Local Liberal Democrat councillors have welcomed the decision made by the Government’s Planning Inspector to reject the appeal against the council’s refusal to grant planning permission to build 516 homes on land next to the Askham Bog Site of Special Scientific Interest.
The application had been refused by City of York Council’s Planning Committee in 2019 on the basis that the proposed development, on land off Moor Lane in Woodthorpe, was inappropriate due to the impact on Askham Bog and local infrastructure. The developer then appealed against that decision, which led to a public inquiry being held.
Cllr Stephen Fenton said: “I am delighted that Askham Bog has been saved – this is a real victory for our community. Local Liberal Democrat councillors have fought this development for years and I hope that we can finally put this issue to rest. The threat of development on this site has been hanging over the community ever since the then Labour-run council identified the land for housing in their draft Local Plan.
Councillors Stephen Fenton, Ashley Mason and Paula Widdowson at Askham Bog in 2019
“Today’s news will come as a huge relief for local residents who had considerable concerns about the impact that this number of homes would have had on local infrastructure such as roads and healthcare services which are already struggling.
Councillor Stephen Fenton at Askham Bog in 2018 with Louise Wilkinson and Alastair Fitter from the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust
“It has been an incredible community effort, with residents rallying to the cause and the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust collecting over 7,000 petition signatures. I would like to thank everyone who has been part of this campaign.”
City of York Council has released a video giving residents an insight into the work of recycling waste crews during the first phase of the coronavirus pandemic. The video is available on YouTube HERE
The Hazel Court Household Waste Recycling Centre will re-open on Monday 11 May. In anticipation of high demand, there is a booking system in place, which can be accessed on the council website HERE
The booking system matches the registration number to the vehicle, if they do not match you will be turned away from the site. Social distancing measures will be in place at the tip, which means that staff will not be able to assist residents unload waste from their vehicles, so please ensure you are able to do so.
Government guidance advises that journeys to tips must only be undertaken if your waste or recycling cannot be stored at home safely or disposed of safely by other means.
City of York Council has announced that Household Waste Recycling Centres will re-open on Monday 11 May (with a booking system in operation) and garden waste collections will get underway from Monday 18 May.
In a statement issued on Tuesday 5 May, Cllr Paula Widdowson outlined the plans:
“Today we have agreed changes which mean:
– Household Waste and Recycling Centres will reopen from 11 May by appointment only to residents and commercial waste customers for essential use. – Bulky waste collections will restart on 11 May – Garden waste collections will start on 18 May.
“The decision we took back in April wasn’t one we took lightly, however it was crucial we were able to keep residents and staff safe. I would like to thank residents for their understanding and also our incredible staff who have continued to collect household waste and recycling in these challenging times.
“The wellbeing of residents and our staff has been our number one priority and following resident feedback, we explored options to restart all waste collection services, including garden waste collections. In addition, these services can now be opened safely as staff absences have stabilised and we have developed new ways of working.
“Following my letter to the Secretary of State seeking further support and guidance to resume our services as soon as possible, the government released updated guidance today. The guidance advises that journeys to tips must only be undertaken if your waste or recycling cannot be stored at home safely or disposed of safely by other means.
“The household waste and recycling centres will also have social distancing measures in place in addition to our booking system. We will announce further details of the changes, including the booking system tomorrow (Wednesday 6 May).”
Many elderly people are self-isolating at the moment and can’t get to the Post Office to collect their state pension.
If you are in this position and need to access your pension payments, you can nominate someone you trust to become a ‘Permanent Agent’ on your account. This person will be given their own card and PIN to collect cash on your behalf.
To nominate a Permanent Agent, you will need to complete the ‘Permanent Agent access form’ (P6163), which is available from most Post Office branches. You can ask someone to pick up a form for you and hand it in at the Post Office on your behalf as long as the form is complete and has been signed by yourself.
City of York Council has clarified that Moor Lane in Woodthorpe will NOT be closed whilst works are undertaken to remove cats eyes and apply a surface dressing.
A sign had appeared at the roadside suggesting that the road would be closed on Tuesday 28 April between 9am and 7pm. This is not correct and the sign is to be amended.
Incorrect sign
The council has now confirmed that the cats eye removal work will take place on Tuesday 28 April between 6pm and 9pm, and that the road will not be closed. In order to carry out these works safely, the use of ‘Stop / Go’ traffic control boards will be used whilst works are taking place to manage lane closures, together with the use of a lead vehicle convoy system to guide traffic past the works at a safe and constant speed.
A press release issued by the council stated that ‘resurfacing works’ would be undertaken on Sunday 3 May between 9.30am to 11am. The nature and extent of the works has now been clarified following a request from ward councillors. We are advised that a ‘surface dressing’ will be applied to the road surface. ‘Stop / Go’ boards will again be in use.
We have asked that whilst these works are being done, the opportunity is taken to sort out the very deep potholes on Askham Lane just before the A1237 roundabout.
Press Reader – the app giving free access to 7,000 online newspapers and magazines – is now live and free to access for anyone with an Explore library card.
Explore was able to buy a subscription to Press Reader with part of the grant awarded last week by City of York Council from the Covid-19 general support grant.
If you don’t have a York Card or a Library Card, you can find out how to sign up online HERE
Here is how to use Press Reader…
Download the PressReader app from your app store, or just visit the website in your internet browser (the app is recommended for the touchscreen experience)
Click “Sign in”
Click “Libraries and Groups”
Select “Explore York Libraries and Archives…” from the list by searching for “Explore” or “York”
Enter your library card number and click sign in (note: this is your card number starting with a Y, not any kind of alternative ID you may have set up)
It’ll ask for your email address, a password and your name to set up an account. Remember the password because you’ll need this again in 30 days. Also on this screen you can browse the terms and privacy policy. Then tap sign in at the bottom.
That’s it, you’re signed in. Click “select publication” to start browsing.
After 30 days you’ll need to log in again with your email address and password.
More information is available on the Explore website HERE
City of York Council is introducing temporary changes to the recycling process in order to protect its vital frontline staff and allow for additional social distancing measures during the pandemic
Residents are still required to leave recycling boxes at the kerbside and continue to separate materials in their boxes as normal. Collection days will also remain unchanged.
Waste crews will now be working in smaller teams to ensure that they can maintain a safe distance during working hours to protect themselves from infection.
Residents should be aware of the following changes to recycling collections, which include:
recycling will be split into two vehicles
a vehicle will collect plastic, tins and glass. Some mixing on the vehicle may take place
another vehicle will collect paper and cardboard
residents may experience two separate collections of recycling on the same day as the two vehicles may not arrive at the same time
in some instances, this may take a number of hours
as some mixing on the plastic, tins and glass vehicle will take place, the council will accept mixed plastic, tins and glass, but cardboard and paper must be separated
the council encourages residents to put out their recycling as normal, for 7am.
Cllr Paula Widdowson, Executive Member for Environment and Climate Change, said: “Our waste crews are providing a vital service during the Coronavirus pandemic to every household in York. We have to take these additional measures to protect them as much as we can. By pausing the start of garden waste collections, we now have more staff to focus on collecting recycling and household waste.
“You won’t see any changes other than your recycling may be collected at different times, with some limited mixing of glass, plastic and tin. It is important to highlight that some residents may have two separate collections of recycling on the same day and in some instances, this may take a number of hours between collections.
“Where mixing of glass, plastic and tin happens, we can assure residents that this will be separated after collection and recycled. We will seek to recover any additional costs of doing this from the government.”
The council announced last week that it would be postponing the start of garden waste collections, due to start this month, in order to ensure household waste and recycling collections were given priority.
These steps are being taken because of extraordinary pressures on frontline services during the outbreak of Coronavirus and a significantly reduced workforce. This decision has freed up more frontline crews and vehicles to focus on collecting recycling and household waste in a safe way for frontline staff.
The situation with garden waste collections will be kept under constant review, with an intention to resume garden waste collections as soon as practically possible. The council is encouraging residents to compost their garden waste at home, and to support residents in this effort, advice and tips for easy composting at home is available at www.york.gov.uk.composting
