Council plans 7% Harrogate social housing rent increase

North Yorkshire Council looks set to increase rents on social housing in Harrogate by 7% from April.

The authority is set to inherit 3,893 social houses when Harrogate Borough Council is abolished in under three months’ time.

Senior councillors agreed to recommend the rent increase at a meeting yesterday.

It will see the average weekly rent in Harrogate increase from £85.22 to £91.18.

Cllr Simon Myers, executive councillor for housing on the council, told councillors that the increase was difficult to propose.

He said:

“I, with a very heavy heart, have to recommend to you all that we increase our rents by the maximum allowed by government this year, which is capped at 7%.”

The number of social homes which North Yorkshire Council will inherit.

The number of social homes which North Yorkshire Council will inherit.

Cllr Myers added that the authority needed the income to balance the books of its housing revenue account.

He added that the council also had an ambition to improve its social housing stock in the future.

Cllr Myers said:

“We have a commitment to our tenants and we understand the pressures on them and all residents of North Yorkshire.

“But we have a commitment that is very long term to provide social, fair and decent housing to our residents as a stockholding authority.”

£2 million deficit

The council will inherit a mixture of houses, flats, hostels and shared ownership properties.

According to a council report, the combination of the Harrogate, Richmondshire and Selby housing stock is set to leave the authority with an in-year deficit of £2 million.

As a result, the council has agreed to increase rents by the maximum allowed by government from April 1.

Read more:

The proposal also includes a 2% increase on shared ownership property rents, which is in line with the lease agreements at those homes.

In his report, Gary Fielding, corporate director for strategic resources at the council, pointed out that that a third of the rent paid by social housing tenants is covered by housing benefit.

He said:

“The vast majority of HRA income comes from the rent that is charged to tenants. It should be noted that approximately one third of this income is paid for via housing benefit, rather than directly by tenants. 

“In addition, some tenants will be in receipt of Universal Credit, which will include an element designed to cover rental payments, but this cannot be quantified.”

The recommendation to increase social housing rent by 7% will go to the authority’s full council for a final decision.

North Yorkshire Council has reserves to ride out inflation, says senior official

North Yorkshire Council will have enough reserves to ride out another national event such as soaring inflation, a senior council official has said.

Gary Fielding, corporate director for strategic resources at the authority, said the council has planned for a “one-off use” of its reserves to cover a £30 million shortfall for the upcoming financial year.

The council is facing pressures from inflation, rising cost of utilities and taking on structural deficits from other district councils.

Around £18 million from the districts will be taken on by North Yorkshire Council, plus a further £12 million for an in-year shortfall.

As part of the budget plans, the county council will dip into its reserves to cover the financial blackhole.

Despite the use of reserves, Mr Fielding said he felt the council would still be in a good position to withstand another national event, such as a pandemic or soaring inflation rates.

He said:

“I think we are well placed to ride out the issues in the coming years.

“I would describe these times as unprecedented and that is after two years of covid.”

Part of the council’s shortfall is down to energy costs and pay awards.

Energy bills for North Yorkshire’s current eight councils stood at about £6 million in 2021/22, rising to £15.5 million for the current financial year.

They are predicted to rise to £31 million for the forthcoming financial year from April 1.

Meanwhile, inflationary pressures, including pay awards, previously accounted for an increase of about £19 million a year across the eight North Yorkshire councils.

However, the dramatic rise in inflation to more than 10% a year has seen £66 million having to be allocated to next year’s proposed budget to cope with the increase.

Mr Fielding pointed out that other councils were serving section 114 notices – a measure taken in dire financial circumstances.

Read more:

Thurrock Council, Slough Borough Council and Croydon Council have all issued such notices, which effectively declare the authority as bankrupt and ban any further spending.

However, Mr Fielding said he felt confident the council was not in that position.

He told senior councillors this morning:

“I am confident that we are not that organisation and will not be that organisation.”

‘Heavy heart’ over council tax hike

Senior councillors this morning recommended a 4.99% increase in council tax for the entirety of North Yorkshire.

The proposal, which would see a band D rate of £1,759.96 for the year, will go to councillors at the authority’s full council meeting for a final decision.

Cllr Gareth Dadd, deputy leader of the county council, said it was “with a heavy heart” that the authority had to propose an increase.

He said:

“As we sit here today I can see no alternative to that 4.99% increase.

“Every one per cent that we take off that equates to a loss of funding of £4.1 million year on year.”

The council is proposing the sum in order to meet costs for providing public services across the county.

It has also decided that council tax rates will be harmonised for the next two years – meaning taxpayers will pay the same sum across the county.

Bid to protect Harrogate’s Stray with common land status

A campaign group has submitted an application to have the Stray in Harrogate registered as common land.

The Open Spaces Society (OSS) said registration could bring more protection for the Stray, requiring additional permission to hold events outside the existing restrictions.

Speaking to the Stray Ferret, OSS case officer Hugh Craddock said it would make it more difficult to hold events that did not comply with the 1985 Stray Act, such as the 2019 UCI Road World Championships, which saw heavy rain and large crowds leave West Park Stray in need of extensive repairs.

He said:

“Our view is that, once registered, the protections afforded to common land generally would apply to the Stray as well.

“There would be an additional layer of consent which would have to be obtained for such events. That’s not to say it would be impossible, but there would be another layer of protection.”

The Stray Act 1985 appointed Harrogate Borough Council to guard it and residents’ freedom to use it. When the new North Yorkshire Council comes into effect in April, it will take on that responsibility.

Among the restrictions under the act are a limit on the amount of space that can be used for events, and their duration. No more than 8.5 acres can be used for a maximum of 35 days per year.

A consultation was held in 2016 to extend the amount of time the Stray could be used for events, but the council said there was not public support for the proposal.

The OSS said it is trying to reverse a decision made in November 1966 to exclude the Stray from registration under the Commons Registration Act 1965. It has applied to North Yorkshire County Council to register the 200-acre parkland as common land.

Mr Craddock said:

“The decision in the 1960s to keep the Stray off the registers was understandable but misguided.

“Only a quarter of one per cent of registered common land was exempted from registration, and exemption proved to be both misleading and unhelpful.

“The Stray has always been common land, and ought to be registered as common land.”

Once the application has been validated by the county council, Mr Craddock said the process of determining whether to register the Stray as common land is likely to take between six and 18 months.

Read more:

The OSS said the move would help to resolve some “inconsistencies” in the area of the Stray defined by different acts of Parliament in 1770, 1893 and 1985.

Mr Craddock referred to a small patch of grass adjacent to Harrogate District Hospital which used to be part of the gardens belonging to a house on the site of the hospital. Although it appeared to be part of the Stray, it was not officially Stray land.

In 2020, that land was identified as part of a ‘land exchange’ for a piece of verge alongside Otley Road which was part of the Stray. The Stray land was set to be adjusted as part of the cycle route being created by North Yorkshire County Council which required loss of the verge.

The OSS said officially recognising the Stray as common land could only further ensure its protection.

Commons registration officer Frances Kerner, who made the application on behalf of the society, added:

“Registration can only reinforce the protection already afforded to the Stray under the Harrogate Stray Act 1985.  The land will also become protected under the Commons Act 2006.

“And registration will ensure that those who buy and sell land adjacent to the common are always notified of its protected status.

“We look forward to the council advertising the application in due course.”

Union escalates dispute over transfer of Harrogate council staff

Union members at Harrogate Borough Council have escalated their opposition to plans to transfer them to a new employer from April.

Five members of staff, working in the information and internal audit services department, were told they would be transferring to shared services group Veritau rather than the new North Yorkshire Council from April.

Now, Unison said it has involved its regional Yorkshire and Humberside office in the dispute after both HBC and NYCC refused to take responsibility for the decision.

Harrogate branch secretary Dave Houlgate said:

“Following the lodging of our dispute last week, which will be heard on Thursday, the borough council has come back to us to say that it was not their decision but that of North Yorkshire County Council using its transition/implementation powers.

“We have asked for some more detail around this but the upshot is that no one seems to want to take any responsibility for the decision.

“That cannot be right. This is incredibly stressful for staff who all along have had an expectation they would transfer to North Yorkshire Council.

“This late change is unfair and is unacceptable.”

The new chief executive of North Yorkshire Council has already said decisions about where staff will transfer to will be made by HBC.

Mr Houlgate said HBC had previously given reassurance to staff that they would not be transferring to Veritau, a shared service group owned by local authorities across Yorkshire and the north east.

He added:

“We can reveal that in August last year, following concerns raised by Unison, the staff were reassured by the borough council that they would be transferring to North Yorkshire Council on April 1, 2023. It remains our belief that the decision is ultimately with the borough council and that the council should stand by what it has previously told its staff.

“Understandably we are pursuing this with both councils, seeking clarity around decision-making, accountability, oversight and where the duty to engage with staff and Unison actually rests.”

Mr Houlgate said Unison would take the dispute to HBC’s human resources committee and had already tabled a question for its overview and scrutiny commission, which is set to meet on February 6 to discuss local government reorganisation.

Unison said it is unable to raise the issue at a full council meeting because HBC is not holding one until March, which will be too late.

The Stray Ferret has contacted Harrogate Borough Council for a response.

The authority previously said audit services for the new authority will be provided by Veritau and that staff had been kept informed throughout the process.

It said staff will transfer on their existing terms and conditions, and will be offered the option of moving to Veritau’s terms.

Read more:

 

Eight North Yorkshire Council officers set for £100,000 salaries

Eight senior managers at North Yorkshire Council are set to receive a salary of more than £100,000 a year.

The authority will replace Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire County Council in April.

As part of the move, a new management has been appointed to oversee the authority.

A report due before the council tomorrow (January 24) will also recommend a pay structure for the management and council as a whole.

Among them includes Richard Flinton, the new chief executive, who will receive a salary of £198,935.

Meanwhile, Stuart Carlton, Richard Webb, Gary Fielding and Karl Battersby — all of whom are directors under the county council — will receive £150,044.

Read more:

An unnamed director of community development is due to receive a salary of £139,125.

Elsewhere Rachel Joyce and Trudy Forster are due to be paid £111,500 and Barry Khan, currently assistant chief executive for legal and democratic services at the county council, will receive £120,000.

The Stray Ferret asked the county council how it had arrived at the salaries, but had not receive a response by the time of publication.

A report due before senior councillors on Tuesday said:

“The grading structure has been amended this year following a review of all eight councils structures to consider the differences and the changing nature of the council resulting from local government reorganisation.

“Whilst North Yorkshire County Council is the continuing authority, changes in pay terms and conditions have been made as a result of this review, to address the changing nature of the council and also the market pressures causing ongoing staff attraction and retention difficulties.”

Cllr Carl Les, leader of the county council, said:

“The pay which we offer is designed to attract and retain the most talented staff that we can, as we want the best people on board to drive forward the vision of the new North Yorkshire Council for the benefit of everybody who lives and works in the county.

“The new pay structure also highlights some significant savings on roles for chief executives and chief officers of £3.7 million compared to the costs across the previous eight councils.

“We are one of the largest local authorities in the country, managing large and complex operations. 

“In establishing the grades for the new management structure, senior managers’ salaries were analysed against other comparable authorities with the use of independent data.

“We are proud of the ability of our senior managers, and we believe it’s important to be open and transparent about our pay structure.” 

Explained: North Yorkshire Council’s plan for council tax

North Yorkshire Council looks set to propose a council tax hike as part of its first budget.

The authority, which will take over Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire County Council, is set to recommend a bill of £1,759.96.

However, the total bill will also include precepts for fire and police services which will be decided next month.

Here is all you need to know about your council tax this coming year.

What will my council tax be?

For 2023/24, taxpayers will no longer pay council tax to Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire County Council.

Instead, tax will be paid solely to the new North Yorkshire Council.

As part of its first budget, authority officials are proposing a band D rate of £1,759.96 for the year – an increase on last year by 4.99%.

That does not include the precepts for fire, police and parish councils which will be decided separately by those organisations.

Why has the council chosen to increase council tax?

The council is proposing the sum in order to meet costs for providing public services across the county.

It has also decided that council tax rates will be harmonised for the next two years – meaning taxpayers will pay the same sum across the county.

Read more:

The council has calculated that council tax for the average band D property in Harrogate would normally be valued at £1,783.35.

But, the harmonised average for the county – which includes a 4.99% hike – will be set at £1,759.96.

The council also says it has to make income in order to tackle a £30 million blackhole caused by inflation and spiralling costs.

What has the council said about the proposal?

Despite an increase in funding from the government, the new authority is set to start the next financial year from April with a predicted shortfall of more than £30 million in its budget.

The council is set to receive an additional £22 million from government as part of the announcement.

However, soaring inflation and the impact of the covid pandemic is still set to leave a blackhole in the authority’s finances.

A council press release said the shortfall would be met “by the one-off use of reserves as well as some savings”.

Senior councillors will meet to discuss the council’s first budget, including council tax, on January 24.

Conservative Cllr Carl Les, who will assume the leadership of North Yorkshire Council from April, said: 

“We are facing the greatest ever financial challenges in North Yorkshire, which means we have a huge task in ensuring that services can be delivered effectively and efficiently for the public.

“However, without the opportunities presented with the launch of the new council, the situation would be a great deal worse, and it is vital that we take full advantage of these opportunities.

“We have the chance to make millions of pounds in savings by reorganising the way services are delivered, meaning that we get the most out of every pound of taxpayers’ money in North Yorkshire.”

North Yorkshire Council leadership dismisses anti-democratic claims

Senior North Yorkshire councillors have dismissed suggestions they are “trying to curtail democracy” by limiting the number of questions elected councillors can publicly pose to the ruling group’s executive.

A meeting of Conservative-run North Yorkshire County Council’s executive saw proposals for the unitary North Yorkshire Council’s constitution pushed forward for consideration at a full council meeting next month.

But concerns were raised over democracy at the authority’s quarterly full council meetings, the only time where all 90 councillors can air issues together.

The meeting was told a clause of the constitution meant a restriction in the volume of questions the authority’s 10 executive members could face.

The authority’s opposition leader, Cllr Bryn Griffiths, questioned the rationale behind the proposal that “a maximum of five minutes will be permitted for questions to each executive member”.

The Liberal Democrat leader said the move was “effectively a guillotine from members of the council to executive members of the council”.

Corporate services executive member Cllr David Chance replied that the original constitution had stated members’ questions would be limited to those on the written reports of executive members to full council.

He added: 

“The questions have become lengthened…”

Cllr Chance said there had been “a suggestion from another quarter” that the Tory administration introduced a one-hour guillotine for members’ questions, but that the proposal had been dismissed as the council’s leading group did not believe that was sufficient.

He added: 

“So we settled on five minutes per question  with the chair having discretion to extend that if he felt that was needed.”

Read more:

The council’s deputy leader, Cllr Gareth Dadd, said during discussions over the proposed change to full meetings of the council “on the face of it it seemed as though we were trying to curtail democracy and not hold executive members to account”.

He said the rule had been proposed to protect the integrity of the purpose of full council meetings and give members’ greater opportunities to raise issues with executive members.

Cllr Dadd said: 

“For me the purpose of full council is yes, to allow members of the authority to hold those in positions of responsibility to account, but the primary purpose of full council is to set policy and debate policy.

“After reflection… we have written a means into the constitution by which members can raise their concerns and hold accountable members to account with written questions that will be published on a website to enable the public to see responses to concerns raised by councillors.”

Cllr Dadd said during discussions with a cross-party group of councillors the five-minute limit had received a broad base of support, when considered alongside the move to publish any questions raised by members.

After the meeting, Independent group leader Cllr Stuart Parsons said even with the proposal to publish members’ questions, the move was set to stifle debate, perpetuating a situation where 10 executive members had “inordinate powers” and the remaining 80 elected councillors could “go swing”.

He said: 

“I think there will be quite a fight when we get to full council because putting that guillotine in effectively means what’s the point of being on North Yorkshire  Council because everybody will not have the opportunity to question people on their remits.

“If they carry on controlling or attempting to control scrutiny in the way they are there’s nothing that opposition members can actually do.”

Major event signs up for five more years in Harrogate

A major four-day fair in the Harrogate hospitality calendar has signed up to remain in the town for another five years.

The Christmas and Gift Fair, which runs every January, has agreed a contract to take place at Harrogate Convention Centre until 2028.

It typically attracts more than 5,000 visitors and the convention centre said its estimated economic impact for hospitality in the district is £375,000 over the four days of the event.

Convention centre director Paula Lorimer said:

“I am delighted to seal the long-term relationship with Harrogate Christmas and Gift, an important trade show that has gone from strength to strength over more than seven decades.

“Harrogate’s unique heritage in hosting large-scale events and our venue’s central location, premier space, facilities and expertise mean that we attract a constant flow of events that keep our spa town busy all year round.”

The fair took over seven halls from January 15 to 18 this year, with 90 exhibitors. It has been running since 1950 and is organised by Harrogate International Toy Fair Ltd, whose annual nursery fair is also contracted to HCC for the next two years.

Simon Anslow, organiser of Harrogate Christmas and Gift Fair, said:

“Harrogate Christmas and Gift Fair is the most important exhibition in the UK for trade buyers who are buying for the following Christmas. Exhibiters and buyers also love the vibe of Harrogate with its quality restaurants and bars.

“We are delighted in securing a new five-year contract with the Harrogate Convention Centre running from 2024 to 2028.”

Read more:

News of the new contract comes on the heels of disappointment for Harrogate Borough Council, which runs the convention centre. The council last night heard it had missed out on investment from the government’s levelling up fund to improve its facilities.

The council had asked for £20 million from the fund, towards its £49 million plans to overhaul the venue.

It has run at a loss for many years, though the council has supported it, arguing it brings benefits to the district’s economy.

Last week, Richard Flinton, chief executive of the new North Yorkshire Council which will take on responsibility for the centre, last week said the authority would not take on an “enormous drain on public finances”.

Government rejects £20m levelling up bid for Harrogate Convention Centre

The government has rejected Harrogate Borough Council‘s bid for £20 million to go towards the redevelopment of Harrogate Convention Centre.

Last night’s decision is a significant blow for plans for a £49 million upgrade of the ageing centre and casts further doubt on the facility’s future.

More than 100 projects have been awarded a share of £2.1 billion from round two of the Levelling Up Fund.

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, led by Michael Gove, rewarded six schemes from Yorkshire and the Humber, including £41 million to West Yorkshire Combined Authority for better bus services.

There was also £19 million to regenerate Catterick Garrison in Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Richmond constituency.

But there was nothing for Harrogate Convention Centre or anywhere else in the Harrogate district.

Read more:

A council Cabinet report on August 17 said it had submitted a levelling up funding bid on August 1.

It said Investment would “help to ensure that HCC can both sustain and enhance its position within the market place, support the ‘levelling up’ agenda and ensure that the economic benefits that this project delivers to the wider economy are maximised”.

But it also warned:

“Expectations do need to be managed as there are still some significant challenges in relation to this bid, in particular: Harrogate district is a priority three area therefore our chances of success are not high (only 7% of those were funded in round 1 of the fund).”

Control of the centre will transfer to North Yorkshire Council on April 1, when Harrogate Borough Council is abolished.

Last week Richard Flinton, who will be chief executive of North Yorkshire Council, refused to commit to the £49 million redevelopment and said the conference and events venue needed to be vibrant and relevant in the face of competition from a new venue in Leeds rather than “an enormous drain on public finances”.

Harrogate council defends decision to transfer audit staff to Veritau

Harrogate Borough Council has defended its decision not to transfer some staff to the new North Yorkshire Council.

Five audit services staff recently discovered they would transfer to Veritau, a shared service group owned by local authorities in Yorkshire and north-east England.

Public services union Unison said on Tuesday it was “dismayed” by the decision, which it said came after more than a year of talks in which it was expected all staff would transfer to the new super-council under TUPE terms.

Unison Harrogate branch secretary Dave Houlgate said it had raised a dispute and called on Harrogate Borough Council to “stand by its staff and resist this late change”, adding:

“We object in the strongest terms to this late change of plan which shows total disregard for the staff involved, denies them the opportunity to move on to new terms and conditions negotiated and agreed by Unison and ignores established procedures and protocols that are in place.”

A council spokesperson said today:

“Engagement with staff, and consultation with trade unions, has taken place at every stage of the transition to North Yorkshire Council. This will continue, ensuring staff are kept informed of progress and have the opportunity to raise concerns. All staff also continue to be offered support.

“The audit service for the new council will be provided by Veritau, a company created in 2009 by North Yorkshire County Council and City of York Council. Veritau has provided audit and other specialist services to the authorities, as well as other organisations, for many years. Providing income that will continue for the new council. Veritau already provides services to five of the seven district and borough councils that will be replaced by North Yorkshire Council.

“It is proposed staff currently providing the service in Harrogate will move to Veritau on April 1. Employment protection ensures that they will transfer on their existing terms and conditions. Individuals will have the option of choosing Veritau’s terms and conditions, should they wish to do so.”

Read more: