Whitby Town Council welcomes single unitary for North Yorkshire
It is after the Secretary of State made his announcement last week.
Whitby Town Council has welcomed the decision that a single unitary council will replace the current county council and seven districts comprising North Yorkshire.
The Secretary of State made his announcement last Wednesday in favour of the county council’s proposal, which the town council backed in April.
The town council says it recognises that bringing together the principal council services offers opportunities for efficiencies in management and democratic costs. It adds that will reduce the number of organisations involved and so reduce the confusion which surrounds which council is responsible for which service.
It says the challenge is that some of these services will become more remote from individuals and their communities. Whitby Town Council believes that is why ultra-local services, which are locally important, quirky and specific to their communities, should be transferred to local parish and town councils with public support.
Last August, the town council resolved to work with North Yorkshire County Council, Scarborough Borough Council and other relevant bodies to develop future service delivery models for Whitby which maximise the opportunities of unitary local government. That must include parishing Scarborough and Harrogate towns to achieve a level playing field for local 'civic and ceremonial' functions as well as ultra-local services across the whole area of North Yorkshire.
Speaking after the announcement, Town Mayor, Cllr Linda Wild said:
“We recognise we’re on the edge of an immense transformation, where we will press for the best outcome for Whitby people. Everybody involved recognises that town and parish councils must play their part to make this work effectively for local communities like Whitby.
"There will be a single council above Whitby Town Council, rather than two, as at present. Services will continue and most of the people delivering those services will continue. Whitby’s share of those services and its relationships with the people delivering them needs to be as good, if not better, than today.
"North Yorkshire has made a better case, with more clarity about what can be achieved. Their case to government set out the contribution that service transformation will have to improving efficiency and effectiveness and to reducing cost.
"It also uses the case study of Falmouth Town Council in Cornwall, acknowledging Cornwall's double devolution approach, as the mechanism that might be used to empower local communities and their parish and town councils. That’s a route we would like Whitby to follow.”