Residents and businesses are continuing the clean up in the wake of Storm Franklin which left many areas across the Harrogate district flooded.

Storm Franklin left many areas under water yesterday as heavy rain hit the district.

Follow our live blog for updates and send details of what’s happening in Harrogate, Ripon, Knaresborough, Pateley Bridge, Masham and all points in between by emailing contact@thestrayferret.co.uk or send us a message on Facebook.

2.40pm – River level in Boroughbridge

A picture posted by James Wilkinson on social media shows the current level of the River Ure in Boroughbridge.

2.35pm – Bewerley Recreation Park under water

Our reporter has captured these pictures this afternoon of Bewerley Recreation Park near Pateley Bridge flooded.

2pm – Road closures across North Yorkshire

North Yorkshire County Council has released a list of road closures, including some in the Harrogate district.

The roads are listed as closed or passable with care.

(2/4) – A168 near Thornton le Street
– B1223 The Fleet, Ryther

Closed:
– Road into Kirby Wiske
– Sandhill Lane (road to Holme on Swale from B6267
– Eldmire Lane
– Dalton Lane
– Occany Lane, Farnham
– East Farm to Grey Gables, Laverton/Ripon
– Catttal Moor Lane, Cattal pic.twitter.com/SpwSjRAMfm

— North Yorkshire Council (@northyorksc) February 21, 2022

(4/4) Closed:
– Morton on Swale Bridge
– Little Langton
– B1257 Golder Square to Stockings Lane
– Intake Lane, Beal
– Raw Lane/New Lane, Ulleskelf
– New Road Ulleskelf
– B6160 between Linton Crossroads and Threshfield highways depo pic.twitter.com/RA8Pc7bWOD

— North Yorkshire Council (@northyorksc) February 21, 2022

1.47pm – Knaresborough residents assess Storm Franklin flood damage

Knaresborough residents and business owners have begun to assess the damage caused by Storm Franklin after many were forced to evacuate their homes due to flooding.

The storm brought heavy rainfall to the area over the weekend and caused the banks of the River Nidd to break, leaving many houses in the surrounding area at risk.

You can read more here.

1.10pm – Dishforth Road water levels beginning to subside

Water levels on the flooded Dishforth Road near Ripon are beginning to subside and some motorists are now attempting to pass through the road.

Meanwhile, a blue Audi which was abandoned on the road earlier is still awaiting recovery.

12.55pm – Plea for better drains in Pateley Bridge after floods

Businesses and residents are calling for the drains to be improved in Pateley Bridge after the town flooded again yesterday.

Pateley has flooded frequently in recent years and the bottom of High Street was under water again in the early hours of Sunday

You can read more here.

12.45pm – Pateley Bridge devastated by flooding

Our reporter Suzannah Rogerson has been on greenwood Road in Pateley Bridge, which was hit hard by Storm Franklin this past weekend.

You can see the current situation in the town below:

12.06pm – Marigolds Cafe in Knaresborough. hopes to reopen tomorrow.

Justine Connolly, who co-owns Marigolds Cafe on Waterside, was forced to close the cafe on Sunday morning just as Storm Franklin was approaching the district.

She tells the Stray Ferret she hopes to reopen tomorrow. You can read more here.

11.40am – Ure expected to peak at midday as Boroughbridge bridge remains closed 

Boroughbridge Emergency Response Team update has issued a flood update. It says:

“The Ure has burst its banks and is currently at 15.3m and holding steady, but not due to peak until midday today. The road is closed.

“That said people are still driving through causing great problems for home owners that are flooded. It is illegal to ignore a road closure and those that do will be reported.

“Yorkshire Water are in the car park to prevent flooding there. We have just witnessed a huge tree crashing down at the side of the river so if you are out walking take care.”

10.15am – Knaresborough resident speaks of being evacuated from floods

Margaret Pearson, a resident at Nidderdale Lodge caravan park, has been speaking to the Stray Ferret this morning about her experience of the flooding yesterday.

You can watch the interview below.

10.05am – Copgrove Lane flooded

Copgrove Lane in Knaresborough is currently flooded. Drivers are urged to avoid the area.

9.35am – Advice from North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue

Harrogate Fire Station has issued advice this morning to avoid flooded roads as water is still coming down from the hills.

9.23am – Ripon flooding footage

A Stray Ferret reader has shared this footage from Urebank Terrace in Ripon this morning, which has been hit hard by the floods.

9.18am – Studley Royal, Water Garden and Fountains Abbey all closed

The Studley Royal, Water Garden and Fountains Abbey at Ripon are all closed this morning due to the devastating floods yesterday.

National Trust park rangers are at the entrance to advise would-be visitors of the temporary closure.

9.10am – B6275 at Boroughbridge this morning

The B6275 at Boroughbridge this morning, which is closed due to flooding.

B6275 at Boroughbridge currently closed due to flooding pic.twitter.com/obQ7nZaN9M

— HBCEmergencyPlanning (@HBCPrepared) February 21, 2022

8.55am – Pictures of the River Nidd this morning

Here’s how the River Nidd and Nidderdale Lodge caravan park at Knaresborough look this morning.

Earlier, the Environment Agency said river levels on the Nidd had “peaked”.

8.39am – Reports of tree down at Mother Shiptons

Stray Ferret reader Nicola Johnson has shared an update that a tree is blocking the road near Mother Shiptons in Knaresborough.

If you have any further information on this you can email contact@thestrayferret.co.uk or message us on Facebook.

8.30am – Bridge in Boroughbridge closed

The bridge in Boroughbridge has closed to traffic. River levels on the Ure have increased and traffic is being turned around in both directions.

8.20am – Flooding in Hampsthwaite

A Stray Ferret reader has sent this footage from flooding in Hampsthwaite yesterday.

8.05am – Boroughbridge Road at Hewick Bridge closed

Boroughbridge Road at Hewick Bridge, near Ripon Racecourse, is closed after the River Ure burst its banks.

It leaves routes into and out of Ripon limited, however traffic is still flowing on the bypass and the route to the A1 remains clear.

7.55am – Pateley Bridge bus services cancelled

Harrogate Bus Company has had to cancel some services to Pateley Bridge this morning due to flooding.

⚠️ Due to flooding in Pateley Bridge, the following journeys on the 24 are unable to run:

07.40 – Harrogate to Pateley Bridge
09.00 – Pateley Bridge to Harrogate

ℹ️ next buses – 2 hours

Our apologies for any inconvenience caused

@northyorkscc

— The Harrogate Bus Company (@harrogatebus) February 21, 2022

7.45am – Environment Agency: River Nidd levels “have peaked”

The Environment Agency has said this morning that river levels on the River Nidd have peaked.

However, a flood warning remains in place

River levels have now peaked in the upper catchments of the #Wharfe and #Nidd and our focus is turning to #York and #Tadcaster where levels will peak tomorrow morning. Check your flood risk now https://t.co/j6ls7uqAIb pic.twitter.com/bYfgvMygMp

— Environment Agency – Yorkshire & North East (@EnvAgencyYNE) February 21, 2022

7.35am – Drivers urged to avoid Dishforth Road near Ripon

Drivers are urged to avoid Dishforth Road due to flooding near to the Ripon bypass.

One driver has had to abandon their car due to the flood.

7.22am – Police urge drivers to avoid low-lying roads

North Yorkshire Police has urged people to avoid low-lying roads and footpaths as Storm Franklin continues to cause disruption.

https://twitter.com/NYorksPolice/status/1495653258169401350

7.20am – Yellow weather warning of strong wind

The Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning for strong wind in the Harrogate District.

The warning is in place until 1pm today and may cause disruption on the roads and to public transport.

7.15am – River Nidd flood warning remains in place

A flood warning remains in place for the River Nidd at Knaresborough this morning.

The Environment Agency has warned that river levels have fallen since yesterday, but remain higher than normal.

The Environment Agency adds on its website:

“Areas at risk are locations near the River Nidd, with low lying land expected to be most affected, particularly around Riverside properties situated along the Waterside, Abbey Road, Spital Croft and Monskwell Park including part of Manse Lane Industrial Estate.”

The owner of a riverside cafe in Knaresborough has spoken of the devastation caused by flooding this weekend.

Justine Connolly, who co-owns Marigolds Cafe on Waterside, was forced to close the cafe on Sunday morning just as Storm Franklin was approaching the district.

Heavy rain then caused flooding across the Harrogate district, forcing some residents to evacuate their homes.

Ms Connolly said:

“We’ve got CCTV that we can log in on our phones, so we saw that it was bad on Sunday morning.”

Read more:

• River Ure at Boroughbridge rising and expected to peak at midday
• Harrogate jigsaw marathon to raise money for dementia charity

She said coming into work this morning to empty the water from the cafe was “like emptying a bath”.

Ms Connolly added:

“We have to sweep it manually out, we haven’t got any pump systems.”

She said the floods was “as bad” as those in 2016. However, she added that there was more warning this time:

“The only difference with this one is that we saw it coming. We’ve had texts [flood alerts] for the past three days.

“Even though we know its coming and we’ve had it before, it’s still a horrible feeling. You don’t know how high it’s going to get, when it is going to go away and how much damage it is going to do.”

Despite the flooding, Ms Connolly said staff have started the clean up today and are preparing to reopen tomorrow.

She said:

“Now we’re just cleaning up, restocking and getting ready for tomorrow.”

Groups and organisations in the Harrogate district are being invited to apply for grants of up to £2,500 to help support local communities.

The Knabs Ridge Wind Farm community benefit fund helps to fund projects which benefit local people, such as renovations to buildings and new equipment for playgroups.

It has also helped fund public Internet and computers at Hampsthwaite Memorial Hall.

The fund is aimed at organisations in Hampsthwaite Felliscliffe, Hampsthwaite, Birstwith, Norwood, Darley and Menwith, Haverah Park with Beckwithshaw and Fewston in Nidderdale.

It is available to small local charities and voluntary and community groups in those areas.

Read more:

• Will Harrogate district charities lose funding in council shake-up?
• Harrogate jigsaw marathon to raise money for dementia charity

The fund, which is operated by Two Ridings Community Foundation, has grants that are awarded to “enhance quality of life for local residents” and “contribute to vibrant, healthy, successful and sustainable communities”.

RWE Renewables, which set up the fund, said:

“The Knabs Ridge Wind Farm Community Fund is designed to help voluntary organisations, community groups and small charities and other types of not for profit organization that support charitable, educational, community, environmental, energy efficiency or general community amenity projects in the local area.”

Those applying for the grant must be a voluntary organisation, community group, small charity or other type of not for profit organisation and have been in existence for six months.

They must also have a governing document or a constitution. The deadline for applications is May 9, 2022.

More information can be found on the Two Riddings Community Foundation website.

A Harrogate distillery has partnered with the Royal Horticultural Society to create branded spirits including whiskey, gin and rum.

The RHS has handed the licence to Harrogate Tipple to prepare the products for the Chelsea Flower Show in May.

The bottle and labels are still at the design stage but will use imagery that, like the spirits, captures and combines Harrogate Tipple’s artisan ideals with the inspirational aims of the gardening charity.

Steven Green, founder of Harrogate Tipple, said:

“We were thrilled to be asked to develop a series of spirits that reflected the excellence and love of British gardens that is the hallmark of the RHS.

“It has been a delight to work with the UK’s favourite gardening charity and a strong supporter of British craft company produced food and drink.”

Read more:

• New Knaresborough business group to hold spring fayre
• Harrogate hospitality businesses call on council to release £6,000 covid grants

The range will then be available at retail from the beginning of June, selling at several physical and online outlets that include spirit retailers, garden centres and independent wine stores.

It will also be sold via the Harrogate Tipple and RHS websites and at RHS Gardens.

Cathy Snow, licensing manager at RHS, said:

“Our intention was partnering with a distillery that combined a true artisan approach with the creativity and excellence that would make RHS gin, whisky and rum stand out.

“Not an easy task, but in Harrogate Tipple we have found the ideal partner for a range of spirits that are both memorable and delicious.”

Parents objecting about the merger of two Harrogate primary schools claim it will be unfair on some pupils after one school was judged inadequate by inspectors.

Woodfield Primary School and Grove Road Community Primary School will become one in September 2022 if the proposals are approved.

The plans are set to be progressed at a North Yorkshire County Council meeting on Tuesday after a consultation with parents, staff and governors ended in January.

Concerns have been raised that the move will cause disruption for pupils and parents, some of which said Woodfield Primary School should remain as it is after it was judged inadequate by Ofsted in January 2020.

One parent said:

“Woodfield School’s problems should not become Grove Road’s problems.

“Inspectors said pupils at Woodfield were being “let down” by poor leadership and that “too many pupils do not achieve what they are capable of.”

Read more:

• Parents vow to fight closure of ‘fantastic’ Woodfield primary school
• County council ‘would give Woodfield school more time to improve if it could’
• Woodfield primary school set to close in September

Any council-run school which is rated inadequate is required to become a sponsored academy.

However, no sponsor could be found for Woodfield, and the county council instead put forward plans for the merger with good-rated Grove Road.

Stuart Carlton, the county council’s corporate director of children and young people’s services, said in a report: 

“While it is acknowledged that the proposed closure of Woodfield Community Primary School will cause uncertainty and disruption for pupils, parents and staff, Grove Road School would work closely with parents, as both schools do now, to meet the needs of individual children.

“Several consultees have noted the benefits of the Woodfield site including the large grassed area not available at Grove Road.

“It is proposed that the additional space freed up at the Grove Road site will be developed into specialist provision, intervention areas and library spaces.”

“Our family really hope that this amalgamation never happens”

The proposed merger has been agreed by both governing bodies of the schools, and statutory proposals will be published in March if councillors vote in favour of progressing the plans on Tuesday.

After this, a final decision on the move would then be made by the county council’s executive in April.

Commenting on the proposals, one parent said: 

“After the past two years the children have had, I think the uproot out of a school they love and know is not good for mental health and a total disregard for the children and parents of Woodfield.”

Another said: 

“Our family really hope that this amalgamation never happens, otherwise our family and many parents I know will choose for their kids to go to St Peter’s School.”

Meanwhile, one parent commented in favour of the merger, saying her disabled child had a much improved experience at Grove Road after leaving Woodfield.

They said: 

“Having been a parent of a SEND child at Woodfield nearly three years ago… I saw the decline in leadership and poor care of my child’s needs.

“We left this school because we were tired of fighting and getting nowhere.

“I’ve no doubt that under Grove Road leadership, the Woodfield site will become a thriving and flourished school again.”

If the proposals go ahead, nursery aged children will attend the site at Woodfield, which will be re-named Grove Road Nursery, from September.

Eventually all Key Stage One pupils will be taught at the Woodfield site, with Key Stage Two being taught at the larger Grove Road site.

Harrogate’s covid vaccination centre at the Great Yorkshire Showground is set to close next month.

The site, along with the vaccination centre at Ripon Races, is run by Yorkshire Health Network, a federation of the 17 GP practices in the Harrogate district.

The final jabs will be administered at Ripon Races tomorrow. The clinic will be open to people aged 12 and over and walk-ins will be accepted between 8.30am-12.30pm and 1.30-5pm.

The showground site will continue until March 12.

The site first opened in December 2020 to support the first vaccination rollout and administered 117,000 jabs in its first six months of operation.

It reopened in December 2021 as part of the covid booster campaign.

Read more:

• Great Yorkshire Showground vaccine site to reopen for just two weeks
• Exclusive: Great Yorkshire Showground gave 117,000 vaccines in six months
• Meet the showground heroes boosting Harrogate’s vaccine programme

Tim Yarrow, operations manager at Yorkshire Health Network, confirmed that the site would close on March 12. He said:

“After March 12 we will be offering a scaled back service on more of an ad-hoc basis, hopefully still at the showground.”

Vaccinations at the site will continue until March, with walk-in appointments available.

A spokesperson for Yorkshire Health Network added:

“Vaccination clinics are due to be held at the Yorkshire Event Centre until at least the middle of March, 

“However, with some adults and vulnerable children likely to still require access to the covid vaccine, the Yorkshire Health Network is currently looking at future provision beyond this date, with arrangements to be confirmed soon. 

“If patients still require first, second or booster doses, they can book appointments via the NHS Booking Service online or call 119, or visit the NHS website to see local arrangements for walk-in clinic.”

Fresh calls have been made to reinstate a Harrogate bus service which was scrapped more than three years ago.

The 104 service between Wedderburn Road and Harrogate town centre was removed in November 2018, despite efforts from residents and councillors to save the service.

Locals say the scrapping of the service has left elderly and disabled residents cut adrift and forced to pay for taxis to get into town.

However, with North Yorkshire County Council bidding for a £116 million to help fund bus services, there have been renewed calls to reinstate the service.

Removal was a ‘slap in the face’

Lynne Hallums lives on Stonefall Drive, which the bus used to serve as part of its circular of the Wedderburn Estate.

She has chronic nerve pain, fibromyalgia and has to wear a hearing aid. Lynne used to take the 104 into town around four times a week.

She said the bus used to serve a large elderly community, all of which knew each other. It was also a means of getting to Mowbray Square medical centre and the hospital.

But now she says the removal of the service has left them without regular transport and cut them off as a community.

Lynne said:

“When they said they were going to take it [the bus] away, it was like a slap in the face.”

After the removal of the 104 bus, a voluntary service known as “dial-a-ride” was put on to serve the estate. 

Read more:

• ‘Strong support’ for more Harrogate bus lanes
• Improving county bus services an ‘enormous challenge’, says transport boss

However, Lynne says that the voluntary service needed to be booked in advance and did not help those who wanted to go into town regularly.

Meanwhile, elderly and disabled residents are forced to either walk to Wetherby Road or Knaresborough Road to catch a bus.

Lynne bought her house on Stonefall Drive 12 years ago and said the bus stop outside her house was a key selling point.

However, she says she is now considering moving after two years of covid lockdowns and the lack of a regular service to get into town and meet people has had an affect on her mental health.

“I need to get out of this house, my mental health is suffering.

“We do not get to see anyone. We cannot support the local businesses.”

Renewed calls to reinstate

The subsidy for the 104 service was withdrawn in May 2014 when North Yorkshire county councillors agreed that town services should no longer be subsidised.

The decision was made in an effort to save the council £1.1 million and Connexions, which operated the service, subsequently stopped running the bus in 2018.

Craig Temple, director of the company, said the removal of the subsidy was the starting point which led to the service being stopped.

He said:

“I did not want to take it off. The people were lovely and it is not something that we wanted to do.

“We looked at other ways of reintroducing it. I would love to put it back on, the people were great customers and it breaks my heart.”

He added that the loss of subsidy, drop in passenger numbers due to covid and the lack of small buses in its fleet to be able to serve Wedderburn meant it was unlikely that the company would be able to reintroduce the service.

However, residents, local councillors and Andrew Jones, Conservative Harrogate and Knaresborough MP, have called for it to be reinstated.

Ahead of the county council bidding for funding for improved bus services, Mr Jones said he hoped a Wedderburn service would be included in its proposal as the removal of the service had “cut off a whole section of our community from the hospital, the medical centre at Mowbray Square and the town centre”.

Cllr Chris Aldred (left) and Andrew Jones MP.

Cllr Chris Aldred, the Liberal Democrat councillor who represents the Fairfax ward on Harrogate Borough Council, to the Stray Ferret that while the removal of the service may make sense commercially, he was “not convinced” it served residents well.

He added that he had raised the idea of reinstating the service as part of the county council’s bus improvement strategy, which it has bid to government for £116 million of funding for.

Cllr Aldred said:

“Despite this strategy, I cannot see it returning. There does not seem to be anything in that strategy for local services.”

£116m bus strategy

The council’s plan asks for £116 million of government cash over the next eight years to fund support for existing and new services, a simpler ticketing system, better information on journeys and other measures.

The aim is for services to cover the whole of North Yorkshire and has been dubbed an “enormous challenge” by Cllr Don Mackenzie, Conservative executive county councillor for highways.

It is hoped these targets will be also met through so-called enhanced partnerships where councils agree to infrastructure improvements in return for better services from bus companies.

The Stray Ferret asked the county council whether any restating of the 104 service to Wedderburn was included in its plan and, if it wasn’t, what measures does the authority intend to implement to help elderly residents with public transport.

Michael Leah, assistant director for travel, environment and countryside service at the county council, said:

“Our Bus Service Improvement Plan does not include details of individual bus services or journeys yet instead outlines how we aim to expand services and support those which already exist. We continue to provide a discretionary £1.5 million budget to subsidise local bus services which provide fixed route and timetabled bus services that are not discretely commercially viable.

“In partnership with our operators, we aim to increase passenger numbers and therefore, through increasing commercial viability in this way, seek to extend the bus network as well as increase frequency of services.

“Through the plan, and based on funding received, we are committed to delivering more flexible, on-demand services following the successful YorBus pilot in Bedale, Ripon and Masham. YorBus is fully accessible, with low floor access and a ramp access for users of wheelchairs, pushchairs and those with mobility difficulties.

“We have just concluded the public consultation on proposals in our enhanced partnership plan. A report incorporating the feedback will go to our executive in March to consider the enhanced partnership with bus operators, with a view to that partnership coming into effect from April 1, 2022.”

Plans have been lodged to create 11 new apartments on Parliament Terrace in Harrogate town centre.

ATC Properties Ltd has submitted the plans to Harrogate Borough Council to convert Parliament House into one-bedroom apartments and two ground floor commercial units.

The building is currently occupied by a gym and Harrogate Wines, which is in the two-storey unit next to it.

The developer plans to convert the first floor retail space and first and second floor gym to form 11 one-bedroom apartments.

It would also see the existing shop units on Montpellier Walk reconfigured to provide enlarged trading space and new frontages.

Read More:

• Parish council slams ‘fast track’ planning rules after latest Dunlopillo proposals passed
• 390 homes approved in Ripon despite concerns over impact on Fountains Abbey

As part of the plan, the flats would come with double bedroom ensuite and open plan kitchen, dining and living room.

The apartments would be aimed at young professionals, post-graduates and key workers, according to the proposal.

The developer said in its plans:

“The proposed apartments have been designed specifically for young professionals and key workers seeking to access the property market and will therefore provide affordable, inclusive and accessible accommodation.”

It added that the reconfiguration of the ground floor commercial units and new accommodation would help “refurbish a prominent building of poor architectural quality”.

Harrogate Borough Council will make a decision on the plan at a later date.

A new market due to be held in Harrogate on Sunday has been cancelled as the district prepares for another storm.

Yellow weather warnings are in place for snow and wind in the Harrogate district tomorrow.

Real Food Markets, a community interest company that has organised a food market in Ilkley for six years, was due to host its first market in Harrogate’s Crescent Gardens on Sunday.

But tomorrow’s impending arrival of Storm Eunice has prompted organisers to cancel it.

A statement from Real Food Markets said:

“We are sorry to announce that our market for February 290will not take place due to dangerous weather conditions.

“Our first Real Food Harrogate will therefore take place on March 20. We sincerely hope to see you there. 10-3pm, Crescent Gardens, Harrogate.”

Read more:

• Harrogate Hydro reduces opening hours due to staff shortages
• New monthly food market coming to Harrogate

Network Rail is advising people not to travel by train in Yorkshire and the north-east tomorrow.

Matt Rice, north and east route director for Network Rail, said:

“We have extra workers out on the network at key locations, ready to react quickly to Storm Eunice and repair the railway wherever it’s safe to do so.”

RHS Harlow Carr announced on social media today that its gardens will be closed tomorrow.

⚠️ CLOSED Friday 18th Feb: Unfortunately, due to the forecast of more high winds, we've taken the decision to close the garden tomorrow. This is for the safety everyone.

We will be monitoring the situation and hope to open on Saturday, so please check back for further updates. pic.twitter.com/Cl8KhpJI8Z

— RHS Harlow Carr (@RHSHarlowCarr) February 17, 2022

Fountains Abbey said its deer park will close, along with higher paths in the water garden.

The Abbey and Water Garden are open on Fri 18 Feb for quick walks 10am-12pm only. Car parks will close at 1pm. Studley Deer park is CLOSED all day. Visitor centre restaurant (reduced menu) and the shop open 10am-12pm. The higher paths in the water garden are closed all day. pic.twitter.com/KWlUY50zKa

— Fountains Abbey & Studley Royal, National Trust (@fountainsabbey) February 17, 2022

The Stray Ferret will bring you up to date with Storm Eunice developments tomorrow. Keep us informed with developments near you by emailing us at contact@thestrayferret.co.uk.

Harrogate Borough Council has approved plans to repair and rebuild a church wall in Kirkby Malzeard that has been blocking the highway for nearly two years.

Residents and parish councillors urged the council at a planning meeting yesterday to end the “farce” of the St Andrew’s Church wall, which collapsed in February 2020 due to heavy rain.

The council will now rebuild the retaining wall and carry out stabilisation work to its other sections.

Cllr Peter Saxon, of Kirkby Malzeard, Laverton and Dallowgill Parish Council, told the borough council’s planning committee yesterday:

“Kirkby Malzeard as a community is no stranger to controversial planning decisions. This is not one of them.

“Speaking as the parish council, we presented a unanimous view, as with every resident I have spoken to, to ask you to please, please end this farce.

“It’s been almost two years to the day since this wall collapsed.”

Read more:

• Double delay for Kirkby Malzeard road users
• Kirkby Malzeard’s bells could ring again for Queen’s jubilee

Cllr Saxon added that the road on Church Street is often busy with children as it is next to the primary school and it was therefore fortunate that the wall collapsed at night.

He added:

“It is very easy to imagine what would have happened. That road is normally full of children walking home.”

Risk of further collapse

Jonathan Dunk, executive officer for property and major projects at the borough council, told the meeting that there was still concern that the remaining wall could collapse.

He said:

“Our view is that it would be sensible to repair the wall as set out in the application at the same time as rebuilding the section that has collapsed. It is sensible to do that.

“Our view is that there remains a risk that the part of the wall that remains standing now could collapse in the future.

“If that were to happen it would cause a risk to public safety and may cause further road closure.”

Mr Dunk added that the council would look to start the works on the wall in the Easter holidays.