A family firm formed in Harrogate 20 years ago, which now employs 45 staff, has been sold to a large international company.
Keith Swales founded civil engineering business S&B Utilities in 2002. Based at Kestia House in Lingerfield, near Scotton.
The firm has been acquired by Hargreaves Industrial Services, which is a subsidiary of international land, property and infrastructure development company Hargreaves Services.
The sum has not been disclosed.
Managing director Mr Swales, who is 77, and finance director Karen Cocker will exit the business. All other staff will be retained.
Kestia House
S&B Utilities, which constructs water projects and other civil engineering schemes, is a framework contractor with Yorkshire Water and Severn Trent Water. It also works on military bases.
Locally, its projects have included undertaking structural concrete work for the Esplanade tower block in Harrogate and for the Tower Street car park.
Mr Swales, a civil engineer who worked for Yorkshire Water before setting up the company, said negotiations had taken eight months to complete. He added:
“We’ve been a family orientated business from day one and we believe the move to Hargreaves will enhance that.”
He thanked past and present employees for their help over the last 20 years.
Darren Swales, Will Griffin and Lee Swales will continue as directors of S&B Utilities and will be joined on the board by Sean Hager and John Samuel, who are directors of Hargreaves Industrial Services.
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Man dies after three-car crash at Scotton
A man in his 80s has died after a three-car collision on Ripley Road at Scotton.
A Ford Focus, Ford Fiesta and Seat Ibiza were involved in the crash, which happened at about 6.15pm on Sunday.
Police, fire crews and and an air ambulance were summoned to help.
North Yorkshire Police confirmed that the driver and passenger of the Focus, who were a man and woman in their 50s, were taken to hospital with serious injuries.
The man in his 80s, who has not been named, was driving the Fiesta.
A police statement added:
“North Yorkshire Police’s major collision investigation team has launched an investigation.
“Anyone who witnessed the incident and has not yet come forward, or anyone with dashcam footage, is asked to email marie.williams@northyorkshire.police.uk
“You can also call North Yorkshire Police on 101, select option 2 and ask for Marie Williams.
Please quote reference 12220115083.”
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Ripon construction worker’s death an accident, inquest concludes
An inquest into the death of Dean Christopher Myers, who was struck by a digger on a Ripon construction site, has concluded it was an accident.
Mr Myers, 56, died on January 13 last year whilst working as a ground worker for the HACS group at a site on Whitcliffe Avenue.
The Scotton man’s cause of death was a severe head injury due to blunt force trauma. Today’s hearing at Pavilions of Harrogate examined the circumstances surrounding his death.
It heard that at the time of his death, Mr Myers was stationed in a manhole in a three metre-deep trench, which had been dug for sewage pipes.
Fellow construction workers Lee James and Andrew Temple said it was not unusual for workers to be positioned in the manhole.
Mr James was standing at the top of the trench, acting as a guide for machine operator Mr Temple. Both said the arm of the digger had got stuck, probably on some limestone in the ground, and this was when Mr James saw Mr Myers put his head out of the manhole to look at what was stopping the digger.
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Mr James said he shouted to Mr Myers twice but got no response so he urged Mr Temple to stop before getting into the trench to check on Mr Myers.
The court heard the digger had become unstuck and started to move again, which was when it struck Mr Myers.
‘No sign of negligence’
A statement read out by police officers at the scene said:
“This was an unfortunate accident caused by Mr Myers putting his head out of the hole at the wrong time. There was no sign of negligent or criminal activity.”
In a witness statement, health and safety inspector Benjamin Cairns said it was a typical construction site set-up with no obvious safety concerns.
When asked by coroner Jonathan Leach whether it was appropriate for Mr Myers to be in the manhole, he said:
“If I witnessed that [a construction worker in the man hole] on site I would have asked the person to leave.”
Mr Myers’ work colleagues at the inquest described him as “more conscious than most” about safety and an experienced construction worker. They said they were unsure why he stuck his head out.
After hearing multiple statements, the nine-person jury concluded Mr Myers’ death was an accident.
Mark Smith, managing director of the HACS group, which employed Mr Myers for eight years, told the Stray Ferret afterwards:
Chimney fire warning after blaze in Scotton“We would like to say how sorry we are at the loss of a valued colleague and our thoughts are with the family at this time.”
Firefighters urged people to have their chimneys swept regularly after being summoned to a blaze in Scotton last night.
A crew from Knaresborough dealt with the incident at a home in the village at around 9pm.
Using the aerial ladder platform from Harrogate, firefighters were able to extinguish the flames and make safe the chimney pot.
Harrogate Fire Station said in a social media post the cause is believed to be an accumulation of flammable materials within the flue. It added:
“Please do make sure you regularly sweep your chimneys to prevent fires from happening.
“We recommend that your chimney should be swept at least once a year for smokeless fuel, at least twice a year for bituminous coal, and quarterly for wood.”
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Fears in Scotton that gigantic solar farm will spoil picturesque village
Residents in Scotton are mobilising against plans to build a solar farm the size of 150 football pitches that they believe will spoil their picturesque village.
UK energy firm Gridserve is behind a proposal to build the solar farm on fields belonging to Lawrence Moor Farm.
Thousands of solar panels would generate up to 49.9 megawatts of green energy that could power up to 14,000 homes.
The village on the outskirts of Knaresborough has a population of around 600 people.
Scotton resident Richard Tallis, who has lived in the village for 12 years, has distributed leaflets to villagers and said 165 people have responded to say they are opposed to the plans.
Two public footpaths would be surrounded by solar panels if they were passed.
Mr Tallis said:
“We’re not against solar farms, just put them in the right places.
“Agricultural land should be used for agricultural purposes.
“There’s a strength of opinion around the village opposing it.”
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The main site where Gridserve wants to put the solar panels is bound by the narrow country roads Low Moor Lane and High Moor Lane. It is also opposite the village primary school.
Mr Tallis said he fears the roads are ill-equipped to cope with eight months of construction traffic whilst the site is built.
He said he is not a “NIMBY” but feels that solar farms should be built on the edge of motorways and away from residential areas.
“I accept there will always be people that criticise us for opposing it.
“But there are other sites that are more suitable, not on the edge of a picturesque green village.”
Net-zero
This morning the UK government published its flagship energy strategy. It wants the country to produce most of the energy it uses through renewables.
It says the UK will increase current solar capacity by five times before 2035.
A spokesperson for Gridserve said:
Plan to build 23 affordable homes in Scotton rejected“Matters of proximity, visual impact and access throughout the construction and operation of the Scotton solar farm will be integral parts of the forthcoming planning and design process.
“We hope we are able to proceed with the next design phases in an open, collaborative approach that involves members of the local community and other statutory and non-statutory stakeholders”
A plan to build 23 affordable homes in Scotton has been rejected.
Harrogate Borough Council turned down the proposal from Jack Lunn (Properties) Ltd, which was earmarked for a site on Ripley Road in the village.
The plan would have seen a mix of one, two and three-bedroom affordable homes built on the site.
Affordable housing is defined as housing for people who cannot afford to buy or rent homes on the open market. The price varies locally.
The council estimates the district needs 6,600 affordable homes built between 2014 and 2035, which is the equivalent of 313 per year.
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However, the council turned down the application on the grounds that the site was outside the development boundary for the village.
In its decision, the council said:
“The proposal would result in an incongruous projection out of the existing settlement into open countryside.
“The proposed development is not small in scale and is not an infill development that relates well to the existing built form of the settlement.”
The proposal also received 20 letters of objection from residents calling for the application to be turned down.
Scotton and Lingerfield Parish Council said in its objection that the scale of the development was not justified for the village.
It said:
“The National Planning Policy Framework is quite clear how exceptions sites should only be released for local affordable housing needs and not to meet general affordable housing needs.
“The level of local affordable housing need has not been identified within Scotton and Lingerfield parish area to justify the scale of development being proposed.”
In documents submitted to the council, the developer said that the homes would make a “positive contribution” to the area.
It said:
Appeal for information after £1,000 damage to Nidd Gorge car park barrier“The design proposal intends to provide a sympathetic response to the surrounding context.
“The homes use materials indicative of the local area whilst the layout seeks to provide a range of homes as part of the development to allow for a positive contribution to the local community.”
The Woodland Trust is trying to track down a white van that caused £1,000 of damage to a barrier at the entrance to the Nidd Gorge car park on Ripley Road in Scotton.
Witnesses say they saw the van hit the height restriction barrier as it attempted to enter the car park on Saturday July 31 at about 10am.
The heavy gauge steel barrier was bent backwards and several visitors in the car park at the time gathered around the van. But the vehicle’s number plate has yet to be identified.
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The Woodland Trust owns the car park and maintains the woods in the gorge, which is a popular location for hikers and dog walkers.
A spokesperson for the Woodland Trust said:
“The Woodland Trust is a charity that protects woodland areas for the public good. It relies on donations to do this. Ideally, we would like to identify the driver or vehicle so we can try to recover the approx £1,000 repair cost and not divert it from other essential woodland protection work.
“We would be grateful if anyone can help us to identify the van or driver, by providing a vehicle number plate for example.”
Anyone with information can contact The Woodland Trust on 0330 3333300 or email: enquiries@woodlandtrust.org.uk . Emails should have the subject heading ‘Nidd Gorge – Height Barrier Damage’.
Five of the 10 care homes with most covid deaths in Harrogate districtA breakdown of covid deaths for each care home in North Yorkshire has revealed five of the 10 worst affected are in the Harrogate district.
The new figures released by the Care Quality Commission, which regulates care homes, revealed 18 care homes in the county reported a total of 515 resident deaths during the course of the pandemic.
Health officials said the results “bring into stark relief the ravages” of the virus.
Five of the 10 care homes worst affected during the pandemic were in the Harrogate district. These included three in Harrogate, one in Knaresborough and another in Scotton.
Top 10 worst affected care homes in North Yorkshire:
- Craven Nursing Home Limited, Skipton – 24 deaths
- Southlands Care Home, Harrogate – 22 deaths
- Leeming Bar Grange Care Home, Leeming Bar – 22 deaths
- Belmont House Care Home, Harrogate – 22 deaths
- Beechwood Care Home, Northallerton – 21 deaths
- Bilton Hall Nursing Home, Knaresborough – 17 deaths
- Maple Lodge Care Home, Scotton – 17 deaths
- The Terrace, Richmond – 16 deaths
- Scorton Care Village, Scorton – 16 deaths
- Vida Grange, Harrogate – 15 deaths
Richard Webb, director of health and adult services at North Yorkshire County Council, said:
“Every death from covid during the course of this terrible pandemic has been one death too many.”
“The death toll in care homes over the last 20 months, published by the Care Quality Commission, brings into stark relief the ravages of covid and the price we have paid as a society and that we continue to pay.
“All the families and friends who have lost loved ones to the virus are very much in our hearts and in our thoughts.”
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Care home managers must inform the CQC when one of their residents dies. From April last year they also had to say whether covid was believed to be a factor in the person’s death.
The newly published data is based on these notifications.
No link between care standards and deaths
The CQC said in its report that it has not found a link between standards of care and the number of deaths – something local health officials have also stressed.
The social care watchdog said contributing factors included the levels of covid in the local community and the age and health of the residents.
The struggle for PPE and hospital patients being discharged into homes without getting tested were also thought to contributors to the virus spreading quickly.
And although it is now widely available, testing was said to be a “critical” issue at the start of the outbreak with some test kits taking up to 20 days to be delivered to North Yorkshire care homes.
Mr Webb praised social care staff for their “heroic efforts” during the pandemic:
Scotton girls run 24 hours to raise funds after vandals strike“Staff have worked heroically to contain the virus as best they could. We are grateful to staff in care homes as well as our own authorities who showed courage and bravery in doing all they could to protect our residents, working tirelessly during such a difficult period.
“We will never know, if we had not taken swift action supported by colleagues in the care sector in those early days, how many more would have died.”
A junior football team from Scotton that was targeted by vandals has completed a 24 hour fun run to raise money for repairs.
Vandals damaged the goals used by Scotton Scorchers under 14s girls team during lockdown.
This prompted the team to raise money towards creating safe storage for the goalposts and upgrading the clubhouse kitchen.
So at 2pm on Saturday the players set off, helped by coaches and parents, on the run in an attempt to raise £1,000.
At least two people were running at all times during the challenge, which was successfully completed yesterday.
The team beat its £1,000 target — at the time of publication the fundraiser is at £1,255. You can click or tap here to donate to the gofundme page.
Tinker the horse, an unlikely team mascot who wears the Scotton Scorchers’ number 10 shirt, even helped by guiding the runners home.
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It will cost more than £5,000 to complete the works so the club has more fundraising events planned.
Wayne Latimer, the under-14s girls coach, told the Stray Ferret:
“It has been a difficult year for the team but they have come back and not only have the under-14 girls team won their league but so have the under-16 girls team.
“I am sure quite a few of them will still be resting up in bed today but I am incredibly proud of all of the girls who took part in the 24-hour fun run.
“They have absolutely smashed the target of £1,000 and it will make a big difference for the club.”
Anyone who would like to join the team can find out more information on the club website. Or send an email to the club secretary Mike Collier.
Plan submitted for 23 affordable homes in ScottonDevelopers have submitted plans for 23 affordable homes in Scotton.
Harrogate-based Jack Lunn (Properties) Ltd has lodged the proposal to Harrogate Borough Council, which would see the development built off Ripley Road in the village.
The plan would see a mix of one, two and three-bedroom affordable homes built on the site.
Affordable housing is defined as housing for people who cannot afford to buy or rent homes on the open market. The price varies locally.
The council estimates the district needs 6,600 affordable homes built between 2014
and 2035, which is the equivalent of 313 per year.
Also included in the Scotton proposal are measures for access and public open space.
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In documents submitted to the council, the developer said that the homes would make a “positive contribution” to the area.
It said:
“The design proposal intends to provide a sympathetic response to the surrounding context.
“The homes use materials indicative of the local area whilst the layout seeks to provide a range of homes as part of the development to allow for a positive contribution to the local community.”
The borough council will make a decision on the proposal at a later date.