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23
Oct 2023
Proposals for Harrogate Town Council expected next year
New proposals to set-up a Harrogate Town Council are now expected next year, according to North Yorkshire Council.
Harrogate and Scarborough were expected to get their own town councils in May 2024 but the process was delayed after councillors on North Yorkshire Council, which is charged with setting up the local authorities, asked to redraw its ward boundaries.
Residents had previously backed the creation of two councillor wards arranged by the current 10 North Yorkshire Council divisions. Saltergate would have had just one councillor.
However, Conservative councillors on North Yorkshire Council said they didn’t want to proceed with this model and instead wanted to see single councillor wards based around the 19 former Harrogate Borough Council boundaries.
This means there will have to be a third public consultation so the public can have their say on the new wards.
The consultations are a legal necessity but it will take the combined cost of holding them to more than £140,000.
Barry Khan, North Yorkshire Council’s assistant chief executive legal and democratic services, said:
This month, the council revealed the winners and losers of the 12 ‘double-devolution’ bids from parishes that would like to take control of assets in their areas.
Read more:
- In numbers: Harrogate town council consultation response
- Taxpayers set to foot £140,000 bill for three Harrogate Town Council consultations
Harrogate Town Council, if it’s created, could apply to run services in the town such as looking after its parks or the Stray, operating car parks or managing the Royal Hall.
The council has said that households would initially be asked to pay between £40 and £60 on top of their council tax to allow the town council to have an annual budget in the range of £1m to £1.6m.
If residents approve the proposals laid out in the next consultation, the council would likely form in April 2025 with elections taking place in May, although this has not been confirmed yet.
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