MORE than 93 per cent of Ilkley people polled in a community consultation want to see the town’s closed household waste recycling plant reinstated.

Ilkley Town Council carried out the consultation over summer, providing a questionnaire so residents could provide feedback to the council on a number of issues.

The Town Council said the “overwhelming issue at present” was the closure of the tip which was among three shut down by Bradford Council in March this year as a cost-cutting measure.

The questionnaire revealed that 93.7 of respondents were in favour of Ilkley Town Council reinstating a local Household Waste Recycling Centre in Ilkley.

There were a variety of opinions expressed about how this could be achieved and whether or not residents would be prepared to pay more through the precept - the extra portion of the Council Tax paid by residents for local services - to support this.

Ilkley Town Council said it continues to investigate options for providing a functioning household waste centre and submitted proposals to Bradford Council in July, suggesting that the facility could be retained by employing a private contractor to operate Golden Butts.

Alternatively, the Town Council suggested Bradford continue to provide the service using funding from Ilkley Town Council and possibly other parishes.

A spokesperson for Ilkley Town Council said: “These proposals were rejected by Bradford who advised that they did not contain sufficient detail. Bradford Council have not replied to the Town Council’s request for a list of specific points which would need to be addressed in order for them to consider it.”

They added that Bradford Council also rejected a request for a Community Asset Transfer of the site and have announced that the site will be sold.

Ilkley Town Council has submitted an expression of interest to ensure the Town Council is notified when the site is marketed. Options for mitigating the impact of the closure are also being explored and it is hoped that a full report will be presented to the Council shortly, said the spokesperson.

That and other issues raised by residents in the consultation are now to be reviewed by the relevant committees on the Town Council to see how they can be addressed.

Ilkley Town Mayor, Councillor Damian Kearns said: “We appreciate the time people have taken to share their views on how to improve our town. The consultation provided the Town Council with a lot of useful information which will be used to shape the Council’s priorities and action plan in the coming months and years.”

The Town Council spokesperson added: “Since the consultation closed Ilkley Town Council has reviewed all the comments received from respondents in order to understand the key issues being raised.

“The most recurrent issues relate to waste management and recycling, governance and financial management of Ilkley Town Council and Bradford Council, and issues with traffic calming and road safety.”

A full update on the consultation and actions taken will be provided in the new year.