Harrogate Spring Water is to hold a public consultation event next week for its plans to expand in the Pinewoods.

The company announced today it would stage the event at Harrogate’s Crown Hotel from 4pm to 7pm on July 13.

Local residents are invited to attend and find out more about the proposals and to share their views.

The event takes place in the Byron suite of the hotel on Crown Place in Harrogate town centre.

Since 2017, Harrogate Spring Water has had outline planning permission to expand its production facilities on its site on Harlow Moor Road.

The company is now putting together a ‘reserved matters’ application which will detail how the new building will look and how the surrounding area will be landscaped.

The controversial plan would involve felling trees in a section of the Pinewoods known as Rotary Wood.

Next week’s is part of a series of consultation meetings with the local community and stakeholder groups allowing people to have their say on the design and landscaping of the proposed extension and surrounding land.

Read more:

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A final application will then go on public display before being submitted to the council.

Richard Hall, managing director of Harrogate Spring Water, said:

“As we look to grow, create further job opportunities and continue to support the local and regional economy, it is important that we listen to the local community.

“That’s why we would encourage people to engage with us on this process by coming along to the meeting on July 13, to give us the benefit of their views and to help shape the future of the company.”

Anyone who cannot come along on the day can have their say via a dedicated webpage here.

A union official has offered to spearhead a campaign to save Woodfield Community Primary School from closure.

A four-week consultation on closing the school on December 31 ends on July 4.

Representatives from North Yorkshire County Council told a public meeting last night they had exhausted all options to keep it open.

There was widespread anger and disbelief among those attending at how a school with good facilities in a populated area had ended up in this position.

Gary McVeigh-Kaye, North Yorkshire district branch secretary of the National Education Union, said it was “disgusting and immoral” that the school faced closure because it couldn’t find an academy sponsor. He added:

“This is a community school. If you want to campaign, I will support you.”

Ten staff could lose their jobs if the closure goes ahead.

Only about 20 people attended last night’s meeting at the school. Many of those present said most parents regarded closure as a done deal orchestrated by the county council.

Morag Plummer, who has had links with the school since it opened 51 years ago, said the council had neglected a once-thriving school for seven years. She said:

“They want this land and they couldn’t give a damn about us.

“The majority of people in the community want their children to attend a school in the area. Children are heartbroken.

“They just want that land and everybody else will suffer.”

Other parents made the same claim that the land would be used for housing but Andrew Dixon, the council’s strategic planning manager for children and young people’s services, said a decision on the site’s future hadn’t been made.

He added any such decision would be distinct from that of the school’s future.

Andrew Dixon, speaking at last night’s meeting.

Mr Dixon said the council’s proposed merger of Woodfield and nearby Grove Road Community Primary School showed it wanted to retain the Woodfield site for education. The proposal, which Grove Road governors rejected, would have seen Woodfield become part of Grove Road.

Read more:

• Woodfield school closure ‘an absolute disgrace’, says union
• Bilton has ‘sufficient primary places’ if Woodfield school closes

Mr Dixon’s presentation highlighted how Woodfield pupil numbers had fallen from 154 in 2018 to 37 this year.

He said 93% of primary aged children in the Woodfield catchment area who attended a council-run school went to other schools.

Woodfield, he added, faced a cumulative deficit of £229,000 in 2023/34, due to low pupil numbers.

He presented three options: the Woodfield catchment area could either be subsumed by Grove Road or Bilton Grange Primary School catchment areas, or it could be shared by the two schools.

Dave Poole, whose children and grandchildren attended Woodfield, said many parents had already taken their children out of the school due to scaremongering messages about its future,

James Poole said he had been unable to find another school willing to take on his child, who has special needs.

Retired teacher Diane Maguire, who lives in the area, said the school’s facilities and vast outdoor space would be a huge loss to the community. She said:

“It seems the school has been badly let down by North Yorkshire County Council. It seems like the council is culpable.”

Aytach Sadik, a grandparent, asked if families could buy the school, which was described as “an interesting proposal” by Amanda Wilkinson, the Conservative councillor for Morton-on-Swale and Appleton Wiske, who is also the council’s executive member for education and learning skills.

Andrew Hart, a sub-postmaster in Bilton, said numerous new nearby housing developments would exacerbate the need for a school in future and the council should think ahead when making its decision, rather than look at past failings. Woodfield, he said, had been left to “rot on the vine”.

But Mr Dixon said falling birth rates suggested local schools would be able to cope.

Amanda Newbold, assistant director for education and skills at the council, said nobody wanted the school to be in the position it was but the local education authority was obliged to work with Woodfield governors to find a way forward.

A public meeting will be held next week over the future of Woodfield Community Primary School in Bilton.

North Yorkshire County Council (NYCC) has vowed it will take parents’ views into consideration as part of a consultation over a possible closure of the school.

The authority has now confirmed the closure would take effect from December 31 this year.

It has announced three options for future school allocations: the Woodfield catchment area could become part of that of Grove Road or Bilton Grange primary schools, or it could be split or shared between the two other schools.

The meeting will take place at Woodfield school on Wednesday at 6pm.

Cllr Annabel Wilkinson, member for education and skills at NYCC, said:

“Woodfield Community Primary School governors, together with North Yorkshire County Council, have worked extremely hard to find a solution which would see the school remain open but, sadly, this has not produced any viable options.

“During the consultation we will listen to parents’ views; we will also review the opinions of other groups involved with the school. Everyone will be given the opportunity to contribute.”

NYCC said it would welcome any views on its proposals, or alternative plans being put forward. All contributions will be part of a formal review which will be considered by the council’s executive before a final decision is made.

Read more:

• Bilton has ‘sufficient primary places’ if Woodfield school closes
• Woodfield school closure ‘an absolute disgrace’, says union

News about the consultation over the proposed closure was announced last month, ending months of speculation about the school’s future.

It followed its last Ofsted report labelling the school ‘inadequate’ in January 2020. Woodfield was then forced to try to find an academy to join.

Governors were in negotiations with nearby Grove Road Community Primary School, but a planned amalgamation to take effect from September fell through this year.

Woodfield’s governors said they had “exhausted all options” and were left with no choice but to consult over the closure.

Parents have protested to keep the school open.

As well as attending the meeting on Wednesday evening, parents can take part in the consultation on the council’s website.

Part of the consultation will include asking parents of current pupils to state their preference for an alternative school for their children to attend, either following any decision to close Woodfield, or sooner if they prefer.

A council spokesperson said:

“The overall intention will be to ensure fairness around the school transfer process in the event that a decision is ultimately taken to close the school.

“It will allow the local authority to apply consideration of admissions criteria to each request and avoid allocating places on a first-come, first-served basis.”

The authority said its admissions team is always happy to give advice to parents and can be contacted at schooladmissions@northyorks.gov.uk.

North Yorkshire Police is holding a public meeting in Ripon this month to talk about its plans to tackle crime in the city.

There are longstanding concerns about persistent crime and anti-social behaviour in Ripon, with problems particularly prevalent during summer.

At the community engagement meeting on May 16, police will spell out how they plan to address the issues.

A police social media post said the meeting will “share with you the current crime statistics and trends for your wards, provide you with an operational overview of how your area is currently policed and also tell you about the proposed plans for the future”.

It added:

“The purpose of this meeting is to ensure your voice is heard with regards to how your community is policed.

“By voicing your concerns direct to us you will enable North Yorkshire Police to target and tailor our resources and plans to better meet your needs and prevent issues or escalation in your community.

“This is an open invite to all local residents, concerned people and partners agencies that are concerned in community support to come along and provide your perspective.”

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The post added that people will “be invited to highlight any community issues, tensions or criminality that are affecting you”.

Inspector Alex Langley, from the Ripon neighbourhoods policing team, will chair the meeting, which will take place from 8pm to 9pm at the Jack Laugher Leisure and Wellness Centre on Dallamires Lane.

Underage drinking crackdown

In March, police announced Ripon had joined 240 locations in the country designated as a Community Alcohol Partnerships area.

These partnerships see police work with retailers, schools, neighbourhood groups, Trading Standards, local authorities and other emergency and health services to reduce alcohol problems.

As part of the initiative, retailers are assessed by Trading Standards and police to check they are not selling alcohol to children.