Ryedale House was chosen for the first meeting of the Cabinet of the new North Yorkshire Council outside Northallerton

In a first for the new North Yorkshire Council, members of all political parties who represent divisions within the Thirsk and Malton Constituency were invited to attend a meeting with the Council’s Portfolio Holders on Tuesday at Ryedale House, Malton, to discuss the local issues and concerns of the community.

While North Yorkshire is one of largest councils in the country, it has made a commitment to be one of the most local too. In addition to devolving powers to parish and town councils, setting up community networks and strengthening the remit of the local area constituency committees, the Council’s Executive Members have agreed to hold some of their meetings outside County Hall in Northallerton in a bid to reach out to areas across the whole County.

The Thirsk and Malton Constituency includes all the towns and villages that are located within the boundaries of the old Ryedale District Council together with places such as Filey and Hunmanby in the old Scarborough Borough Council area and Thirsk and Easingwold in the old Hambleton District Council area.

The leader of the new North Yorkshire Council, Cllr Carl Les, said: “North Yorkshire County Council had always been renowned for its focus on localism despite its large size. The new Council covers the same area as the previous County Council. However, we are determined to ensure that with the expanded remit of the new organisation, we improve our capability of becoming even more local.”

The Pickering division representative on North Yorkshire Council, Cllr Joy Andrews, who attended the meeting, added: “I welcome this new initiative, it was good to raise issues and to give feedback to the executive at a more local level. I am hoping the executive not only listen but truly hear us and act swiftly on the concerns raised.“

Cllr George Jabbour, who represents a division within the former Ryedale District Council area, commented: “I am pleased that Ryedale House was chosen as the location for the first meeting of the new North Yorkshire Council’s Cabinet outside Northallerton. We had an interactive meeting with members of the Executive Committee and were able to raise a wide range of issues from roads and planning to communications and the transition to the new Council, plus other topics that are important to our local community.”