Communities and businesses are being asked to help shape a series of ambitious plans to help drive investment and opportunities in towns across North Yorkshire.
Funding of more than £1.2 million will be used as part of a co-ordinated approach to promote sustainability and revitalise communities by bringing key groups together to identify the needs for their areas.
A total of 32 towns and key centres across North Yorkshire which provide services to hundreds of thousands of people are set to benefit from the funding under the Town Investment Plans programme.
A series of consultation events are now being planned, with the first wave of sessions being organised throughout November.
Executive member for open to business, Cllr Mark Crane, said: “We know that each of our market town areas have different needs and that’s why we are taking this approach of working with communities to develop local investment plans that match their needs and opportunities.
“The Town Investment Plans will allow us to engage closely with residents, stakeholders and local businesses, including those in deeply rural locations, to understand key issues in their areas.
“Each area has its own character, but they all share many of the same issues and challenges. These plans will provide the means to shape their futures.
“We want to hear from as many people as possible to help develop the plans and I would ask anyone who cares about their communities to attend the consultation events.”
North Yorkshire is England’s largest county and covers more than 3,000 square miles. It includes coastal communities, a series of market towns, as well as deeply rural areas including the Yorkshire Dales and North York Moors National Parks.
The 32 towns and service centres identified for plans represent 376,431 residents – 61 per cent of the county’s population.
Members of our executive met in May when they approved a £1.2 million grant from the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority to support the project by producing an investment plan for each of the 32 locations.
The Mayor of York and North Yorkshire, David Skaith, said: “As a shop owner for over a decade, I know how valuable high streets are to communities across York and North Yorkshire. It's those communities who know what is best for their high street.
“That is why we're backing over 30 places across our region to develop ambitious Town Investment Plans.
"From our coastal towns, and historic cities, to our rural villages and market towns, it's time for them to have a say on the future of their communities."
Consultation events are planned for Northallerton, Ripon and Whitby during November, while details about sessions in Harrogate are due to be confirmed in the next few weeks.
The events in Northallerton will be staged at the Town Hall between 3pm and 7pm on Wednesday, 5 November, and then from 10am to noon on Wednesday, 26 November.
A further event will be held at Northallerton Library between 10am and noon on Saturday, 29 November.
Two separate drop-in events will be held in Whitby next week, between 12.30pm and 3pm on Tuesday (4 November) at Whitby Leisure Centre and between 1pm and 3pm on Thursday (6 November) at Green Lane Centre.
Residents in Ripon can have attend a session at Ripon Market on Saturday (8 November) between 9.30am and 2pm.
The programme will be run over a three-year period from May 2025 in the 32 locations of: Bedale, Bentham, Boroughbridge, Catterick Garrison and Colburn, Easingwold, Eastfield and Cayton, Filey, Grassington and Threshfield, Harrogate, Hawes, Helmsley, Ingleton, Kirkbymoorside, Knaresborough, Leyburn, Malton and Norton, Masham, Northallerton, Pateley Bridge, Pickering, Richmond, Ripon, Scarborough, Selby, Settle, Sherburn-in-Elmet, Skipton, South Craven, Stokesley, Tadcaster, Thirsk and Whitby.
More consultation events will be staged over the coming months.
See more information about the Town Investment Plans and to view the live consultations.