Introducing the Harrogate Wildbelt to the Nidd Gorge Advisory Partnership

George Eglese and Shan Oakes presented the Harrogate Wildbelt to the quarterly meeting of the Nidd Gorge Advisory Partnership at Harrogate Civic Centre on 3 April 2025.

The partnership has worked to protect the Nidd Gorge and Bilton Fields since 1983. It was originally formed by Harrogate Borough Council with conservation groups, recreational interests, landowners and local representatives. Over four decades, it has provided a forum for balancing nature conservation, agriculture, woodland management, recreation and public access.

Now administered by North Yorkshire Council, the partnership brings together community groups, landowners, councillors, naturalists and walking and cycling representatives. Its members include Bilton Conservation Group, Bilton Historical Society, Harrogate and District Naturalists’ Society, Knaresborough Town Council, Knox Valley Residents Association, Long Lands Community and The Woodland Trust.

Its purpose closely aligns with the Wildbelt, particularly around wildlife, heritage, recreation, access and public enjoyment.

We introduced the work undertaken so far and explained the need for a more joined-up vision for the landscapes surrounding Harrogate and Knaresborough.

The Wildbelt proposes three connected landscape areas around the town. The Nidd, Crimple and Oak belts. Together, they could provide a framework for nature recovery, walking and cycling, heritage, water management and public wellbeing.

We also explained how these landscapes form part of Harrogate’s wider therapeutic spa environment. The town’s healing landscape has always extended beyond its wells and baths into its valleys, woodlands, waterways and surrounding countryside.

Early work is already beginning in the Crimple Valley. The Nidd Gorge Advisory Partnership offers an established forum through which similar ambitions can be developed in the Nidd area, drawing on more than 40 years of local knowledge and collaboration.

The meeting was an opportunity to introduce the concept and begin a conversation about how the partnership and the Wildbelt might work together in future.