Ambitious plans to create a new village to help meet housing targets in North Yorkshire need further work, it has been claimed.
Councillor Arnold Warneken is urging council bosses to delay adopting the masterplan framework for Maltkiln, a new 3,000-home development centred around Cattal railway station, near Harrogate.
Members of North Yorkshire Council’s executive committee will be asked to approve the plan, which includes proposals for new facilities, including primary schools, shops, and health and sports centres, on Tuesday next week.
Councillor Mark Crane, executive member for open to business, whose responsibilities include planning policy, said:
“We need more housing across the whole of the county to meet the rising demand, so people are able to choose to live in the communities that they wish to.
“However, this is a significant ongoing challenge as England’s largest council in geographical terms. Settlements such as Maltkiln are therefore vital in helping to address this housing need and can help reduce the pressure on our existing towns and villages.
“We want Maltkiln to be a vibrant and sustainable new community which can improve families’ health and wellbeing, create jobs and drive investment.
“Adopting a masterplan framework is the next step on that journey, with further detail and more opportunities for community involvement to come through the detailed planning application.”
But Cllr Warneken, who represents the Ouseburn division, said he was contacting senior councillors and officers to ask for a decision on the plan to be deferred.
The Green Party councillor said Redline, a sub-committee set up by Kirk Hammerton Parish Council, had uncovered “serious failings” with the masterplan
He added:
“The inspector’s report referred to collaboration with the parishes so that effectively they were a stakeholder.
“Yet the council have had stakeholder meetings without inviting the parish council.
“They expected to be around the table with Yorkshire Water and all the other so-called stakeholders, but they were not invited. There’s a strong feeling that the masterplan needs further scrutiny before it’s adopted.”
North Yorkshire Council formally adopted the Development Plan Document (DPD) in November 2025.
The masterplan framework would guide future planning applications within the settlement and aim to ensure development is sustainable.
Officials say nearly 200 people attended a public consultation event at Kirk Hammerton Village Hall earlier this year, with their feedback incorporated into the draft masterplan framework.
For more information on the Maltkiln project, visit https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/maltkiln-dpd
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