York Guides

In less than a month, Rebecca Johnson and Hannah Walbank have created eyecatching designs which they hope will help in their ambitions to go into the millinery business full-time.

Ms Johnson, of Crossgates, Leeds, won a commission to design a hat for Yorkshire Tea managing director Sally Holme to wear at the races and produced a teapot shape in fine straw, in Yorkshire Tea orange.

"The hat has been a real challenge because of the unusual shape and colour," she said.

"I've only had a few weeks to produce it. The finishing touch is a feather from the spout for steam."

The first-year student hopes to set up her own business after completing the two-year course and in the meantime is using her skills to create wedding hats for friends.

Second-year student Hannah Walbank, 24, from Silsden, won a BBC competition, Design a Hat for Ascot, with her design, 'Luck be a Lady', inspired by horseshoes and by the brown and chestnut coats of the horses.

Royal Ascot is travelling north to York this year while its home course in Berkshire undergoes a £185m redevelopment.

Yesterday, Ascot chief executive Douglas Erskine-Crum gave a progress report on building work at Ascot, saying it was the management's priority to have the project completed by the end of May 2006. This will be in time to host next year's Royal meeting but racing earlier in the Ascot calendar will have to be relocated elsewhere.

Some part of the redevelopment are running behind schedule but Mr Erskine-Crum said he was confident this time could be made up.

As the racing nears, the public enclosures are all but sold out but the Royal Enclosure, for which tickets are available on a restricted basis, will be only four-fifths full.