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09
Mar
Knaresborough Castle repairs to be outlined in five-year roadmap of works
Knaresborough Castle looks set to receive some much-needed care after North Yorkshire Council agreed today to a five-year 'roadmap’ of repair work.
The council leases the castle from its owner, the Duchy of Lancaster, which has been eager for the work to get started for some time.
News of the scheme of work came via a Facebook post from Cllr Matt Walker, who toured the castle today with senior council officers and representatives of the Duchy of Lancaster.
Cllr Walker, who represents the Knaresborough West division on North Yorkshire Council, has been campaigning since he was elected in 2022 for the castle’s maintenance and safety issues to be fixed.
He posted on Facebook:
Today, that persistence paid off. I met on-site with senior officers to demand action – and we got it.
Here is the result: a 5-Year Roadmap. No more ‘false starts’.
He added that a full improvement plan is now being developed and will be finalised by the end of this month, with work starting shortly afterwards.
This will include the replacement of the railings around the castle and the removal of all the weeds and other vegetation from the ruin, which risks making it unstable. Works orders for these projects are apparently already in place.
Knaresborough Castle.
Cllr Walker said:
Behind the Courthouse Museum, Wall 13 is coming away from the moat and there’s a big crack in the path. There’s been a lot of slippage and the Duchy were quite concerned about it.
Concern for the safety and integrity of the 14th-century castle has been growing in recent years, and last September Knaresborough residents Kathy Allday and Liz Baxendale launched a petition and campaign calling for investment in the structure.
The petition stated:
The castle’s deterioration jeopardises economic contributions from tourism. If Knaresborough Castle’s decline continues, ultimately it could be closed to the public, which would be disastrous for the town.
It also called on North Yorkshire Council to reinvest any revenue generated through the castle estate, such as car parking, into the building’s maintenance.
Cllr Walker said he was optimistic that the campaign had borne fruit:
We’ve had a few false starts in the past, such as when we had the council’s chief executive and leader here, but we had the whole entourage this time, so I’m hoping this time we’ll see the action we’ve been waiting for.
North Yorkshire Council and the Duchy of Lancaster have been approached for comment.
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