A NEW café in the Dales Countryside Museum in Hawes hosted a VIP visit when Welcome to Yorkshire Chief Executive Sir Gary Verity performed the official opening ceremony.

Sir Gary cut the ribbon at The Firebox Café with a little help from six-year-old Daisy Allenby, whose mum and dad – Stage 1 Cycles owners Helen Pollard and Mike Allenby – started the business and are running it on a franchise basis.

In addition to running the café, the couple have also relocated their cycle hire and repair business from Askrigg into the museum complex, which is owned by the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority and is located in part of the town’s former railway station. The cycle business was established as a result of the Tour de France Grand Depart in Yorkshire in 2014.