Meet the campaigner who has opposed a Kirby Hill service station for 24 yearsLooking ahead: Major projects in the Harrogate district in 2024

The past 12 months have seen major decisions made on development across the Harrogate district.

However, there are some schemes which remain uncertain and 2024 may hold the answer as to whether they progress or continue to stall.

Maltkiln

The last 12 months have been a whirlwind for the new settlement project which promises up to 3,000 near Green Hammerton and Cattal.

However, in January, news broke that a landowner had pulled out of the project threatening the scheme’s existence.

The landowner owns fields around Cattal train station, making up around half of the proposed site.

Now, North Yorkshire Council, which took over responsibility for the major housing scheme in April, has threatened to compulsory purchase land as a “last resort” so the 4,000-home Maltkiln settlement can be built.

Whether the authority follows through on that pledge is a development to keep an eye out for in 2024.

Harrogate Convention Centre

Perhaps one of the biggest question going into the new year is what will happen to the long promised Harrogate Convention Centre redevelopment?

North Yorkshire Council inherited a £49 million refurbishment scheme for the convention centre on Kings Road from the now defunct Harrogate Borough Council in April.

However, it has yet to decide whether to progress with the project.

Harrogate Convention Centre.

Harrogate Convention Centre.

A contractor has been appointed to draw up more detailed plans for the redevelopment and a final decision was expected this year.

The convention centre opened in 1982 with conferences providing a boost to the town’s bars, restaurants and hotels, however, it has struggled to turned a profit.

The council failed in bids to the government’s Levelling Up Fund for £20 million to help pay for the project – the latest of which was turned down in November.

A previous bid, which was rejected in January, received feedback from ministers stating that it lacked evidence and rationale and may have over-stated the economic benefits.

Government feedback on the bid, released following a freedom of information request by the Stray Ferret, revealed several areas of concerns with the bid.

This is despite the fact the council, which was abolished at the end of March, paid consultants £45,000 as part of its submission to ministers.

The whole saga leaves the future of the convention centre and its refurbishment uncertain and a decision on it being pushed into another year.

Ripon’s Clotherholme development

One of the last acts of Harrogate Borough Council before it was scrapped in April 2023 was to approve a major 1,300 housing scheme on a former Ripon barracks site.

Homes England, which has been developing the plans for several years alongside the Ministry of Defence, has earmarked the Clotherholme site for new homes and facilities.

It was approved in February 2023, just over a month before the council was scrapped.

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Since then, a total of £10 million has been budgeted to cover items in a Section 106 agreement for the project.

The money will fund a number of areas, including off-site highway adjustments and contributions towards primary and secondary education provision and primary healthcare.

Now, residents in Ripon and the wider district await for the news that spades will hit the ground.

Kirby Hill services

The 25-year saga which is Kirby Hill took another turn in 2023.

Dublin-based company Applegreen, which wants to build a motorway service station near the village, tabled final plans for the project.

The proposals were approved in September – however, campaigners threatened to take the decision to a judicial review.

Designs for the service station near Kirby Hill, as proposed by Applegreen.

Designs for the service station near Kirby Hill, as proposed by Applegreen.

Applegreen, which is based in Dublin, applied for amendments to the proposal, including an extension to the length of the slip roads and increasing the permissible height of the eastern dumbbell roundabout by up to 1.25 metres.

But, Gareth Owens, chair of the Kirby Hill RAMS, said the move amounted to “significant change” to the scheme and confirmed the campaign group would challenge the approval.

It seems the saga which has been a quarter of a century in the making may yet go on for another year.

Campaigners face high legal bill in bid to stop motorway services near Ripon

Campaigners in Kirby Hill have claimed North Yorkshire Council has threatened high legal costs to dissuade them from proceeding with a judicial review over a new motorway services near the village.

Kirby Hill Residents Against Motorway Services told the authority they intend to press ahead with legal action over a move to grant permission for a service station between junctions 48 and 49 of the A1(M) northbound, near Boroughbridge and Ripon.

Councillors on the authority’s planning committee granted approval for the scheme on September 12, which would see a Welcome Break built at the site, as well a filling station and 364 car parking spaces created.

However, campaigners say the decision was flawed and that they intend to challenge the approval.

In a letter to Kirby Hill RAMS, the council said the decision was lawful and that it would contest any claim.

It added that it reserved the right to apply to the court to raise the claimant cost cap, which is set at £5,000 under the Aarhus Convention.

The convention, which is an international agreement, grants the public rights in accessing information and participation in government decision making on environmental matters, such as planning decisions.

The council’s letter said:

“We note that your pre-action letter does not address the claimant’s position on costs and the Aarhus Convention.

“Any such application will require the disclosure of the claimant’s finances and the defendant reserves the right, on consideration of said information, to apply to the court to raise the claimant’s Aarhus costs cap above the starting limit of £5,000.”

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Gareth Owens, chair of Kirby Hill RAMS, said the authority was using a threat of high costs to dissuade residents from challenging its decision.

He said:

“It feels like the council doesn’t want its decision to be challenged in the High Court and is saying ‘try it and we’ll have your house if you lose’.

“This is the reality of our new council, which told communities that it would listen to and work with them in the way it makes decisions and improves its delivery of services.

“In practice, at the first sign of a challenge, the council is prepared to ask the court to set aside the rights of residents to environmental democracy, to protect its decisions from proper scrutiny.” 

Mr Owens added that campaigners have responded to the council calling for a dialogue with the authority “to resolve the matter without recourse to legal proceedings”.

The Stray Ferret asked the council whether it had a response to the suggestion that it was threatening high costs to dissuade legal action over its decision.

Barry Khan, assistant chief executive for legal and democratic services at North Yorkshire Council, said:

“We have responded to the letter we received setting out our position. This asserts that the decision was lawfully made and we will contest any claim that is made.

“The section regarding the cost cap is a standard response, simply reserving our position in case a claim is issued as we need to protect taxpayers’ money at all times.”

Campaigners threaten judicial review to halt motorway services near Ripon

Campaigners in Kirby Hill have given North Yorkshire Council notice of a legal challenge against a decision to approve a motorway service station near the village.

Kirby Hill Residents Against Motorway Services have told the authority they intend to press ahead with a judicial review over a move to grant permission for the service station between junctions 48 and 49 of the A1(M) northbound, near Boroughbridge and Ripon.

Councillors on the authority’s planning committee granted approval for the scheme on September 12, which would see a Welcome Break built at the site, as well a filling station and 364 car parking spaces created.

The proposal already had outline permission after the government’s Planning Inspectorate approved the plan on appeal in April 2021.

Applegreen, which is based in Dublin, applied for amendments to the proposal, including an extension to the length of the slip roads and increasing the permissible height of the eastern dumbbell roundabout by up to 1.25 metres.

However, Gareth Owens, chair of the Kirby Hill RAMS, said the move amounted to “significant change” to the scheme and confirmed the campaign group would challenge the approval.

He said:

“The leader of the new council, Cllr Carl Les, told parishes that he wants to work with them and ensure their voice is represented in North Yorkshire Council decisions.

“These laudable principles form the basis of the parish charter that he signed in July 2023. Two months later, planning officers and the strategic planning committee have ridden roughshod over the needs, rights and wishes of the local community.

“This is totally unacceptable. We have written to the council initiating the pre-action protocol for judicial review and giving them 14 days to reconsider this decision and respond, in light of the serious legal issues that we have identified.”

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Mr Owens said the group would challenge the decision on four grounds: unlawful decision, irrational decision, procedural impropriety and unfair decision.

The Stray Ferret approached North Yorkshire Council for comment, but did not receive a response by the time of publication.

The move comes after the government approved plans for the service station following a series of public inquiries and planning battles.

In a saga which has spanned a quarter of a century, Applegreen’s application has been before multiple council planning committees, faced four public inquiries and been turned down twice by the Secretary of State and the High Court.

The inquiry, which was held by planning inspector David Rose and streamed onto YouTube, lasted two weeks and included multiple testimonies from residents, campaigners and developer Applegreen.

In a decision notice, Mr Rose said after considering the evidence that the benefits of a service station would outweigh the harm.

Plans for motorway services between Ripon and Boroughbridge approved

Councillors have approved the latest plans for a motorway service station near to Kirby Hill.

Applegreen Ltd submitted amended plans for the scheme between junctions 48 and 49 of the A1(M) northbound, between Boroughbridge and Ripon.

It would see a Welcome Break built at the site, as well a filling station and 364 car parking spaces created.

The proposal already has outline permission after the government’s Planning Inspectorate approved the plan on appeal in April 2021.

At a meeting last week, councillors on North Yorkshire Council’s strategic planning committee approved the amended proposal.

Applegreen, which is based in Dublin, applied for amendments to its plan, including an extension to the length of the slip roads and increasing the permissible height of the eastern dumbbell roundabout by up to 1.25 metres.

In documents submitted to the council, the company said the changes were “limited design amendments”.

But, Gareth Owens, of Kirby Hill Residents Against Motorway Services, told the committee that the plan did not amount to minor amendments.

He said:

“Minor amendments would not warrant an officer’s report that runs to 110 pages.”

Mr Owens added:

“What we have here is an applicant who misrepresented to an inspector at a public inquiry what it is possible to achieve on this site.

“They are now having to row back from that position and ask your permission for a much more harmful scheme.

“Let’s not be taken in by the claim that these are minor amendments.”

Cllr Nick Brown, who represents the area on North Yorkshire Council, said he knew of no other local issue which residents felt more strongly about.

He added the scheme was “materially different” to what was approved by the government’s Planning Inspectorate.

Nick Roberts, who represented Applegreen at the meeting, said the need for a motorway service station at the site was established by a planning inspector after a three-week public inquiry.

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The move comes after the government approved plans for the service station following a series of public inquiries and planning battles.

In a saga which has spanned a quarter of a century, Applegreen’s application has been before multiple council planning committees, faced four public inquiries and been turned down twice by the Secretary of State and the High Court.

The inquiry, which was held by planning inspector David Rose and streamed onto YouTube, lasted two weeks and included multiple testimonies from residents, campaigners and developer Applegreen.

In a decision notice, Mr Rose said after considering the evidence that the benefits of a service station would outweigh the harm.

Parish council objects to latest Kirby Hill service station plan

Kirby Hill and District Parish Council has objected to the latest plans to build a motorway service station near to the village.

Applegreen Ltd has submitted amended plans for the scheme between junctions 48 and 49 of the A1(M) northbound, between Boroughbridge and Ripon.

It would see a Welcome Break built at the site, as well a filling station and 364 car parking spaces created.

The proposal already has outline permission after the government’s Planning Inspectorate approved the plan on appeal in April 2021.

However, the parish council has objected to the proposal on the grounds that the developer was planning “major changes” to its plan.

It added that there was already a service station planned for Catterick and one on the A168 near Thirsk, which it says “plugs the gap” for a motorway service area.

In its objection, which was sent to North Yorkshire Council by parish council clerk, Martin Rae, the authority also called for the proposal to be considered by a planning committee.

It said:

“It [the parish council] also requests that this resubmitted application is dealt with by the planning authority in full committee at Tier 1 level.

“This is because councillors believe that it cannot be considered in isolation in view of the changed wider context in which services have now been approved at Catterick and greater provision of services now exists on the A168 link to the A19 at Thirsk.”

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Applegreen, which is based in Dublin, applied for amendments to its plan, including an extension to the length of the slip roads and increasing the permissible height of the eastern dumbbell roundabout by up to 1.25 metres.

In documents submitted to the council, the company said the changes were “limited design amendments”.

North Yorkshire Council will make a decision on the proposal at a later date.

The move comes after the government approved plans for the service station following a series of public inquiries and planning battles.

In a saga which has spanned a quarter of a century, Applegreen’s application has been before multiple council planning committees, faced four public inquiries and been turned down twice by the Secretary of State and the High Court.

The inquiry, which was held by planning inspector David Rose and streamed onto YouTube, lasted two weeks and included multiple testimonies from residents, campaigners and developer Applegreen.

In a decision notice, Mr Rose said after considering the evidence that the benefits of a service station would outweigh the harm.

Kirby Hill to commemorate 150th anniversary of church organ

Residents in Kirby Hill are set to celebrate the 150th anniversary of a church organ at All Saints’ Church.

The organ was first installed in 1873 following the restoration of the church by architect George Gilbert Scott.

Peter Crawford, organist at All Saints’ Church, said the instrument has only had one addition to it since its installation 150 years ago.

He said:

“Except for the addition of an electric blower in 1949, the organ is exactly as it was when first installed. It is a rare example of a late Victorian instrument, virtually unchanged since it was built and still in good working order.

“As such, it is of great historical importance. It is a privilege to play it every week.”

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As part of the anniversary, the village will hold a “tunes and blooms” celebration from July 28 until July 30.

The church will be decorated in floral displays and drinks and nibbles will be held on Friday evening from 7pm.

Meanwhile, the church will be open between 10am and 4pm on Saturday and Sunday and there will be short organ recitals throughout each day. 

On Saturday evening at 7:30pm there is a concert featuring the organ and choir. On Sunday at 6:30pm the weekend will conclude with a special Songs of Praise service. 

For more information on the events, visit the All Saints’ Church website here.

Residents object to latest Kirby Hill service station plans

Residents in Kirby Hill have objected to latest plans for a motorway service station near to the village.

Applegreen Ltd has submitted amended plans for the scheme between junctions 48 and 49 of the A1(M) northbound, between Boroughbridge and Ripon.

It would see a Welcome Break built at the site, as well a filling station and 364 car parking spaces created.

The proposal already has outline permission after the government’s Planning Inspectorate approved the plan on appeal in April 2021.

However, the Dublin-based company has applied for amendments to the plan, including an extension to the length of the slip roads and increasing the permissible height of the eastern dumbbell roundabout by up to 1.25 metres.

In documents submitted to the council, Applegreen said the changes were “limited design amendments”.

It said:

“These minor changes to the access / junction linking the motorway service area to the A1(M) are needed in order that this access is in full compliance with the Design Manual for Roads and Bridges (as required by National Highways).

“There are no other material amendments proposed whatsoever to the scheme approved under the 2021 permission.”

The site plan for the service station at Kirby Hill.

The site plan for the service station at Kirby Hill.

However, residents in Kirby Hill have argued that the changes are not minor and called on North Yorkshire Council to refuse the application.

Gareth Owens, of Kirby Hill Residents Against Motorway Services, said:

“Applegreen’s failure to implement the scheme approved by the Inspector proves the case that we have been making for 27 years – a motorway service area cannot be assimilated into the large-scale, open, rural landscape at this location.

“We urge the members of the new North Yorkshire Council planning committee to refuse these two applications, as their predecessors on Harrogate Borough Council have always done, and ensure that there will be no services here.”

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The Stray Ferret approached Applegreen for a response to residents’ concerns, but had not received a reply by the time of publication.

North Yorkshire Council will make a decision on the proposal at a later date.

The move comes as the government approved plans for the service station after a series of public inquiries and planning battles.

In a saga which has spanned a quarter of a century, Applegreen’s application has been before multiple council planning committees, faced four public inquiries and been turned down twice by the Secretary of State and the High Court.

The inquiry, which was held by planning inspector David Rose and streamed onto YouTube, lasted two weeks and included multiple testimonies from residents, campaigners and developer Applegreen.

In a decision notice, Mr Rose said after considering the evidence that the benefits of a service station would outweigh the harm.

‘Good’ rating for ‘caring and friendly’ Boroughbridge school

Ofsted has given Kirby Hill Church of England Primary School a ‘good’ rating for the first time since March 2011.

Inspectors published the report yesterday after a visit to the school last month. They rated the 120-pupil school ‘good’ in all areas. ‘Good’ is the second highest of four possible ratings, with ‘outstanding’ the best.

It follows two previous ‘requires improvement’ Ofsted ratings in 2016 and 2018.

Leaders at the school, the report says, have “galvanised the staff team and secured improvements to the quality of education and pupils’ behaviour.”

The report said:

“Pupils enjoy attending Kirby Hill Primary School. The school’s embedded Christian values help to foster pupils’ positive attitudes to learning and to caring relationships.

“Pupils have a strong understanding of diversity and celebrate other people’s differences.

“Pupils behave well in lessons and enjoy playing together at break times. They understand what bullying is but say that it does not happen in their school.

“The school is a caring and friendly place.”

Staff have won praise for the improvement.

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The report also praises the new curriculum at the school, which it describes as ambitious. It added that teachers explain new learning clearly and address misconceptions effectively.

Kirby Hill Church of England Primary School is about a mile from Boroughbridge.

Emma Lowe, headteacher, said:

“We are all delighted here at Kirby Hill that our hard work and dedication to improve standards has now formally been recognised by Ofsted.

“I am incredibly proud of the whole school community as everyone has played their part – but I am especially proud of our children.

“As always, our children were excellent ambassadors for our school during the inspection.

“They were able to talk confidently and passionately about their love of learning, their desire to challenge themselves and their ambitions for the future.

“I feel very lucky to be part of the Kirby Hill family and I look forward to continuing on our journey. Onwards and upwards – if you can believe it, you can achieve it!”

Council accused of ‘whitewash’ over investigation into ‘massaged’ planning report

Campaigners who spent 25 years fighting plans for a motorway service station have accused Harrogate Borough Council of a “whitewash” after it published its findings into an investigation.

The council launched the probe after it emerged a planning officer sent emails saying he “massaged” a key report on the A1(M) service station near Kirby Hill which was approved at appeal in April despite seven previous refusals since 1997.

A council statement previously said the investigation concluded “no irregularities” took place – and the findings have now been revealed in full to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The findings say the reference to “massaging” was “simply a poor choice of wording” and was in the context that the officer had amended the landscaping report to ensure it was “acceptable”.

However, the two planning officers involved in the emails were not interviewed as they had left the council and their previous messages were also deleted as “standard practice” to manage storage limits.

‘Deeply suspicious and disturbing’

Gareth Owens, chairman of campaign group Kirby Hill RAMS (Residents Against Motorway Services), said: 

“This so-called investigation and report amounts to a council whitewash of a deeply suspicious and disturbing episode in the planning department.

“This was not an independent investigation therefore – it was the planning department investigating itself.

“Little wonder, then, that the report concludes there were ‘no irregularities’.

“We now need a thorough, independent investigation of this matter and I call on the council to instigate one.”

The landscape report presented to councillors is significant because it said the impact of the service station on the area was “not substantive”.

This assessment was described by campaigners as a “complete U-turn” from a previous council report which warned the plans would cause “significant harm”.

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Despite a recommendation of approval from officers, members of the council’s planning committee still rejected the service station in November 2019.

However, campaigners believe the officer’s recommendation and “massaged” landscaping report still had a major impact on the outcome of the appeal which followed.

Mr Owens said:

“Members of the planning committee should remain very concerned about officers’ behaviour in this matter, particularly since the inspector at the public inquiry went along with the ‘massaged’ recommendation.”

Mr Ownes also raised questions over a verbal statement made by the planning officer to councillors.

The investigation findings state it was “unclear” whether the officer said “two landscape officers have judged the proposal and the proposal did not consider it caused significant harm” as this was not recorded in a transcript.

Gareth Owens, chair of the Kirby Hill RAMS, speaking against the application at Harrogate Borough Council’s planning committee in 2019. Picture: Kirby Hill RAMS

However, an audio recording of the meeting shared by Mr Owens reveals the officer did say those words.

Mr Owens said: 

“The evidence of this recording shows that the planning committee was misled.

“We feel that the investigator owes Kirby Hill RAMS an apology for trying to cover this up by stating as fact in their report that ‘the transcript has not accurately recorded the statement’ when they had not even listened to the recording.

“This concern could of course have been discussed with us during the investigation. It was not.”

‘Poor choice of wording’

The investigation was headed by Kathryn Daly, head of place shaping and economic growth at the council, who concluded:

“The use of the word ‘massaged’ in the email sent by the principal landscape officer to the planning officer is far from ideal, but my conclusion is that this was simply a poor choice of wording.

“For completeness, it would have been helpful to see whether there were additional emails between the two officers. However, corporate restrictions on Outlook storage mean that it is standard practice to delete historic emails.

“If this deletion is not done, the email account quickly goes above the storage limit and cannot be used.”

A council statement also previously said: 

“We can confirm that, following allegations that a report was ‘massaged’, an investigation was carried out.

“This investigation found no irregularities in the preparation of the officer report for the planning committee.

“As was stated at the time, officer recommendations are fair and impartial, and carefully considered against local and national planning policy, case law, consultation and anything else considered to be ‘material’ to the decision.”