CRAVEN'S long awaited local plan is to be delayed once again for officers to come up with a site for a new primary school in Skipton.

In addition to the existing proposed site in the plan, off White Hills Lane, the education authority has asked that another site be included, to cope with the planned thousands of new homes.

A site, off Airedale Avenue, looks likely to be included, but together with more work needed on housing figures and other issues raised in the recent consultation, the local plan will not now be submitted to the secretary of state before the end of the year as stated - and could potentially be delayed several more weeks.

The need for a new school site in east Skipton comes just before North Yorkshire County Council makes a final decision on its plans on October 17 to close Ings Community Primary School in Broughton Road at the end of the year.

So far, Craven District Council's preparation of the plan, which will shape development and policy in Craven, outside the national park, until 2032, has taken at least six years and has cost about a million pounds.

Seen by many as a way to protect against unwanted development, the plan still has more stages to go through even after it leaves the council and is likely to be another year before it is formally adopted.

The latest adaptations to the plan have come following a six week consultation, which ended at the end of July, drawing 830 comments from 227 respondents.

Consultation responses have suggested some changes to the local green space designations including the area behind Skipton Castle that covers Skipton Woods and surrounding fields, as a special place and should be protected.

The closure of Rathmell Primary School has also led to another required change to the plan, as the number of new homes required in the village has fallen. Planning officers are looking for an alternative site for around 30 homes, in the mid-Craven area.

Following the public consultation, and discussions with the council’s legal advisers, the council is also assessing a wider range of options for the overall housing figures - currently at 182 per year - in order to ensure the soundness of the plan and avoid it being rejected when it reaches the government planning inspector.

David Smurthwaite, Craven District Council's strategic manager for planning and regeneration, said: “The responses from the consultation on the local plan were broadly positive but there are a number of issues that need to be worked through over the next few weeks. While we all want to see a local plan in place, we must ensure all the consultation feedback is properly considered and the plan has every opportunity to be approved by the Inspectorate. It’s important that we carry out this extra work to ensure we have a plan that is sound and robust. It’s crucial that we get the plan right for the future of Craven.”

For more information on the local plan go to the council’s website: cravendc.gov.uk/newlocalplan