A number of staff at a chocolate manufacturer have tested positive for Covid-19 at a site in North Yorkshire.

Image source, Google

Kinnerton Confectionery, at Sherburn in Elmet, did not say how many of its 200 workers had been affected.

The company, owned by a German group which produces licensed sweets based on popular characters, said a "small number" of staff were self-isolating.

Site director Richard Bidder said the firm was working "proactively" with health and local authorities.

The factory is in the Selby district, named an "area of concern" by Public Health England on 18 September due to a rise in the number of cases.

Mr Bidder said the affected staff lived locally.

"We continue to work proactively with Public Health England Yorkshire & Humber and North Yorkshire County Council, who support our counter-measures and response," he said.

Mr Bidder said the company had implemented a number of control measures after carrying out a risk-based Covid-19 assessment in March.

A man has been seriously injured in what police believe was a shooting in the Thrybergh area of Rotherham this morning.

The injured man arrived at hospital with suspected gunshot injuries at about 09:20 this morning, police say.

His condition is "serious", according to South Yorkshire Police.

Park Lane in Thrybergh has been closed as officers carry out initial inquiries, the force added.

A football club which had come under fire for signing a player who was jailed for domestic violence says it has "listened" to criticism and won't now sign the player.

Image source, PA Media

Reece Thompson, who was convicted of assault and grievous bodily harm, was taken on trial by Selby Town earlier this year.

Following a backlash after he played against Tadcaster in August, the club said he would not be joining, but then changed its position saying it was not its place to "further punish" the player for his actions.

Dozens of fans responded to the move on the club's social media pages, with many disagreeing with the decision.

Writing on social media in the last hour, external, the club said: “Further to our previous statement, we have listened to all of the comments and Reece Thompson will not be signing for Selby Town Football Club.”

The Sheffield artist behind a painting of a "fragile and temporary" tent has been awarded a £10,000 prize on offer to artists across the north of England.

Image source, Tony Bartholomew

Joanna Whittle’s Sorrowing Cloth, which is 10cm high by 15cm long, won the Valeria Sykes Award at the opening of an exhibition in Scarborough.

The oil-on-copper painting took the top art prize which was open to artists across the North.

It's the latest in a series of paintings of tents by Ms Whittle which is being displayed at the New Light Prize Exhibition at Scarborough Art Gallery.

Image source, Tony Bartholomew

She said: "My tent paintings represent fragile and temporary structures constructed within notions of the ruin and time passing.

"Canvas sits in water; ropes are pegged in to fluid land. Time sits still and moments brush against each other – canvas rots and weeds scramble over surfaces, but some lights remain on or have just been lit."

Armed police officers were called to the Anlaby Road area of Hull last night after reports of a loud "cracking" noise believed to be gunshots.

Image source, PA Media

The area was cordoned off at about 21:00 after a member of the public reported hearing what they believed "could be shots fired from a building", according to Humberside Police.

Police say there've been no further reports or injuries.

Ch Supt Darren Wildbore said: “Inquiries will continue, however there is not believed to be any wider threat or risk to the public."

These are the latest pictures from a fire in Rotherham involving about 5,000 tonnes of wood chippings.

Firefighters have been battling the blaze at Gorse Field Farm in Bramley since about 06:00

Image source, South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue

Image source, South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue

Image source, South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue

Visitors returning to a national park after lockdown restrictions were eased had an "extremely positive effect" on finances, a report has found.

Image source, Google

The Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority had revised its budget in May, fearing a number of services would be cut or stopped altogether.

But after car parks were reopened the same month, the park saw a sharp rise in visitors.

The report said that since May the financial outlook had improved after the authority took a decision to reopen car parks and visitor centres considerably earlier than had been initially predicted.

Assumptions about reductions in planning fees due to lockdown also proved to be "over-pessimistic".

The authority is now forecast to have £350,000 of extra income for the year and there was "no emerging risk of a financial shortfall".

However, the authority has warned there remains "a considerable risk" to its finances due to the "rapidly changing situation".

The report, external is due to go before the authority's finance committee next week.

A fire involving up to 5,000 tonnes of wood chippings is being fought by firefighters at a farm in Rotherham, according to the South Yorkshire Fire Service.

Image source, South Yorkshire Fire Service

A fire service spokesperson says seven fire crews were called to the blaze at Gorse Field farm, Bramley, shortly after 06:00.

People living in the area are being warned of a "huge smoke plume" and are being advised to shut doors and windows.

PA Media

A senior police officer who led Rotherham during part of the sex abuse scandal will take a top post at the Metropolitan Police.

Image source, Metropolitan Police

Matt Jukes, who was policing commander for Rotherham from 2006 to 2010, is to be made assistant commissioner.

More than 1,400 children were exploited in the town between 1997 and 2013, with local authorities, schools and police among agencies that failed to tackle the problem.

A report on the scandal by Professor Alexis Jay suggested that Mr Jukes' leadership marked a point where police became more proactive in dealing with the abuse.

Mr Jukes, who is currently the Chief Constable of South Wales Police, will start work in November.

Wendy Fawell's death has left all the children she cared for bewildered, say her family.

Tributes have been paid to a deputy head teacher who was killed by cows while out walking in North Yorkshire.

Image source, Richmond School

Dave Clark, a deputy head teacher at Richmond School, was in a field off Hurgill Road in Richmond, when it happened on Monday evening.

In a tribute, head teacher Jenna Potter said Mr Clark was the "heart and soul" of Richmond School. "Our thoughts are with Dave's wife, his children and wider family at this difficult time."

The head teacher said: "He was an enormous character, a brilliant school leader and simply a lovely man who enriched the life of everyone he came into contact with, just by being himself and doing what he did every day."

North Yorkshire Police said officers were working to establish the circumstances of his death.

The Health and Safety Executive has been informed, the force added.

Leeds United are set to sign Real Sociedad defender Diego Llorente, the La Liga club say.

The return of visitors to the Yorkshire Dales had an "positive effect" on finances, report says.

Four pubs and a takeaway in Sheffield have been forced to close their doors after "clear breaches" of Covid-19 rules at the weekend, the city council has confirmed.

Image source, Google

Pen Nook at Deepcar, the Pack Horse Inn at Chapeltown, the Malin Bridge Inn (pictured below) at Hillsborough, Sports Shack at Hillsborough and Chicken Stop (pictured above) in the city centre were all issued with prohibition notices after breaches last weekend, the authority said.

The issues included a lack of control of customers, not enough staff, lack of door supervision, loud music, singing, dancing, groups of over six and lack of social distancing, according to the council.

Greg Fell, Sheffield's director of public health, said the prohibition notices were "a last resort".

Image source, Google

"Some places are just not getting the message to act safely and prevent further spread of the virus," he said.

"Intelligence tells us the vast majority of premises are working with us and working really hard to create safe environments for their customers, and we are grateful for their efforts.

"But I cannot stress the seriousness of the situation we are in. The purpose of the rules is to protect us all," Mr Fell added.

Sheffield City Council officers have so far undertaken over 2,000 visits to venues since the coronavirus lockdown was eased and "will take action where necessary", the authority said.

The last surviving Blackburn Beverley aircraft will go on display at a private airfield near Selby after being bought by a Yorkshire-based businessman, it's been revealed.

Image source, GILBERT BAITSON

The plane had been on display at the Fort Paull Museum near Hull, but the attraction closed suddenly at the start of this year.

At an auction at the weekend, the transport aircraft sold for £21,000.

Auctioneers would not disclose the total sum raised by the 1,048 museum lots, but said it was a "six-figure amount".

Victoria Hurst, from Condor Aviation, the plane's new owners, says it may be airlifted to its new home by the RAF.

She told BBC Radio Humberside the auction itself was "very nail-biting".

"I think our main thing at the moment is obviously it's local heritage. We want to keep it in Yorkshire and restore it as sympathetically as possible and just open it up to people who are really interested in aviation and in local heritage.

"It's going to be a really unique experience," she added.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Sheffield United is to get a new first team academy building at its training ground, the club has confirmed.

Image source, Whittam Cox Architects

The current building at Firshill Crescent will be replaced by a “fresh, modern building”, according to the club, which will give players access to a gym, training area, laundry, changing rooms with showers plus physiotherapy and hydrotherapy areas.

Windows would offer uninterrupted views of the training ground's football pitches and a new road between the academy site and the building would be created, it adds.

Image source, Whittam Cox Architects

In a planning application, Whittam Cox Architects say: “The existing first team building is currently outdated.

“Sheffield United has an aspiration to provide state-of-the-art facilities given their current status as a Premier League football club.

“One of the primary intentions is to create a sense of arrival and prominence, which reflects the current stature of Sheffield United within the Premier League," the architects add.

Witnesses are being sought after a man was attacked with a hammer on a garage forecourt in Dewsbury.

Image source, Google

Police were called after reports of a large group of men gathering on the forecourt of a BP Garage on Savile Road at about 20:45 on Wednesday 16 September.

One man was taken to hospital for treatment to a head injury after being hit with a hammer, according to West Yorkshire Police.

Anyone who was in the garage at the time, or who witnessed the assault, is being asked to contact the force.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

A number of virtual events are being held to mark the 180th anniversary of the death of Anne Lister from Halifax.

Image source, Calderdale Museums

The landowner, who lived at Shibden Hall in the town, left behind a series of intimate diaries detailing her love affairs with women.

The diaries were transformed into the BBC television series Gentleman Jack which was broadcast in 2019.

Calderdale Council has arranged a number of events to celebrate her life.

Lister, who has been described as the "first modern lesbian, external", was a prolific diarist who penned some five million words in her lifetime.

Her legacy has become an important tourism driver for the area of West Yorkshire where she lived, especially after the international success of the television series.

Susan Press, a council cabinet member, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: "Anne's life and her historic home, Shibden Hall, are a key part of Calderdale's heritage.

"It's important to honour this remarkable woman's life and impact, and we hope that people from the borough and beyond join us online for the events to mark 180 years since her death."

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Barnsley’s annual Christmas lights switch-on has been cancelled this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, it's been confirmed.

The Barnsley Bright Nights, which usually takes place at the Town Hall, will not go ahead following the government’s ban on more than six people meeting at a time.

The rules would make it illegal for a crowd to gather at Christmas light switch-ons illegal if the policy is still in place by the end of the year.

However, an “exciting alternative” will take place instead which will be revealed in a matter of weeks, according to Barnsley Council.

Councillor Tim Cheetham says: "Christmas is by no means cancelled."

In Rotherham, “no decisions have been made” about the town's Christmas lights switch-on as yet, and no decision has been publicised by Sheffield Council so far.

A man's died after being injured by cows in a field in North Yorkshire, say police.

Image source, Simon Dawson/Pool via Reuters

Emergency services were called to a field north of Richmond at about 19:30 on Monday.

The man, in his 50s, was treated by paramedics but died at the scene.

The Health and Safety Executive has been informed about the man's death.

An investigation has been launched into the incident by North Yorkshire Police.