A boy from Harrogate with a neurological condition that affects his speech and movement is now able to cycle to school in style thanks to a donation from Harrogate Lions.

Noah Maguire, 9, who has Cerebellar Hypoplasia, mastered being able to pedal on a small metal trike two years ago but his family wanted a bike with a low base of support as balance and coordination are challenging for him.

They found the K3 KMX, a reclining bike that would give Noah the freedom to enjoy cycling to school again.

Members of the Lions delivered him the bike last month and were thanked yesterday by Noah’s family who made them a special lunch.

His mum Catherine Maguire said the new bike is the “envy of all his friends” at St Robert’s Catholic Primary School where he attends.

She said:

“Words cannot begin to express our gratitude for the Harrogate Lions ongoing support for Noah. They really have played such an important role in Noah’s journey and he wouldn’t be enjoying the freedom and independence he is today without their support.”

Noah and his mum Catherine Maguire with members of Harrogate Lions

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The Lions have supported Noah to help him become more independent over the past few years.

In 2018 they funded a special play area in the family garden that has handrails and steps to practice walking. The group also funded a canopy to cover the garden so Noah can play out in rain or shine.

As Noah was prone to falling due to his condition, a rubberised play surface was built in his garden that cost £3,000.

Noah is determined to walk and medical professionals believe he can do it.

His mum Catherine added:

“Noah has now got an amazing play area in the garden where he can play football, trampoline, swing independently alongside his two siblings who also benefit from the facilities too.

“The Lions contribution within the community continues to improve the lives of so many. They will always have a special place in the hearts of the Maguire family.”

About 1,400 runners are set to take part in the Race for Life on the Stray in Harrogate tomorrow.

Women, men and children will complete 3k, 5k and 10k events to raise money for Cancer Research UK.

There is also an option to take part in Pretty Muddy, a mud-splattered obstacle course. You can enter on the day.

Road closures will be in place on Oatlands Drive and Stray Rein.

The event, which raises funds for cancer research, begins at 9.30am with the 10k. The 5k and 3k start at 11am and the Pretty Muddy events follow.

It costs adults £14.99 to enter and £10 for children.

Molly Fuchs

Molly Fuchs, who is receiving palliative treatment for secondary breast cancer, is a veteran of many Race for Life events.

Although no longer able to take part, the Settle woman urging others to sign up for the event at the Stray.

“I cannot relive the past, only appreciate the things I did and the wonderful memories I still hold close.

“Whether running, jogging or walking, Race for Life could be your stepping stone to other things – go for it and while doing so raise money for a worthwhile cause.”

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• Harrogate woman aims to complete 20 fundraising challenges

A charity worker from Harrogate has set herself 20 fundraising challenges to mark her upcoming 20th anniversary with children’s hospice Martin House.

Mary Newbegin will have been employed in the care team at Martin House for two decades on August 1.

She has been busy this month and last ticking off the challenges, which have so far generated almost £2,000 for the organisation.

They range from completing 20 aerial yoga poses to walking The Ullswater Way to learning to crochet and paddle board.

One of the challenges, organising a yoga fundraising event, will take place at 10am tomorrow on the Stray, next to Oatlands Drive.

Learning the aerial yoga poses.

Ms Newbegin, who plans to retire next year, said:

“The idea evolved as I have in the past taken part in several fundraising events for Martin House.

“These have mostly been running, including the Great North run, which I’ve done about 12 times and on occasions three-legged, and the York Marathon.

“My knees no longer thank me for running so I was trying to think of something more creative as I really wanted to do something before I retire.

“I am excited about all my challenges but most anxious about those with heights involved as I’m not so good with heights.”

You can donate to the cause here.

Abseiling in Ilkley

Two Harrogate teenagers are set to embark upon a 48 mile walk in two days in an effort to raise money for Ukraine.

Grace Brierley and her friend Elena Dickson, who are both 14, will start the walk by taking on the Knaresborough round on Saturday, July 9.

From there, they will walk the Harrogate ringway on Sunday and will be camping out in between.

Money raised will go towards United 24, an initiative set up by Volodymyr Zelenskyy, president of Ukraine, amid the war with Russia.

The charity aims to be a direct source for donations for the country and helps with medical aid, rebuilding and defence.

Grace and Elena have set up a JustGiving page as part of their walk. You can find their page here.

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Pinewoods Conservation Group is to meet representatives from Harrogate Spring Water to discuss the company’s plans to expand its bottling plant.

The French-owned firm announced last month it will revert to its original 2017 planning application, which involves felling trees in a section of the Pinewoods called Rotary Wood.

However, the number of trees felled would be less than contained in plans rejected last year by Harrogate Borough Council.

Harrogate Spring Water’s new application will propose how the lost trees will be compensated for.

The meeting is set to take place within the next few weeks. It will be the first time the charity, which protects the council-owned woodland, has met the company since it announced it was pressing ahead with the expansion.

Online platform

The charity has used online polling platform Harrogate District Consensus to find out what is and isn’t acceptable to residents with the new planning application.

At the time of publication, over 420 people have given their thoughts on issues such as how many trees the company should replant and plastic pollution and biodiversity loss.

Neil Hind, chair of Pinewoods Conservation Group, said it would bring some of the most popular statements that people have submitted to the meeting in the hopes of presenting a consensus.

He said:

“We know this is a very emotive subject, so we need a way to gather some more scientific based views from our members, visitors to the Pinewoods and Harrogate residents. This system allows people to agree or disagree with statements but also add new statements to express their own feeling on the subject.

“We hope that this will form a consensus of views and even some new thinking on this issue. We would really encourage people to get involved and make their views known. These views will then be shared with the Harrogate Spring Water and Danone management when we meet and will also be used as part of our submission to the consultation process.”

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Harrogate Spring Water’s new chief executive Richard Hall recently told the Stray Ferret the company would be “much more open” about its latest plans, which are yet to be submitted to Harrogate Borough Council.

A series of meetings with local stakeholder groups are planned and there will be an open consultation event next month.

A spokesperson for Harrogate Spring Water, whose headquarters is on Harlow Moor Road. said:

“We are starting our consultation process this month via meetings with community stakeholder groups prior to an open public consultation event which we plan to hold in July.

“We will announce details of this event shortly, but anyone who cannot come along can still have their say via a dedicated webpage at https://www.harrogatespring.com/facility-extension/”

Business Breakfast is sponsored by Harrogate law firm Truth Legal. 

Secrets of TikTok success to be shared at Harrogate networking event

A business owner who uses TikTok for recruitment will be the guest speaker at a networking event next month.

Sally Bendtson, who runs Limelight HR, became a social media sensation with her entertaining videos during the first covid lockdown.

She has used them to raise the profile of her business and, most recently, even as part of her own recruitment.

She will be sharing the secrets of her TikTok success with Business Ladies around Harrogate (BLaH) on Friday, July 1.

The group meets at William and Victoria Restaurant on Cold Bath Road, Harrogate, at 11.50am on the first Friday of each month. The speaker’s presentation is followed by informal networking over a two-course lunch, finishing at 2.30pm.

Tickets are £30 per person. For more information, visit the BLaH website.

Harrogate colleagues climb Snowdon at sunrise for Yorkshire Cancer Research

A group of Harrogate colleagues have climbed Snowdon at sunrise to help raise funds for Yorkshire Cancer Research.

The employees from Belzona hiked up the highest mountain in Wales as part of their year-long fundraising for the charity.

Lily Alexander-Pike from the company said:

“We first suggested the idea to the team after one of our colleagues had done it and said how amazing it was.

“We had so much interest and everyone really got behind it, either taking part or donating. We were amazed to raise over £3,000 for Yorkshire Cancer Research in sponsorship.”

The team, which consisted of 28 people from design and manufacturing firm Belzona and two employees from Yorkshire Cancer Research, began their climb at 1am to reach the 1,085-metre peak for sunrise.

Lily added:

“It was surreal walking up in complete darkness, but when the sun rose the views were just incredible. The journey back down was like a completely different walk when you could see everything around you.”

Yorkshire Cancer Research was nominated as one of this year’s charities by Sarah Furber, a member of the finance department, because she has family members who have been affected by cancer.

The team has also organised a chocolate raffle, a cutest pet competition and more to add to its fundraising.

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The family of Harrogate singer songwriter Aaron Bertenshaw, who died in December, will be raising money for Diabetes UK at this weekend’s Knaresborough Bed Race.

Aaron, a former pupil at St Aidan’s Church of England High School, died aged 26 after struggling with diabetes and mental health issues.

Since his death, his mother Sammy Oates has been campaigning to plug the gap in services between people affected by the two conditions.

She is now lending her support to Diabetes UK’s new Diabetes is Serious campaign, which calls on the government to create a national recovery plan to support frontline healthcare teams getting diabetes services back on track after covid.

Ms Oates and Christine Holmes, a volunteer for Diabetes UK, will be part of a team operating a stand at Saturday’s bed race. The stand will provide information about diabetes and raise funds through a raffle and tombola. Tickets can be bought at the Worlds End and Castle Inn pubs in Knaresborough and The Blues Bar in Harrogate.

Supermarket Morrisons has agreed to match fund the sum raised.

(from left) Samantha Oates, Andrew Jones and Christine Holmes at the House of Commons.

Andrew Jones, the Conservative MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough, who recently met Ms Oates and Ms Holmes at the House of Commons, is expected to draw the winning raffle ticket.

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Mr Jones said in a statement he “strongly supported” the Diabetes Is Serious campaign. He was one of 100 MPs who recently attended an event about it at the Commons. He added:

“Diabetes is a growing issue and has implications across other parts of healthcare including mental health as Samantha’s family story so powerfully shows.

“Samantha has taken an event that is very personal and painful and turned it into a campaign that is public and positive.

“It is impressive. I look forward to attending the Knaresborough Bed Race and supporting Samantha’s raffle raising money for Diabetes UK’s important work.”

Next week is Diabetes Week in the UK

A new Diabetes UK report revealed that 47% of people with diabetes in England experienced difficulties managing their condition in 2021. Sixty-three per cent attributed this in part to not having sufficient access to their healthcare team.

The charity, which organises Diabetes Week next week, said in a statement:

“Diabetes is serious and isn’t something you can ignore. If people do not receive the care they need, it can put them at risk of serious complications, which can lead to premature death.

“The coronavirus pandemic has created a backlog in the delivery of this routine yet vital care and, despite the tireless efforts of the NHS, many people living with diabetes are still struggling to access it.”

“We’re calling for an urgent recovery plan from the UK Government to tackle these devastating diabetes care delays before it’s too late. Urgent action is required now.”

The town of Pateley Bridge has turned itself pink this week as part of a fundraising initiative on behalf of young resident Arlo, who is undergoing treatment for leukaemia.

Arlo Marshall turned one today and is off to the zoo with family to celebrate. He was diagnosed with infant acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) in February.

Since then he can only see friends and family outside, to protect him from picking up any illnesses. On Saturday the family were able to invite around 20 friends to Pateley Bridge’s party in the park to celebrate the jubilee and Arlo’s birthday.

The Marshall family turned out in force on Saturday.

Throughout his treatment, the family have been supported by Yorkshire charity Candlelighters, which supports families dealing with childhood leukaemia.

The family has now begun fundraising for the charity and has so far generated more than £1,000.

Pink It Up week is a Candlelighters initiative to raise awareness of children with cancer and the town of Pateley Bridge has wasted no time getting involved.

Shops have decorated their windows in pink, schools have organised non-uniform days, local group Knit and Natter has knitted bunting for the Methodist Church and Sunflower Nursery and bakeries and cafes have sold special buns and cakes.

Pateley Bridge shops turn pink

Arlo’s parents, Katie and Jowayne Marshall, said:

“Our world has been turned upside down, but Candlelighters have been there to support us every step of the way. They do so much to support families like us by funding support and social workers, providing closer accommodation whilst Also has been in hospital in Leeds, funding research, providing extra play teams, offering counselling and wellbeing sessions … the list goes on!

“As a family we would like to support this amazing Yorkshire charity by wearing pink and making everything as pink as possible. This way we can create a memento to look back at Arlo’s 1st birthday.”

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Each year, more than 150 children in Yorkshire are diagnosed with cancer.

Pink It Up runs in Pateley Bridge until Sunday. To donate to Arlo’s fundraiser, click here.

Harrogate law firm Raworths has announced two senior promotions in its commercial team.

Jon Healey, who leads the corporate and commercial team, has been promoted to partner of the firm.

Matthew Hill has been made head of commercial client services, after Simon Morris became managing partner in April. Mr Hill will also continue in his role as head of dispute resolution. 

He said:

“Raworths’ commercial team has considerable breadth and our clients benefit from a genuinely collaborative approach.

“I am looking forward to continuing Simon’s great work in overseeing the delivery of outstanding client service”

He also congratulated Mr Healey on his promotion, adding:

“Since joining Raworths in 2019 his expertise and leadership have been invaluable to our clients and the wider team.” 

Raworths has been based in Harrogate for over 125 years.

Samaritans of Harrogate calls for donations from local businesses

Samaritans of Harrogate has called for local businesses to donate prizes for its upcoming charity golf day.  

The event, on June 24, will be the charity’s first golf day since 2019 due to covid. 

It has asked local businesses to donate prizes in sets of four, such as hampers and food vouchers. They will be awarded to the winning golf teams or used to make up the raffle.  

Fundraising co-ordinator Carol Chapman said:  

“The involvement of local businesses would help us to raise vital and much needed funds to keep this service running, which is run solely by local volunteers.

“We are extremely grateful for any donations from local businesses that help us achieve this.”

Members of the public can enter as teams of four for the golf competition, with five places left to fill. 

The event will begin at 1:30pm at Harrogate Golf Club and will continue into the evening, with raffle prizes being announced at the clubhouse.  

In 2019, the golf day raised almost £6,000 for the charity, which contributed to the £35,000 a year needed to keep the charity running.  

Samaritans offers a confidential phone service for people feeling distressed or who are struggling with their mental health.  

The Harrogate branch has around 120 volunteers who listen and offer advice to callers, as well as helping with fundraising events.  

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More than £200,000 has been raised for good causes across the Harrogate district thanks to a community lottery scheme.

The Local Lotto, run by Harrogate Borough Council, has passed the milestone this month after being established in 2018 as a way for groups to raise more funds.

For each £1 ticket bought, 60p goes to local charities, voluntary organisations and community groups. Meanwhile, players have the chance to win a £25,000 jackpot as well as smaller cash prizes each week.

Karen Weaver, strategic lead at Harrogate and District Community Action, said:

“The Local Lotto has been such a great success in supporting good causes across the Harrogate district, providing a regular monthly income and an easy way for local people to support local community action.

“There is also a vital and fruitful link with the Local Fund, with 10p from every ticket sale being donated directly and helping to ensure that it exists in perpetuity to provide grants to grass roots volunteers, community groups and charities.”

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A total of 112 groups have signed up to be part of the Local Lotto to generate additional funding.

Beneficiaries include Autism Angels, Woodfield Millennium Green, Horticap, the Harrogate branch of Parkinson’s UK, Harrogate Dramatic Society, Nidderdale and Pateley Bridge Men’s Shed, and other groups including Scouts, churches, sports clubs and more.

Cllr Richard Cooper, leader of Harrogate Borough Council and voluntary and community sector chair, said:

“It’s an incredible achievement to raise more than £200,000 in less than four years for our voluntary and community sector across the Harrogate district, through the Local Lotto.

“These vital funds can sometimes be a lifeline for smaller community groups and I’d like to thank everyone for getting involved and signing up to play the Local Lotto.

“It’s never too late to take part, whether as an organisations or a participant, and I’d urge anyone to sign up online.”