I would firstly like to thank the Vice Chairman and all Parish Councillors for their attendance and contributions at council meetings and for all the practical extra work they undertake in their “spare time” all for the benefit of our Community.  

On the planning side there are still ongoing issues with three controversial sites within the Parish.

The proposed Travellers’ site on Cornborough Road is now in its fourth year of discussions and was the subject of yet another revised planning application for siting static and mobile caravans in the field rather than the existing hard cored area and for use of the agricultural building as a dog breeding unit. Once again there were administrative blunders by the Planning Department which delayed discussions. When the applications were actually discussed by the Planning Committee they were turned down. These decisions are now the subject of appeal hearing on the 3rd June.

Against the Parish Council’s decision The Holiday Lodge development at Daskett Hill was given approval to be increased to 24 lodges, of a smaller size than previously approved but with the removal of the proposed shop.

There has been a subsequent revised application for removal of the occupancy period restriction to give year round occupancy. The Parish Council have strongly objected and the application was turned down by the Planning Committee. However this is now also the subject of appeal hearing on 20th May. 

We wait to hear the results of the appeals and hope they are both turned down.

The development of the Middleton House site and the land behind Park View has also been the subject of much concern as the developers seem to be riding rough shod over the planning conditions applied. The main site is almost complete and has provided a very cramped site of overly large houses completely out of character with the area.  

Work has commenced production of a Neighbourhood Plan for the Parish of Sheriff Hutton. A working party has been set up and much work has been undertaken by the volunteers involved. A questionnaire was distributed around the Parish and the results have been analysed. Further discussions are now needed between the Parish Council and the Working Party regarding the next stage. Application for the second year grant will be submitted and hopefully will be granted to enable further work to be carried out.

A lot of time and energy has been spent by members of the Neighbourhood Plan Working Party and on behalf of the Parish Council I would like to extend our sincere thanks for all the work they have undertaken to get this far.  

North Yorkshire Council are in the process of preparing their long term development plan and local landowners have submitted details of land they would like to be included for consideration.

NY are now analyzing the proposals and a provisional development plan will be formulated and this will be sent out for consultation at which time Parish Councils and Residents will be given the opportunity to comment about the proposals for their area.

Last summer we had expected the Community Payback Team to take on cutting back the overgrown verges down York Road however this did not work out and following completion of approximately 50 yards their foreman pulled the team out for reasons we could not believe. However our village handyman completed the work and made an excellent job which widened the footpath considerably making it more suitable for those walking, using mobility equipment and pushchairs and was very much appreciated by those using the path.  

We have had issues with 3 street lights in particular. One on Main Street, one on Castle View and one outside the school. Despite constant chasing it took months to establish that Main Street and the School lights needed replacement units and the one on Castle View needed to be completely replaced with new column and unit. Authorisation was given for the work last October but again despite constant chasing by our Parish Clerk nothing happened. This has been the cause of great concern for residents and councillors as it left very dark areas during the winter months. A month ago the new units on Main Street and at the School were installed yet it has taken until today for the electricity supplier to come and connect up the units. Hopefully they will be illuminated tonight. We are still to hear about the new column and unit. We live in hope the work will be completed before the end of October. We can then look forward to a hefty bill to be paid for out of the Parish Council budget.

Regarding street lighting the Parish Council has entered into a contract via North Yorkshire Council for the electricity supply which it is anticipated will considerably reduce the cost.

The Neighbourhood traffic monitoring group has disbanded as they felt their work was ineffective due to various restrictions placed upon them. However one of the former members together with a parish councillor are overseeing the Speed Matrix. A new pole has been obtained and fitted in New Lane giving an additional monitoring point. This does have a significant affect on the speed of traffic travelling to and from the Terrington area when it is in situ. Traffic travelling along North Garth Lane continues to speed regardless even when the Matrix is sited there.  

Problems are still being encountered with traffic travelling down the East End Road. Speed and parking are the main issues with large vehicles sometimes not being able to get through for deliveries and some vehicles disregarding the 30 speed limit. This has been referred to Highways but it is recommended offenders should be reported to the Police.

The state of the roads through the village and the condition of paths are a concern. Various 

Road works are due to be completed from the New Lane roundabout down to The Lodge within the month and it is hoped the situation will be improved.

We are constantly plagued with burst water mains and repairs are often ineffective with recurring bursts.

It is also a concern that with the supply of superfast broadband being “open House” various contractors are descending on the village and installing new telegraph poles and digging up road and footpaths willy nilly to provide access to individual properties. All insisting it is with North Yorkshire Council’s approval although without the PC having received an y notification.

The PC also made a donation to Malton Citizens’ Advice Centre who provide an invaluable service for our Parishioners.  

Parish Councillors are extremely grateful to Louise our Clerk for her hard work and invaluable guidance. Her work load has increased considerably over the last year with the extra administrative tasks that she has had to undertake. We are all inundated with e mails on a daily basis, many of which are not applicable to a Parish Council of our size and we depend on Louise filtering these and making sure we deal with those that are important. 

Our sincere thanks to her.