'They brought a bit of style!' - the scooter 'invasion' of Grape Lane

More than 50 machines – some vintage, some fairly modern – were lined up in the city centre street between 10.30am and 5pm for visitors to admire.

It was the annual ‘show and shine’ event organised by the York Inset Scooter Club – which, despite its name, includes both scooter and motorbike enthusiasts.

Organiser Nick Beilby said some machines had come from as far afield as Bradford for the event.

'A bit of style': scooters lined up in Grape Lane on Saturday

And the guests included not only the Lord Mayor of York, Cllr David Carr, and the entire civic party, but also 97-year-old Normandy Veteran Ken Cooke – who just happens to be the scooter club’s president.

The event raised £700 for SNAPPY, the local charity which supports children and young people with a range of disabilities.

“We had quite a variety of vehicles, all lined up along Grape Lane,” said Nick. "They brought a bit of style!

“Everybody seemed to enjoy what we were doing – it was just a really nice day out, and all for a good cause.”

Cllr Carr, who got to choose the ‘best scooter’ and ‘best motorbike’, admitted he had ‘thoroughly enjoyed’ the event.

“There must have been 50 machines there, some old, some new – one I believe dating from about 1926,” he said. “It was a fun day that we were delighted to be part of – we thoroughly enjoyed it.”

Normandy veteran Ken Cooke and the Civic Party with some of the scooters. Picture: Kevin Salt

Anne Stamp, the service manager of SNAPPY, who attended the event with some of her volunteers, added: “It was really beautiful weather and a very good day, with lots of lovely people who genuinely wanted to help SNAPPY. They were all helping to raise money.”

She said the money collected would go towards SNAPPY’s summer school programme – and specifically for organising day trips out for children who otherwise wouldn’t otherwise get the chance.

“So we will make very good use of it!” she said.