The organisation fighting to save Ripon’s military heritage from being bulldozed has said it is “hugely disappointed” about updated plans for the 1,300-home Clotherholme housing scheme.
Government agencies Homes England and the Defence infrastructure Organisation provided the update in a planning report published on North Yorkshire Council’s website last week.
The homes will be built at the barracks site which contains internationally significant military structures, including huts constructed in 1939 when Neville Chamberlain’s government prepared for war with Germany and training bridges that influenced global warfare.
The demolition training bridge. Pic: Ripon Military Heritage Trust
The report pledged to “work with the Ripon Military Heritage Trust on a heritage strategy which will balance the urgent need for new homes for local people with a strategy for preserving and recording the unique history and heritage of the barracks”.
But the trust, which has launched a website as part of a campaign to preserve key aspects of the site, fears the agencies have shown little desire to co-operate since Harrogate Borough Council granted planning permission in February last year and their pledges remain vague and opaque.
Trust chairman Guy Wilson said:
“We are hugely disappointed that after 15 months of engagement with Homes England, the current outline planning application lacks any provision for the preservation of even a single example of the rare and unique huts at Deverell Barracks.
“Neither has any land been allocated to allow for the relocation and re-use of these heritage assets. Both were specific requests that the Harrogate Borough Council planning committee called for in February 2023.
“It has sadly become apparent that none of the parties to this development has any real interest in preserving the heritage of the site and none has made any attempt to work constructively with us. All they are interested in is appearing to do enough to get their present plans passed without alteration, in which case the result will be that significant heritage assets will be lost and this we very much regret.”
The planning update said the housing scheme will preserve the main military roads and names as well as provide information signs.
How the site will look. Pic: Homes England
It also talks about “exploring ways to integrate a walking tour, virtual tour or to develop other forms of public exhibition at the site”.
One of the conditions of planning consent was to allocate £100,000 to the trust to conduct a feasibility study on preserving and retaining some of the existing military buildings on the site. But progress since then has been limited.
Mr Wilson said:
“Unfortunately, we are sceptical about their commitment to developing a feasibility study, as after 15 months of engagement with Homes England there has been no proper engagement with the real issues involved in preserving the heritage.
“During that period work has begun on producing an options appraisal; all the proposals put forward by the trust have been ignored and they have refused to allow the process to be based on a clear understanding of the assets’ heritage significance.”
He added:
“Where is the commitment to assess significance? Where is the list of assets to be preserved? Where is the agreement to transfer ownership of assets required? Where is the commitment to allocate the necessary land to relocate assets? Where is the commitment to build into the development timescale the reality of fund-raising?
“Instead of work on these crucial issues we have been stonewalled at every turn by all parties. Their heritage strategy is aimed at ticking boxes and getting approvals not at preserving the heritage.”
Read more:
- Tank will be on the Ripon Inn lawn for launch of D-Day anniversary celebrations
- New details of Ripon’s 1,300-home Clotherholme scheme released
