Help is required in Pudsey this weekend to take down the Christmas trees and lights that were put up by the community, writes Keely Bannister.
2019s celebrations saw more Christmas trees, more lights, more illuminated street signs and a brand new ‘Merry Christmas Pudsey’ display on Sainsburys, all thanks to community hard work.
Now this Saturday (11th January) from 8am, the Pudsey Christmas Lights team are hoping the community will support them once more by assisting in the following ways:
Ladder climbers,
Ladder holders,
String Light organisers,
Christmas tree packers,
Bauble removers,
Tea makers and many others
Looking forward, the 2020 lights switch on date has already been set with Sunday 6th December set to host the big day.
A Farnley & Wortley councillor has reiterated calls to reopen some of district’s lost railway stations to help combat climate change and get more people using public transport.
He is set to ask fellow councillors to support the resurrection of the city’s disused rail infrastructure, as well as supporting public ownership of the region’s bus services.
The motion ends by suggesting the council’s Chief Executive Tom Riordan write to Prime Minister Boris Johnson to ask for government help funding the projects.
Cllr Blackburn’s clarion call is detailed in a motion, known as a white paper, set to go before a full Leeds City Council meeting next week, when councillors will vote whether or not the authority should adopt it.
It states:
“Council notes the current uncertain situation with regard to First Bus and other bus operators in West Yorkshire, and believes that the way forward is for West Yorkshire Combined Authority to take over the running of these operations.
“Council also believes that appropriate funding should be made available to bring back into operation disused rail infrastructure, such as unused track, and the re-opening of many of the former local railway stations closed many years ago, such as the one in Wortley and the two in Armley.
“It is council’s view that only with vibrant publicly owned bus services, running in the interest of the passenger, and expanded local rail services can Leeds (or for that matter, West Yorkshire) achieve a 21st century public transport system that delivers for its citizens, helps to reduce congestion and is consistent with the aims of the climate emergency.
“Council also notes that Prime Minister Boris Johnson has stated that he will transform transport in the North. Bearing this in mind council, therefore, calls on the chief executive to write to the Prime Minister asking for the government to support these aspirations, both in actions and funding.”
Coun Blackburn made similar calls to reopen the city’s forgotten rail stations at a meeting of the authority’s climate emergency board in 2019, claiming plans to expand park and ride schemes were not environmentally friendly enough.
Following a report by government advisor Dr Richard Beeching in the 1960s, a number of stations in Leeds, including Armley Canal Road, Kirkstall, Stanningley and Lowtown in Pudsey were closed.
Conservative motion over mass transit scheme
Cllr Andrew Carter
Calverley & Farsley councillor Andrew Carter (Conservative) has also put forward a motion at the full council meeting. It acknowledges the money being invested in Leeds through the Connecting Leeds programme and welcomes the “Government commitment to spend £4.2bn on public transport projects outside of London”.
Calling on a “new approach to public transport, not wholly reliant on the bus”, the motion says that the council should bring a report to the March Executive Board setting out detailed plans as to how a new mass transit scheme can be delivered to all communities in the city.
Cllr Carter’s motion reads:
“This Council is concerned by recent and repeated examples of gridlock and heavy congestion in the City Centre, leading to significant disruption to commuters as they travel in and out of Leeds.
“Council notes the investment being made through Connecting Leeds, including the £173.5m granted by Government, but believes that to get the city moving and to encourage greater growth and productivity a new approach to public transport, not wholly reliant on the bus, is required.
“This Council therefore welcomes the Government commitment to spend £4.2bn on public transport projects outside of London and notes that some of this funding is planned for the Leeds district.
“Council believes this offers a new opportunity to deliver a mass transit scheme for the city which will deliver obvious economic benefits as well as significantly reducing the city’s carbon emissions in line with the declared Climate Emergency.
“Council further believes that all areas of the city should be considered for mass transit infrastructure and is concerned that existing WYCA proposals seem to omit North Leeds, and the potential links to Harrogate, York and Wetherby, from any new transport infrastructure plans.
“In light of this announcement made during the election campaign, this Council calls for a report to be brought to the March Executive Board meeting setting out detailed plans as to how a new mass transit scheme can be delivered to all communities in the city and to include analysis of the potential benefits such a scheme would deliver in terms of reducing the carbon footprint in Leeds.”
At the meeting, which will be held on Wednesday 15th January at 1pm, the motions will be debated with each of the other political parties represented on the council able to submit amendments.
Each motion and any amendments will be voted on, with whatever is passed becoming official council policy.
An open meeting will give people the chance to find out more about the farm plans and discuss what people want to happen on the site, between Kirkstall Road and the River Aire.
Suzy Russell from the Community Supported Agriculture Network will be talking about how other community farms have succeeded.
The event runs on Wednesday 22nd Jan, 7.30pm, upstairs at the Cardigan Arms
As previously reported, Leeds City Council has agreed to lease the 16-acre Burley Mills Farm (now known as Kirkstall Valley Farm) and allotments to the community for a minimum of five years from April at an affordable rent.
The Farm will supply fresh veg to local residents, host community and education projects and be a social focus for the whole of Kirkstall Valley. There are also a set of allotments where organic growers are welcome.
KVDT is hoping to buy a tractor, equipment, polytunnels, green manure seed, toilets, a collection hut and social area and making the site secure. By the end of 2020 they want to be gearing up for full production.
Kirkstall Valley Development Trust is a community benefit society set up in 2016 to develop a learning and leisure park over 200 acres of inner West Leeds and to refurbish Abbey Mills in Kirkstall for housing and community use.
Two former councillors are to be made honorary alderpeople at a meeting due to take place next week, writes Keely Bannister.
First elected to represent the people of Armley in 1990, Alison Lowe was the first woman of colour to be an elected councillor in Leeds when she was 25-years-old.
Fast forward 29 years and Ms Lowe made the decision to not seek re-election for the tenth time, instead choosing to concentrate on her work as the chief executive of the mental health charity Touchstone..
“I will miss Armley and I will miss my constituents so much, but I’ve got to have a life and I’m just so tired. It’s going to be a massive break and, just thinking about it, I’m in bits.”
Richard Lewis served the town of Pudsey for 33 years having been elected for the first time in 1986 following an unsuccessful bid two years earlier before losing to Pudsey Conservative Trish Smith last year.
Mr Lewis rose up the ranks quickly, first being appointed as head of the council’s planning committee in the 1990s, before spending the last decade as the council’s portfolio holder for transport and planning.
An Honorary Alderman is a person who has rendered eminent service as a past member of the council.
Ms Lowe and Mr Lewis will be recognised along with seven other former councillors at an extraordinary meeting to be held at 12.30pm on Wednesday 15th January at Leeds Civic Hall.
Field of Dreams? TV Harrison ground off Oldfield Lane back in January 2019
A contractor has been appointed to develop Leeds City Council’s plans to build council housing on the site of the former TV Harrison Sports Ground, writes Keely Bannister.
Wilmott Dixon have been appointed to undertake a feasibility exercise in relation to the Oldfield Lane site in Wortley, with a view to awarding them the construction contract.
In a council report confirming the decision published today (Tuesday 7th January), the council also outline the types of homes they are looking to build. These include:
2 x 2 bed/4 person fully wheelchair compliant bungalows;
24 x 2 bed/4 person general needs homes
17 x 3 bed/5 person homes general needs homes and
4 x 4 bed/7 person general needs homes
The report explains in great detail how the council selected Wilmott Dixon as the contractors, with a reduced timescale being a driving factor as the council seeks to avoid “substantial amounts of funding” from right to buy receipts having to be handed back to central government.
The report added:
“Another key requirement for this scheme is the need for a contractor with a proven track record in relation to engagement and consultation. Effective community engagement and consultation will also be a critical success factor for this scheme and therefore it is imperative that the contractor selected has a proven track record in this respect.”
Community engagement is important due to the backlash the council has received from campaigners unhappy that the authority wishes to build housing on the site rather than return the derelict land to its former glory as ‘Wortley’s Wembley’.
Once a jewel in the city’s junior football crown, past Leeds United stars such as Paul Madeley, David Harvey, Paul Reaney, David Batty, Noel Whelan and Brian Deane graced the field in its heyday when Leeds City Boys regularly played there.
However, the site has been officially closed and stood unused for the last 14 years after Leeds Schools Sports Association (LSSA) claimed the ground became unmanageable for them.
As previously reported in The Dispatch, Peter McQuillen-Strong, head at Holy Family Primary School and secretary of LSSA, said previous attempts to raise money to fully develop the ground had failed.
— Save our Football Pitch -TV Harrison Sports Ground (@SavePitch) December 20, 2019
The TV Harrison Community Action Group was formed to preserve the site as a pitch, with members clearing part of the site themselves so children could once again enjoy it.
Site ownership
Debate over who does or doesn’t have rights to the land have raged, with the action group maintaining that the ground was gifted to the children of Leeds by local headteacher Thomas Vernon Harrison and two others after a public appeal in the Yorkshire Evening Post raised money to purchase the site.
But the council report disputes there are any restrictions stopping the land from being built on. It says:
“We have satisfied ourselves on the basis of the documents we have seen that there are no restrictions on the disposal of the site by LSSA. Documentation supplied to us by the solicitor acting for LSSA show that the second, larger parcel was purchased by Tom Vernon Harrison, Robert Jarman and Arthur Thornton on the 13th September 1928 for £1,800.
“The conveyance was said to be free from incumbrances, which indicates it was not the intention of the vendors that any restriction be placed on the future use of the site.
“We have also been provided with a copy of the abstract of a further conveyance dated 23 November 1929. This is a transfer of the site from Messrs Jarman and Thornton (Mr Harrison having deceased) as the original trustees of the Leeds Elementary Schools Athletic Association (LEAAS) to Westminster Bank Limited (now NatWest) to hold the land as custodian trustee.
“This second conveyance specifically gives the Bank the power, on request of the LEAAS trustees to sell the land. Although the LEAAS intended to use the land as sports field there is no restriction on the sale or mortgaging of the land. We have no evidence that the position has changed since 1929.
“It appears from a cutting from a newspaper from 1928 that the £1,800 used to purchase the second parcel of land was (at least in part) raised through public subscription. There is no evidence that we have seen that suggests any part of the site was ‘gifted’ to the children of Leeds and there is no obligation for any purchaser to maintain the site for use by the public.”
The council states that by building on the land they will help develop greenspace and playing facilities in the ward. They say:
“The development of the site for housing is likely to generate a commuted sum in the region of £80,000, which the council hopes will be able to fund some immediate improvements to local facilities, and will add to around £100,000 of similar existing funding already available within the ward.
“The council intends to proactively work with local stakeholders to support further investment from partners into the ward.
“There are a number of initiatives under way and further potential opportunities to improve and enhance the sports and leisure provision within the ward which could be further developed. The council will also use the early engagement with the contractor to try and secure some early benefits from the investment available locally.”
They also state that they are “extremely open and willing to work closely with local representatives and residents” around options to potentially enhance sporting facilities at other locations.
The council claims it will fully consult the local community prior to planning and before any works take place.
You can read all the relevant documents to this development here.
Bramley’s Beechtree Medical Centre has been rated as ‘good’ by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) following an announced inspection last month, writes Keely Bannister.
A report states that the practice has been rated as good overall and good for all population groups (older people; people with long-term conditions; families, children and young people; working aged people; people experiencing poor mental health).
The report adds:
Practice staff provided care in line with up-to-date clinical guidance.
Quality improvement was carried out to monitor and improve outcomes for patients.
The practice collaborated with local partners to plan services to meet the needs of their patients.
Staff said they felt supported by the leadership team and were encouraged to develop.
Whilst no breaches of regulation were found, the centre has been told to address several issues, including:
Complete staff appraisals for all staff in a timely way.
Improve systems to encourage uptake of cervical screening.
Consider succession planning arrangements to provide continuity of care for patients registered at the practice.
The ‘good’ rating is a continuation from the last inspection which took place in January 2016 which also saw an overall rating of Good being given.
Beechtree Medical Centre is on Henconner Lane and is part of Bramley, Wortley and Middleton Primary Care Network.
A Calverley & Farsley councillor has claimed a planned rail station serving Leeds Bradford Airport would be “too far” from the site, writes Richard Beecham.
Updated plans to revamp transport links to the airport and nearby sites – including a new road and a “parkway” airport rail station near the western edge of Cookridge – were unveiled by Leeds City Council last month.
However, the leader of the authority’s Conservatives group Coun Andrew Carter has complained those using the station would have to complete their journey by shuttle bus and called for more “ambitious” solutions.
And another senior politician complained that more help was needed from rail operators to increase the capacity enough to accommodate airport-goers.
Coun Carter told the council’s executive board this afternoon:
“I want to see an ambitious proposal come forward that, at its heart, has environmental protection, but also looks at how we can reduce congestion.
“It seems that the parkway station as proposed is too far away from the airport. It means you have to then change your mode of transport to a bus.
“We need to look at how we can somehow engineer the station to be nearer the airport, and how we can, ambitiously, with public money, get people from that station to the airport with a modern means of transport.
“We really have to think out of the box here – there are conflicting agendas and it’s a balancing act.
“I would hope we can also view this in the wider context of transport in the city region as a whole.
“If money is available in large amounts – and I think it is going to be – we have to be as ambitious as we possibly can and wrap into it as many of the issues we face as we can, and that includes access to the airport.”
The proposals for the new station would see the facility sit on the harrogate line, well over a mile away from the airport terminal.
Council leader Judith Blake (Lab) said:
“Ambition is something we’ve expressed repeatedly to secretaries of state and this is one of the areas that has generated a lot of interest from the department for transport.
“Detractors will talk about change of mode in terms of negative and old-fashioned technology, but we have the opportunity to do something special here.
“The airport is important as an employment hub as well – there are a number of jobs there, and that has to be taken into consideration.
“It’s early days to come forward with the detail but we are all very keen to make sure we do make progress on this and have a much better network of transport in that part of the city.”
Leeds Liberal Democrat leader Cllr Stewart Golton (Rothwell) said:
“I’m not sure Coun Carter’s interjection is particularly helpful, just saying ‘we want something ambitious’, but not saying what ambition looks like.
“Everyone wants to see more people get into the station by train, but the current service being promised by the rail operator is not fit for purpose for delivering the modal shift that we want.
“I would like to know if any talks are due to take place with Northern Rail to discuss whether they can introduce more frequent services and longer trains to accommodate the extra demand we hope to achieve on this line.
“If we’re not going to have the surface access changes we were intending, and the airport is still intending to grow, then the current congested transport in the area is due to double in the next 10 years.
“When would local residents get to see what the alternative is for managing that?”
A council officer responded:
“We are fully engaged with Northern and Network Rail. But, as we all know, the industry at the moment is in considerable turmoil in terms of what is being delivered.
“We believe there remains an ambition to increase frequencies of services on the Harrogate Line – not at this present moment in time, but a significant increase in the train service in the short to the medium term.
“There is an ambition for further investment in the Harrogate line to bring it up to the standard of some of the other lines – we are not in a place at the moment where we can do that, but we are pushing for investment.”
A public drop-in event will be held later this month in Armley regarding the A647 bus priority corridor, which includes the controversial conversion of Stanningley Road’s two-plus lane into a bus lane, writes Keely Bannister.
Being held at Armley’s Wesley Road Chapel on Wednesday 29th January, the event will start at 3pm until 8pm.
The scheme – which is due to begin construction in February 2020 with works scheduled to last until Spring 2021- includes:
New bus lanes, parking restrictions and new crossings to the section of the A647 between Bradford Border to Dawsons Corner;
Traffic signal upgrades with buses given priority at junctions between Dawsons Corner and Bramley Town End Roundabout;
The conversion of Stanningley Road’s High Occupancy Vehicle Lane (two-plus lane) into a bus lane, apart from a section between Cockshott Lane and Armley Ridge Road during peak periods to maintain existing on-street parking provision for residents, as well as the extension of the bus lane linking up Bramley Town End roundabout;
Cockshott Lane and Armley Ridge Road junction changes along Stanningley Road and the creation of a new crossing at Redcote Lane;
Changes at the Ledgard Way/Armley Road (Mike Carpet’s) junction with a reduction in the movements allowed between 11am and 7pm, with changes to Pickering Street to help accommodate more traffic movements as a result; and
A reduction of Branch Road to a single lane allowing widening of the footway and tree planting.
Residents are invited to learn more about the project as well as details of construction activities.
Conversion of Stanningley Road’s High Occupancy Vehicle Lane has proved unpopular with 50% of respondents to a consultation on the plans giving negative feedback. Armley ward councillors also expressed concerns over congestion.
Calverley & Farsley ward councillors, Amanda and Andrew Carter, have previously expressed concerns over the changes. Councillor Amanda Carter is worried about the impact on residents living adjacent to the scheme, stating:
“I have no doubt this will inconvenience residents. No longer will they be able to park outside their home, instead displacing others from their parking spots. Where do we end up? Residents permits that are a hassle and an inconvenience for residents and visitors alike?
“It is good that the council is looking to invest in our local road network but we are far from certain that this is the right approach.”
Fellow councillor Andrew Carter thinks the changes will have a detrimental impact on the climate emergency which the council declared in March 2019, explaining:
“We understand the aim of this scheme and, of course, I would like to see much quicker journey times for Calverley and Farsley residents in and out of Leeds.
“However, the city is still promoting an outdated mode of transport and I am yet to be convinced that reducing capacity for cars on the road network in West Leeds will actually deliver against the ambition to cut congestion.
“I have said on many occasions that there is no ambition in the city’s future transport plans – will this proposal allow us to move forward to an innovative, but deliverable mass-transit solution that will attract more passengers and persuade residents to leave their cars at home? I think not.”
However, Councillor Lisa Mulherin – who holds executive responsibility for Climate Change, Transport and Sustainable Development – hit back at the Carters’ criticisms, saying:
“Making bus journeys faster and much more reliable is crucial to creating a shift from people using cars to buses.
“The A647 sees bus delays that impact on people’s lives, making it hard to get to work on time, make important appointments or plan journeys with any kind of reliability. This scheme will make a positive difference to people travelling by bus.
“This scheme underwent significant consultation and looked to address residents’ and business concerns over parking as much as possible while still making the very necessary improvements to the corridor.
“Many sections of bus lane will be restricted to peak hours only to allow for resident and business parking on the highway outside of these hours, including in Calverley and Farsley.”
People who are unable to attend the drop-in event, and who would like further information are invited to register for updates by visiting the Connecting Leeds website.
Alternatively, people can contact Connecting Leeds by e-mailing connectingleeds@leeds.gov.uk, calling 0113 222 4407 (Mon-Fri, 9am-5pm) or searching @connectingleeds on social media.
Parts of of Armley and Farnley & Wortley wards are to be included in an experimental Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) to remove “obstructive and indiscriminative” parking stopping waste collection crews from doing their jobs, writes Keely Bannister.
Leeds City Council’s decision making Executive Board will decide tomorrow (Tuesday 7th January) whether to progress the scheme, which would see formal waiting restrictions applied in locations where inconsiderate parking results in refuse collection wagons being unable to secure safe passage and fail to empty residents’ bins.
A council report states:
“There is a significant problem across the city whereby vehicle passage into and along streets is being restricted due to inconsiderate parking, whether that be along the street itself or on corners of the entrances to that street meaning larger vehicles cannot turn into the street.
“This is having a significant impact on the delivery of refuse services, evidenced by an increasing level of contact to the Council and Ward Members, as residents report missed, scheduled collections.
“Access issues are also impacting service resources, both in terms of the need for front line crews to return to locations to recover bins, and supervisory/back office resources to deal with enquiries/complaints.”
The report also explained what an experimental order involves:
“An experimental order is used where the need for traffic management measures has been identified but there is a need to test the proposals to determine whether the scheme provides the desired solution.
“In this instance the experimental order will allow the Council to address the identified problems at the multiple locations across the city as opposed to the police, whose finite resources wouldn’t be capable of dealing with the city wide problems.”
A mapping exercise was carried out in 2019 to locate where bin collections were being repeatedly missed due to access issues for refuse services with around 200 locations being identified across the city in 13 electoral wards.
The 13 wards suggested to be included are: Ardsley & Robin Hood, Armley, Beeston and Holbeck, Burmantofts and Richmond Hill, Chapel Allerton, Farnley & Wortley, Gipton & Harehills, Horsforth, Hunslet & Riverside, Middleton Park, Morley North, Morley South and Weetwood.
The 200 individual locations were then presented to local councillors ward-by-ward for their input and knowledge.
Lasting for 18 months, locations will be added/removed/amended from the order as it is put into practice.
The report states that consultation will be carried out with affected residents including leaflet drops and statutory notices.
It is envisaged that the scheme will be implemented by May 2020 for £25,000 or around £1,900 per ward based on the current list of 13 electoral wards to be included.
Cllr Amanda Carter (Cons, Calverley & Farsley) voiced concerns over issues residents living in Calverley, Farsley and Rodley were experiencing last summer saying there was an “epidemic” of missed bin collections which was “unacceptable”.
Fellow councillor Peter Carlill (Lab, Calverley & Farsley) said that the missed collections were due to staff shortages.
Calverley & Farsley councillor Andrew Carter sits on the Executive Board as a representative for the Conservative Party.
Construction on a bus priority scheme which aims to make some West Leeds services six minutes quicker during peak times, looks set to begin in July 2020, writes Keely Bannister.
A report to the council’s decision-making executive board on Tuesday, 7 January will seek approval to spend £13.9m to carry out detailed design and construction of the A58 Beckett Street scheme.
The scheme aims to improve the reliability of the 4, 4G, 16, 16a, 42, 49, 50 and 50a bus services, all of which run through West Leeds.
If agreed at the meeting, the changes will see improvements to Beckett Street north and south of the junction with Lincoln Green Road, including:
The southern section widened to accommodate a new section of bus lane outbound and a bi-directional cycleway on the eastern side of the carriageway. This is achieved by widening into the existing highways verge to the west with no loss of space for existing traffic.
The northern section is widened to accommodate new bus lanes outbound and inbound and continuing the new bi-directional segregated cycle facility along the eastern side of the carriageway where it terminates at Museum St. This is achieved by widening into existing highways verge on both sides and adjacent verge on the eastern side with no loss of space for existing traffic.
Outside St James University Hospital the existing Leeds City Council car parks are being altered at a cost of 9 spaces to provide more space to accommodate improved bus stop facilities and an improved pedestrian environment.
Consultation on detailed designs for the improvements took place in July and August 2019, with 72% of respondents feeling either positive or slightly positive about the proposed changes to the route, 16% feeling slightly negative or negative and a further 12% feeling neutral about the proposals.
Construction – which is expected to be completed in March 2021 – will see some overlap with ongoing work in the city centre that has led to buses getting snarled in traffic at peak times and struggling to run on time.
As detailed in the report, the scheme is predicted to have a positive impact on the climate emergency that Leeds City Council declared in March 2019, stating:
“By improving bus journey times and reliability, and improving facilities for cyclists and pedestrians, these schemes are anticipated to encourage modal shift from private car to bus and cycling.
“This is expected to contribute to a reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The anticipated reduction in car usage will also have a beneficial impact on air quality, linking in with the proposed CAZ boundaries and its operation of reducing nitrogen oxide particles.”
The A58 Beckett Street scheme is estimated to generate 48,000 new bus trips annually, and the A58 York Street scheme 15,600 new trips annually as a result of improvements in bus journey time and reliability.
Connecting Leeds comprises a programme of funding of £270 million to be invested in a number of public transport schemes across Leeds.
Funding for Connecting Leeds comprises money from the Department for Transport (following the cancellation of the Leeds trolleybus scheme) alongside the council, Combined Authority, bus operators and developers.
As The Dispatch has previously reported, Connecting Leeds schemes need to be “substantially completed” by 20/21 or risk losing their funding.
There are plans for a new office block next to Number One.
Detailed plans for two eight-storey office blocks and a multi-storey car park have been submitted for the £400 million Kirkstall Forge site.
The second phase of commercial development, currently occupied by a temporary car park, will be to the west of the existing Number One office block.
It will provide the remaining 200,000 sqft of Grade “A” office space for the site as well as a multi-storey car park. It also includes leisure/retail space on the ground floor.
The Stitch public square area will run between the new buildings and the Number One block.
A design and access statement submitted to Leeds City Council by developers CEG said:
“The design proposals for this site have been developed in full consultation with Leeds City Council Planning Department.
“During the detailed design process, several pre-application discussions have been held with Leeds City Council where the scheme design has been discussed in detail and the submission of a Reserved Matters Application as currently proposed has been welcomed. “
The dedicated car park will be positioned between the two new office buildings. Electric car charging, a cycle spa, shower rooms and locker facilities will be provided within the building.
Masonry will reflect the commercial as well as the new residential elements on the site, helping to blend the mix of uses being delivered across the 57-acre development.
Number One Kirkstall Forge has already attracted Zenith, Mercedes-Benz Vans UK Ltd, Bupa, Smart Buildings Ltd, CEG, Trufe and Butlers restaurant and bar.
Number One Kirkstall Forge, and the nearby train station
Plans for a nearby residential and commercial development with a public square, which would face onto the proposed development, were approved in May 2019.
Ultimately, the Kirkstall Forge scheme is set to become home to 1,050 new homes, 300,000 sq ft of offices and 100,000 sq ft of retail, leisure and community space. Outline permission for the development as a whole was granted several years ago.
Cistercian Monks constructed Kirkstall Abbey in 1152 on the wooded bank of the River Aire.
The Monks went on to build Kirkstall Forge around 1200 AD, with the ironworks from the Forge amongst their earliest activities along with farming.
After the dissolution of the monasteries, Kirkstall Abbey and its land were given to supporters of Henry VIII before eventually coming under the ownership of the Cardigan Estate, whom leased the Forge to various tenants, including the Butler family in 1779, who went onto manage the Forge for six generations.
The site was the longest continually used industrial site in the UK and manufactured motor vehicle axles and steel bars until the site closed in 2003.
The Midland Railway line passed the site and the Kirkstall Forge Railway Station opened in 1860 and closed in 1905. The new station, which opened in 2016 is situated close to the original station site.
I have never really been a big fan of cars and, other than a passing interest, I generally just walk past this monument to the Newlands Works in Farsley, writes Mark Stevenson.
On this occasion, I found myself half-reading the plaque and wondering to myself what the DB stood for on the Aston Martin cars.
It made me read the plaque properly and – lo and behold – the answer was right there in front of my eyes!
David Brown (DB) bought Aston Martin in 1947 and the initials are taken from his name.
What got my interest the most though was that it reads ‘wartime shadow factory’, which sounds like the bad guy’s lair in a Bond film (you can’t mention Aston Martin and not mention Bond).
In 1935 a plan was set up for factories to meet the urgent need for more aircraft using technology transferred from the motor industry by the Government in the build-up to World War II.
Disappointingly the use of the word ‘shadow’ had nothing to do with Bond villains and was just a turn of phrase for the protected status of these factories.
