Harewood Recreation Project

Anyone who has walked along Malt Kin Lane recently will have seen the new recreation area starting to take shape.  The children’s play area is almost complete with a climbing frame, swings, activity trail and a speaking tube. The path winding through the playground has boulders and tree trunks along its length for natural play, and everything blends easily into the lovely woodland setting. The Parish Council hope it will provide a delightful place for children to play, and parents to sit and chat.

Just a little further along the Lane you can see the tennis court. The ground has been excavated and levelled, and the fence posts are in. Once the tennis court is finished, we plan to install the adult gym. There will adult exercise equipment for all levels of fitness at various points around the court connected by a path.

When the new facility is finished, and if coronavirus restrictions permit, the Parish Council plan to hold an official opening. Watch out for further updates on the website and the village Facebook page.

Building the recreation area is the biggest project that your Parish Council has ever tackled. It is being funded by charges levied by local authorities on developments that might otherwise be deemed unacceptable by the planners. These charges are known as s106 or Community Infrastructure Levies. In the case of the Harewood recreation area, the monies come from two s106 agreements: the Harewood Villas development and the Emmerdale Fund.  The latter has provided funding for a number of local projects in Shadwell, Bardsey and Collingham. When the recreation area is up and running, the Parish Council will maintain it from the Parish Precept raised through Leeds Council Tax.

Wike Ridge Little Free Library

Turn into Wike Ridge Avenue and straight away in the front garden of the first house you will see a brightly decorated, glass fronted cupboard with books for adults and children inside. This is the latest addition to the Little Free Libraries in Leeds and it has been brought about by the efforts of local people supported by a grant from Harewood Parish Council. The library is a point at which books can be exchanged or donated, and is a really good way to ensure that books get read, and read again, rather than just left to gather dust on a bookshelf. Congratulations to Jade Selman, Jacqui Ridsdale and Carol Wurr (pictured) who have done all the work to provide this amenity for the residents of the Wike Ridge Estate.

Your Parish Council’s Role in Planning

The parish councillors play an active part in the planning process.  When applications for planning are received by Leeds City Council (LCC) Planning Department, invitations are sent to the parish council and neighbours immediately adjacent to the property for comment.  We receive several applications each week to consider and they are discussed at the monthly Parish Council meetings.  There are several things that we are required to consider:

• Is the visual impact of the proposed construction in keeping with the property?
• Is the building work in keeping with the neighbouring properties?
• Does it comply with local environmental regulations?
• Is the size of the development appropriate for its location?
• Do frontages comply with existing building lines?
• What car parking arrangements have been made for additional occupants?
• Any adverse impact of the development on neighbours?

Our comments, together with comments from the local community are considered by the Planning Officers along with technical issues raised by LCC Planning Department that relate to the construction of the proposed development.  Permission to proceed is either granted or refused by LCC. The Parish Council has no direct authority over planning decisions. 

We receive a small number of applications seeking retrospective planning permission for an alteration to the property where the building work has already been made.  This is risky because if permission is refused (or if permission has not been sought) then the building work has to be undone and the property returned to its former state.  The absence of valid planning consent will affect the price and eventual sale of the property.

We encourage residents to look carefully on the LCC planning site if they have been advised by LCC that an application from a nearby location has been received.  This is especially important where major construction works are being considered that may affect our local community.  So please engage with the Parish Council and Leeds City Council if you have concerns about proposed developments that may affect you.

Summer programme at Harewood House

The Parish Council is delighted to see the programme of summer events that has been planned by the managers of Harewood House. Village residents will have received a newsletter advising them of the key events and of some concessions which have been offered. Full details of the planned summer program are available on the Harewood House web site at Up and Open 2021 at Harewood.

Fly Tipping

Sadly, we have to report yet more incidents involving fly tipping in our Parish: one on Wike Lane and another on Sleights Lane, just opposite the cemetery gates. The lane leading to the cemetery in particular is secluded and invites uncaring and unscrupulous people to dump their unwanted items in relative privacy.  If you do visit the cemetery and you notice rubbish dumped in the hedgerows, please can you report it straight away so other people aren’t encouraged to leave their rubbish in the same place. Go to the LCC web site Report fly tipping (leeds.gov.uk) Sleights Lane is a public right of way and the rubbish will be cleared. The Cemetery is private land maintained by the Parish Council so if you see any waste inside the cemetery walls, please notify the clerk to the Parish Council at contact@harewoodparishcouncil.gov.uk 

Councillor Vacancies

There remain two unfilled seats on Harewood Parish Council. Technically these are seats to represent Wigton Moor but expressions of interest are welcome from any adult resident of Harewood Civil Parish. Existing councillors are authorised to fill vacancies by co-option until the time that the next elections are held. If serving our community interests you, please email our chair, Dr Kate Hill at chair@harewoodparishcouncil.gov.uk giving your experience and the contribution you would like to make to the work of the Parish Council.

Discovering Harewood

The Parish Council is delighted to note the growing use of the Harewood Village Community Facebook Website. It is a delightful way to get to know our community - people - places - history.  Why not have a look and see who or what you recognise.

Sharing the news

Please tell your friends and neighbours about our newsletter. They can easily subscribe on the Parish Council web site: www.harewoodparishcouncil.gov.uk or by sending an email to vicechair@harewoodparishcouncil.gov.uk

Don't forget to include your name and email address.