-day event.”

“There will be some changes this year, but we want to deliver as much of a normal show as restrictions allow, and it remains our position that the Show will only go ahead if it is safe to do so.

“We understand there is an element of risk in planning for an event of such scale given the potential for restrictions to change, however we accept this and firmly believe it is well worth planning for the Show to take place.

The Stray Ferret understands livestock classes will be reduced, just one event hall will be open, and facemasks will also have to be worn inside marquees.

https://twitter.com/greatyorkshow/status/1377191451541577731

Tickets must be purchased in advance and will be available from June 1.

Ripley Show, which was scheduled for August 4, was cancelled on the grounds that the “proposed conditions are near impossible to comply with on the show ground”.