THE YORK BRIEF⏰Tuesday, 30th December 2025

🌤️ GOOD MORNING, YORK

Morning. As the year winds down, today’s edition moves between recognition and reality — honours awarded, difficult headlines, and the quieter work of keeping communities, services and traditions going as York heads toward the new year.

❄️ WEATHER UPDATE

Today will be cold but mainly dry in York with daytime highs around 6–7 °C and overnight lows near 3–4 °C. Skies are expected to be mostly cloudy with only a slight chance of light drizzle, and frost or icy patches are possible on untreated surfaces this morning. Source: Met Office forecast for York.

🏆 HONOURS & RECOGNITION

🎖️ Seven locals honoured in New Year list York and North Yorkshire residents received recognition in the 2026 New Year Honours, including David Dickson (OBE for business and charity), Professor Avtar Matharu (MBE for equality work), Professor Dee Dyas (OBE for theology), Ruth Ive (MBE after fostering 80 children over 30 years), Phil Jones (BEM for York City Rowing Club coaching), Robert McIntosh (OBE from Network Rail), and Richard Harpin (knighthood). ITVX | BBC.UK

🚨 CRIME

👮 Paedophile caught at Christmas Market with child Garry Dover Afflick, 60, defied a sexual harm prevention order by touring York Christmas Market on November 22 with a 7-year-old child and the child’s mother. Neither adult knew his criminal past of lengthy sentences for child sexual abuse.

🚗 Delivery driver assaulted in Clifton car theft A delivery driver was assaulted early December 26 at Peter Hill Court when a suspect grabbed keys from his grey parked car. When the driver chased and got in the back seat, the car was driven to St Philips Grove where he was assaulted. Suspect: white, late teens/early 20s, dark jacket/hoodie. York Mix

💧 LOCAL ISSUES

🚛 Stamford Bridge sewage crisis continues with 24/7 tankers - A burst rising main between Viking Road and the wastewater treatment works has Yorkshire Water running 13 tankers 24/7 (70 litres/second flow). Groundwater and rainfall are making repairs “extremely complex” with no timeline. Viking Road car park has been closed 3+ weeks, disrupting elderly and disabled residents.

🔧 Yorkshire Water completes 215 network upgrades - Yorkshire Water delivered 215 projects this year aimed at protecting the environment and improving services. Work includes reducing storm overflow discharges, replacing aging pipes, and modernising treatment facilities. In the past six months, they replaced 120km of mains, saving an estimated 1.24 million litres of water per day through reduced leakage. York Press

🌳 ENVIRONMENT & COMMUNITY

🌿 Severus Hill site saved after £100k campaign - Yorkshire Water announced in September 2025 it will retain the Holgate site for “water resilience and sustainability” rather than sell it. Friends of Severus Hill raised ~£100,000 in their campaign. The 4-acre former reservoir, now rewilded and designated a Site of Importance for Nature Conservation, may house an underground reservoir from 2030.

♻️ York’s 1,000-year waste problem revisited - York Civic Trust’s Andrew Morrison examines York’s historical waste crisis, from Viking rubbish pits to the 1899 York Destructor at Foss Islands Road - a refuse incinerator and coal-fired power station that turned waste into energy. He asks whether it’s time to rethink rubbish as we enter the post-Christmas disposal season.

🏃 TOURISM, EVENTS & SPORT

🍾 York ranked 4th globally for hen parties. - York beat Dublin, Edinburgh, and London to rank 4th globally for hen party destinations (behind Belfast, Newcastle, Liverpool), according to Last Night of Freedom booking data. Matt Mavir says it contributes to York’s £2bn tourism economy and 17,000 jobs, praising the city’s walkability: “Micklegate for brunch, Fossgate for cocktails, Stonegate for nightlife.”

🥾 North Yorkshire councillors fund Coast to Coast passports - Sixteen North Yorkshire councillors allocated £300-£400 each from locality budgets for 2026 passport production. The 140-page booklets allow stamp collection at 77 locations on the St Bees to Robin Hood’s Bay route. A new 24-page “mini passport” is also planned.

⚔️ Jorvik Viking Festival returns February 2026 - Europe’s largest Viking Festival returns February 16-22 for its 41st year. Around 500 Viking re-enactors will welcome nearly 50,000 visitors for living history, crafts, and combat. Ticketed events include the Viking Feast and Battle for York, while the Viking march to Coppergate and Parliament Street encampment remain free. Visit York

🛵 York scooter club reflects on year of fundraising - York Inset Scooter Club raised thousands in 2025 through charity ride-outs. Events included April’s 51-mile Mods and Rockers ride that raised £1,210.47 for the Magnolia Centre at York Hospital, August’s Show and Shine in Grape Lane for Snappy Trust, and November’s Ride Retro at York Minster. The club’s 100-year-old president, D-Day veteran Ken Cooke, judged several events. York Press

⚽ SPORT

🔴 York City recall winger Chadwick from loan - York City recalled winger Billy Chadwick from his Scunthorpe United loan (joined July 2025). He made 11 appearances total (8 league), scoring 1 goal in a 4-0 win over Truro City. He returns to the Minstermen challenging at the top of the National League. York City FC

🎟️ York City sell out Altrincham away allocation - Over 1,000 York supporters have snapped up tickets for tomorrow night’s trip to Altrincham (7:45pm kick-off), selling out the 1,056 away allocation. The Minstermen look to bounce back from their Boxing Day 2-2 draw with Boston United as they chase the National League title.

🎾 Padel courts boom across York - York’s padel scene is expanding rapidly with York St John University opening three outdoor courts at Haxby Road Sports Park in September 2025. Additional developments include plans for two courts at Dunnington Sports and Social Club, a sports centre conversion at Mitrefinch House in Clifton featuring four indoor courts, and the Padel Farm near Sutton on the Forest which opened with two barn-based courts. The Padel Firm

🏥 HEALTH

🩺 NHS recruiting for mental health crisis services in York - Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust is holding a recruitment event in York for crisis services supporting both adults and young people across North Yorkshire. The walk-in event will offer on-the-day interviews and information about current vacancies. Mel Woodcock, general manager for CAMHS at TEWV, said: “Our crisis teams step in when it matters most.”

🔥 INCIDENTS

🚒 Multiple small fires in open areas North Yorkshire Fire & Rescue attended several fires in the open throughout December, including a York crew extinguishing a small unattended fire believed to be deliberate on December 10, and a Selby crew tackling rubbish on fire with no one supervising on December 22.

With the final days of the year in sight, York finds itself balancing reflection with momentum - celebrating service, confronting challenges, and looking ahead. Wherever today takes you, stay warm, stay safe, and we’ll be back with you tomorrow.