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12
Jun
Harrogate Town Council to buy back town’s coat of arms for £5,000
Harrogate Town Council is to spend £5,035 buying back the coat of arms that belonged to the town for almost a century.
The newly formed council agreed to spend the sum at a meeting last night after hearing it would otherwise not be able to use the design, and creating a new one was likely to cost more.
Reform councillor David Goodall was the only member to vote against the move.
The coat of arms was adopted by the Municipal Borough of Harrogate when it was created in 1884. It continued to be used until Harrogate Borough Council succeeded it and adopted a new design in 1974.
Councillors heard the College of Arms, the heraldic authority dating back to 1484 that is responsible for granting coats of arms, would charge the town council £5,035 to revive the royal licence.
Mayor Chris Aldred said:
The College of Arms is selling us back what we originally had in 1884, which seems a little odd. The town council has done extensive research and there doesn’t seem to be any way around it.
The meeting heard the 1974 coat of arms wasn’t available because the borough council covered a wider area than Harrogate, whereas the 1884 version was for a similar geographic area.
Councillor Edward Metcalfe, a Liberal Democrat who represents Valley Gardens, said the 1884 coat of arms drew on Harrogate’s history and “spending £5,000 is the most sensible option”.
The monarch has to approve the coat of arms. Cllr Aldred said it would be a “very expensive signature”.
Asked afterwards by the Stray Ferret why he had opposed the move, Cllr Goodall, who represents Bilton Woodfield, said:
I just don’t think it represents good value for money for council taxpayers. I don’t feel a coat of arms is necessary for a simple town council.
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