Letters to the editor

There are some great stalls, their efforts sadly diluted by gaps and absolute rubbish.

Defining Skipton as a ‘market town’ to attract coaches of tourists who come, not to spend money in the shops of those who pay high rents, but to shuffle up and down the main street, is a negative force for the town, besides which, they must go home very disappointed.

Shoppers from the outlying villages spend their money in Ilkley and Harrogate, reluctant to run the gauntlet of the frustrating crush on the main street, while High Street shops miss out as it’s impossible to actually stop and browse their windows.

Reduce the market to Wednesday and Saturday, stand it on the actual road, divert the traffic around, as they do for events, and leave the setts and pavements clear and free to move around town and shop unhindered.

If the market continues to deteriorate, the perception of Skipton will deteriorate. Please let’s make things better and attract quality shoppers with money into our town so it can improve and thrive.

Why do Ilkley and Harrogate seemingly manage to get it right, including 40p an hour, or disc zone parking? A leaf out of Harrogate’s book, perhaps? Oh, I forgot the council did adopt its traffic wardens, not to assist in the safe and free flow of traffic, but to raise revenue.

It’s all so frustrating having such an effective band of Sales Prevention Officers at the helm.

AMANDA ACKROYD, Relish and The Magpie, Skipton.

* Dave Parker, chief officer of Skipton Town Council responded: "For all its faults – and there are many – Skipton market still attracts thousands and thousands of visitors to our town each year, without whom we really would be in trouble.

“Work is constantly taking place to try to improve the market, but it is a slow process. And while it might be nice to run every market day on a closed-off High Street, Skipton’s traffic flows simply don’t allow for it on a regular basis. The plans for the stretch outside Rackham’s will be the first major improvement for many years, and there will be more to follow.

“It would be great if ‘someone’ could easily find the holy grail of the ‘quality shopper with money’ (if such a person exists in the current climate), but what is certain is everybody has a part to play in that search – councils, market traders and shopkeepers, too. Cater properly for the visitors who do come to town, support initiatives by the Town Partnership and get involved with the Chamber of Trade.

“Rather than look for faults, we should take every opportunity to actively sing Skipton’s praises, celebrate what we have and what many towns would give their right arm for.”

THERE are no easy answers to the overwhelming immigration situation.

No one wants to turn their backs on people that need help, but it is not possible to help everyone, and yet at the same time we cannot ignore this crisis. Europe is becoming over-run by impoverished people seeking a new life and expecting the residents to bestow it upon them.

I would like to suggest a compulsory service requirement as a possible way forward for every refugee/asylum seeker that lands on European soil unofficially. We could start a European force made up of every one of these people, aged between 20 and 40 years old, as they land and they either become trained as military or medical staff for a minimum period (I suggest three years).

They would be registered as ‘European’ citizens without being tied to a particular country and the cost is spread throughout the European Union. At the end of their mandatory service term, they could either go back and try and rebuild the country they have escaped from with their new skills to improve the infrastructure there or apply to become a citizen in a new country.

As regards the rest of the immigrants, yes we would still have a population that would need feeding and housing with the young and elderly coming but this would be far more manageable.

I think it is so unfair the Greeks and the Italians have to bear so much of the burden on their borders.

ANNE EVES, Brooklyn, Threshfield.

I AM very much in favour of renewable clean energy but I strongly believe the decision to refuse the proposed wind turbine at Thornton Hall Farm was the correct decision – Councillors decline proposal for turbine (Craven Herald, August 13).

We are living in a world of rapid advances in technology and, within 10 years, these large turbines will be outdated and replaced with much more efficient smaller turbines, which generate an equal amount of power but are less obtrusive. Just think back to how your television looked more than 10 years ago and the size it is now.

The countryside around the proposed site is famed for its local beauty and criss-crossed with local pathways, including the Pendle Way and Pennine Way. There are also heritage sites of great importance – St Mary’s with its Holy Well and Ghyll Church so very close. The visual impact of a 36-metre turbine at this low level within West Craven would be immense and simply not necessary. Other turbines within a few miles radius are much smaller.

Thornton Hall Farm is a successful visitor attraction holding many special events, including monster truck racing, stunt motorcycling shows and quad-biking. Are all these events environmentally friendly? The main reason for a turbine of this size is not a sudden urge to save the planet by the applicants but more a financial incentive in supplying surplus energy to the National Grid.

There is absolutely no reason why the applicants could not provide power to the farm using a much smaller turbine or, indeed, using other renewable forms of energy.

Larger turbines should at present be sited in less sensitive areas, such as sparsely-populated upper moorland or offshore. Why scar the landscape now for 25 years (lifespan of the turbine) in this beautiful gateway to Craven and the Dales?

Well done to Pendle Council in unanimously voting against this proposal. It is just in the wrong site.

COLIN SAVILLE, Colne Road, Earby.

TOGETHER with hundreds of others across England, I had the pleasure on Saturday of walking in a National Park in support of the campaign to stop the cuts to their funding and to make sure national park authorities have enough money to conserve our most iconic landscapes for future generations.

The event was jointly organised by the campaign group 38 Degrees and the Campaign for National Parks, to draw attention to the impact of the 40 per cent budget cuts park authorities have been subject to during the past five years, with the threat of more to come.

In the case of the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority, these cuts have resulted in a 25 per cent reduction in staff and the consequent impact on services, such as footpath maintenance, visitor management, car parks and toilets, education and outreach.

The walk I joined around Ribblehead was organised and led superbly by the Yorkshire Dales Guides, and enjoyed by more than 70 participants of all ages and backgrounds. Some were familiar with the area and were lending their support to help keep what they know and love for future generations. Others had never been in the Dales before, and it was a privilege to see how inspiring they found the experience, and a reminder of how fortunate we are who live here.

I believe we’re all aware of the pressure on public funds but these national assets, including our own Yorkshire Dales National Park, need to be supported with sufficient resources to make sure they continue to deliver important environmental, social, economic and cultural benefits to the nation.

MARK CORNER, Chairman elect, Yorkshire Dales Society.

I WAS interested to read that Amanda Anderson, director of the Moorland Association, is especially concerned there are so few hen harrier nests successfully producing chicks on local grouse shooting moors.

She mentioned a few possible causes but completely forgot to mention the biggest cause of failed nests on grouse shooting moors – the illegal and widespread destruction of nest and birds.

These criminal acts destroy not only hen harriers and their chicks but also peregrines, kestrels, goshawks and any other birds or mammals deemed to be a threat to the production of a shootable surplus of grouse.

Independent studies have shown where hen harriers are left to breed without any form of control, numbers quickly grow to match the estimates of what the land can successfully support.

P CAMPANA, Lowfield Crescent, Silsden.

IN response to the story ‘School objects to ‘safety risk’ flats (Craven Herald, August 13).

Firstly, I would confirm I am the father of two young children and fully appreciate the risks they face while growing up.

However, I feel the fear and publicity generated by the application for minor amendments to the approved scheme is totally unjustified when considering the facts I outline below: * This application is only for the extension of an approved access walkway, the deletion of an external stairs and landing, re-positioning of one entrance door and several windows. Based on my reading of all the letters of objection, the only part of the application being objected to is the extension of the walkway and re-positioning of the first floor entrance door. These objections are made mainly on the grounds of loss of privacy.

* The approved scheme allows for two external stairs and landings, both of which overlook the school building and playground to the same extent as the proposed alterations. The approved scheme includes two small obscured glass bathroom windows, which overlook the school (the lower two look directly into the stone boundary wall).

* Prior to the apartments being constructed, the school building and playground were overlooked by a total of 10 clear glazed first and second floor windows located in Craven Mews and the Craven Pub. The construction of the four apartments has in fact obscured the view of the school from these 10 windows and only added two obscure glass bathroom windows and two entrance doors, with minimal obscure glazing.

* The school playgrounds adjoins a heavily used public footpath to one side and a quiet back street to the other. The common height of both playground walls are approximately 1.4 metres. Some of the walls have see-through railings from a height of about one metre. This means anybody of average height has clear view of the school and playground at any time of day or night.

* The rear of the school and playground are overlooked by the rear elevations of the houses in Church Street, with ample first floor windows with a clear view of the school and playground.

* If privacy is a genuine concern of the school, it seems very strange to me, and perhaps negligent of the school, not to have done more to improve privacy previously. Why has the school not added to the height of the playground walls to provide greater privacy, or added curtains to the areas where the children apparently change into their PE kits? If we were to believe the objections are based on genuine observations and concern for privacy, then it seems extremely odd to me the above measures have not been implemented.

* We have constructed the apartments in line with approved plans, with the exception of one external doorway and some minor re-positioning of windows. This has been done with clear guidance from the planning department that, if planning consent is not granted, we will have to re-build to match the consent granted at our cost. We did apply for a non-material amendment for the re-positioning etc. We felt we allowed adequate time for this application to be determined prior to the work being carried out. Unfortunately, the planning process is taking longer than anticipated.

GREG WILKINSON, Dalesview Developments Limited.

LAST Tuesday, the Environment Agency hosted an information session on the flood defence scheme in the Ginnel, Skipton, with comprehensive plans of the project and staff to answer questions.

Unfortunately, there was limited publicity and not many attended.

When work starts, the Ginnel steps and children’s playground are likely to be closed for some weeks, and the green area will become a building site. Before then, there will be further information coming from the Environment Agency.

Middletown Community Association hopes residents will make use of any opportunity to find out details of the work involved so they are prepared for the ensuing upheaval.

CHRISTINE WALTON, Neville Street, Skipton.

SO, ‘bully’ for David Cutter of Skipton Building Society employing a further 60 people, which undoubtedly will bring further misery for the residents of neighbouring Regents Estate – Work of building society leading to a ‘strong’ year (Craven Herald, August 6).

Currently, every weekday from 7.45am onwards, in the region of 100-plus cars, owned by SBS employees, the majority of which have driver only occupancy, pour into this residential area, hunting for parking spaces like packs of U-boats in the Atlantic during the Second World War.

The cars are then unceremoniously dumped outside properties, often on bends or with two wheels on the pavement, or both, without any consideration for scores of homeowners who are denied parking for friends, family and deliveries for up to eight hours a day on a regular basis.

Perhaps a Craven Herald photographer would care to take a picture any weekday of Regent’s Road to see how it is reduced to a hazardous single file traffic lane. Then again, take a picture on a weekend to show what a pleasant and tranquil estate this used to be more than a couple of years ago before SBS employees decided to use it as an all-day, weekday car park.

GRAHAM TURNBULL, Regent Drive, Skipton.

WHILE not wanting to put a damper on Sam Boatwright’s attempt at the John O’Groats to Land’s End cycle ride – Sam’s top support in bid to break a cycling record (Craven Herald, August 13) – he is unfortunately riding in the wrong direction.

The record is Land’s End to John O’Groats, and for a very good reason. The prevailing South West to West winds give welcome assistance to the rider brave enough to attempt this record.

Gethin Butler, who holds the current record, is a legend within the sport of time-trialling. He regularly rode 100 time trials in three hours 40 minutes and also achieved almost 300 miles in 12-hour events in more than a decade of racing.

Sam’s epic run of 50 miles every day for 50 days will seem like a walk in the park by comparison. To actually complete the ride in whatever time will be a tremendous achievement, and I wish him well, and would encourage everyone to support his worthwhile cause. He certainly deserves it.

JOHN DUNCAN, Cross Hills.

FURTHER to my letter last week concerning the misuse of public funds – Tackle wider crime (Craven Herald, August 6) – it was ironic and really sad to read the headline in this week’s Craven Herald concerning the latest tragedy at Dibble’s Bridge – Doctor killed at notorious bridge.

This highlights precisely my point about using our money wisely to eliminate accident blackspots from our roads in an attempt to stop deaths and serious injuries, instead of wasting that money on an unnecessary amplification of an already bloated organisation.

No amount of money spent by North Yorkshire Police on motorcycles, unmarked cars, camera vans and helicopters could help this unfortunate soul, whereas a simple catch net under the bridge would no doubt have saved this man’s life at very little cost.

Let us learn from this and, in future, use our rates wisely.

NIGEL STEPHENSON, Ghyll Close, Steeton.

I SEE builders have moved into the old Settle Police Station.

To the front of the building is a large and rather splendid fern-leafed beech tree. I believe this to be one of very few mature specimens in the North of England. Indeed, few exist in Britain outside of an arboretum.

I hope and trust the planners and developers have taken steps to see it is protected.

and that no damage or steps to reduce or remove it occur.

JEREMY SAMPLE, Ribblelands, Stackhouse, Settle.

WITH reference to Jill Wilson’s letter entitled ‘Going in circles’ (Craven Herald, August 6) and having seen no responses to the letter in the latest edition of the newspaper, the problem looks to be one more of knocking heads together than anything else.

I would suggest Ms Wilson contacts her MP, Julian Smith, in the hope he has the necessary political clout.

RICHARD SYKES, Park View, Skipton.