Council faces calls to hold in-person Maltkiln consultation events

Harrogate Borough Council has been criticised because it plans to promote its latest Maltkin consultation through social media and video, rather than at in-person events in Green Hammerton, Kirk Hammerton and Cattal.

A draft development plan document (DPD) has been drawn up by officers at HBC that includes a vision for how the 3,000-home settlement called Maltkiln will eventually look. The developer Oakgate Group would build the homes.

It is the biggest housing scheme in HBC’s Local Plan, which sets out where development can take place until 2034, and it is likely to change the face of the three small villages off the A59.

No exhibitions

The draft DPD is set to go before councillors at a meeting on September 21.

If approved, a six-week public consultation on the document will take place, beginning on October 6.

However, an email from a senior planning manager to councillors and stakeholders, seen by the Stray Ferret, says the consultation will only be promoted through social media, posters and an ‘explanatory video’ that sets out what the DPD is.

The email says:

“Please note that we are not holding a public exhibition as we feel that the explanatory video will have a broader reach and be more appropriate given the nature of the content of the DPD.

“During more detailed master planning, when visual options are being presented and design codes discussed, then public exhibitions may be more appropriate.”

Cllr Alex Smith, of Kirk Hammerton Parish Council, said he felt this was unsatisfactory, particularly for residents who struggle to navigate the council’s website.

He said:

“By deciding not to exhibit in the affected villages, HBC are excluding those residents who are unable to navigate the depths of the consultation site, something which is challenging, even for experienced users.

“Council leader Richard Cooper went out of his way to promise residents that the consultation would be genuine and inclusive, but this feels like neither.”

The layout for Maltkiln, which is centred around Cattal Station

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Cllr Smith compared the proposals to develop Maltkiln with Harrogate’s Station Gateway, which has seen several rounds of in-person public consultations organised by North Yorkshire County Council. He added:

“You only have to compare what’s happening with the Station Gateway, which, even on its third consultation, is getting three days of public exhibitions. 

“For the ‘New Settlement’ – a much more significant development – the council have managed to switch preferred options, chosen the site, and even named it, without so much as setting foot in one of the local village halls.

“Some consultations are more genuine and inclusive than others, it would seem.”

In response, a HBC spokesperson said:

“This is the latest consultation regarding the new settlement in the Hammerton/Cattal area of Harrogate district, known as Maltkiln. And follows a number of earlier stages of consultation and engagement that have helped shape the Development Plan Document (DPD), which we are now consulting on.

“The DPD is a sizeable policy framework that will allow us to manage how the new settlement is developed moving forward, and due to its nature, it is more appropriate to host an online consultation to ensure all information and documents – of which there are many – are easy to view and digest.

“To ensure the public is made aware of this consultation we will be producing a video, FAQ document, issuing press release(s), social media posts, a Residents’ News article, as well as informing the community liaison group and printing leaflets and posters to raise awareness of the consultation.

“During more detailed master planning, when visual options are being presented and designs discussed, public exhibitions may be more appropriate.”