Web design
in Knaresborough.
A gorge runs straight through Knaresborough, and it's not just scenery, it's the reason the town has two almost separate economies: a medieval, tourist-heavy centre on one side, and a fast-growing tech and logistics perimeter on the other that most visitors never see.
An independent web design studio in Northallerton, North Yorkshire. About the studio →
Why it matters here.
Nothing serious gets built in the gorge itself, so the businesses actually driving growth here have quietly relocated to the other side of town, close enough to claim the name, far enough to look nothing like the postcard version of it. A business explaining that split honestly on its own website usually comes across better than one pretending it's still operating from a cottage on the high street.
Businesses that have relocated to the eastern side of town, closer to the newer logistics and technology sites, are often still closely tied to Knaresborough's identity and community, even if their premises don't look like the postcard version of it. A website that explains that honestly, rather than leaning entirely on the town's tourist image, usually earns more trust than pretending to be somewhere else.
A technical or manufacturing business that's outgrown its original premises without wanting to lose the local identity that built its reputation in the first place.
§ 02 · Why most of them don't work.
Most small-business websites are built on page-builders: a stack of plugins on a stack of templates. Three things follow, and they all cost you money.
- 01 /
It's slow.
Every plugin is more to download before anything appears on screen. On a patchy signal halfway up a dale, that's a customer who has already gone somewhere else.
- 02 /
It's a target.
Plugins are the way in. Most sites that get hacked aren't chosen: they're scanned, found and taken automatically, by something that was never looking for you in particular.
- 03 /
It holds you hostage.
Because it's fragile, it has to be patched. So there's a bill every month, forever, and if you stop paying it, the website you already bought starts to rot.
I don’t build them that way.
The £10-a-month builders dodge the plugin problem but create a different one: you’re renting a template, not owning a website. Stop paying Wix or Squarespace and the site disappears with the subscription. What I build is yours outright: the code, the words, all of it, the day it’s paid for.
The same firm, rebuilt.
The two panes are an illustration. Fellgate Joinery isn't a real business, and I won't put a real neighbour's site up here to knock it down. The numbers underneath are real: they're the median of 10 actual joinery sites across North Yorkshire, measured on a phone.

Joinery,
made to last.
Handmade kitchens & staircases, built in the Dales and fitted across the county.
Book a consultation →See the workshop ↗Welcome To Our Website!!
Hello and welcome!! We are a family run joinery business based in North Yorkshire with over 40 years experiance. We do kitchens, staircases, doors, decking and much much more. Please have a look around our website and don't forget to sign our guestbook!
⚠ This site is under construction - please check back soon!
Before: the median of 10 real North Yorkshire joinery sites (range 50–70), measured on a phone, July 2026. Their names are their own business. After: this site, measured the same way.
That gap isn't a design opinion. It's the customers who never saw the page.
Highlighted
work.
2026 · client work & demoThree things,
done well.
Web design & build.
Strategy through to ship. I design and build myself, so what you approve is what gets built, not something reinterpreted by whoever picks it up next. The site that lands is the one you signed off, with a month of ongoing care after launch.
Brand identity.
Marks, systems and the small details that turn a name into a reputation. Built to work in print, in code, on screen.
Custom web apps.
When an off-the-shelf site won't do: logins, dashboards, databases, the machinery behind the front door. Built to the same standard as the pages you can see.
- Listen
- Shape
- Make
- Ship
- Tend
Common questions.
Our premises don't really match the historic, tourist image most people associate with Knaresborough, does that matter for a website?
Only if the site tries to hide it. Being upfront about being a modern, practical operation based in Knaresborough usually reads as more credible than borrowing imagery that doesn't match the actual business.
How much does a project cost?
There's no set price or package, because no two projects are the same. A simple site and one with logins and a database are both “a website”, and they share no number. The £ marks against each service tell you how they compare to each other, so you can see roughly where something sits before you get in touch. The actual figure comes after the first call, once I know what the work involves. That call is free, with no obligation, and you'll get one fixed quote before anything starts, not a meter that runs.
How long does a project take?
Anywhere from one week for a starter site up to twelve for a full web app. You'll get an exact timeline before anything begins, not an estimate that slips.
Can I edit the site myself once it's live?
A web design & build project ships with a CMS: log in, change the words and images, no developer needed for day-to-day updates. A one-page starter site doesn't have one, because it doesn't need an admin panel to change a phone number. Send the change to me instead, and it's covered while your care month or care plan is running.
What if I need changes after launch?
Small tweaks are covered under a Care plan. Anything structural gets quoted first, so nothing shows up on an invoice you didn't see coming.
Across North Yorkshire
and beyond.
Building something in Knaresborough?
Tell me about it. Every email comes straight to me, reply within two working days.
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