A ROW over grit bins has erupted between rural parish councils and North Yorkshire County Council after the lead authority said it will remove bins unless local communities can take over the cost.

At North Yorkshire County Council’s Richmondshire Area Committee at Richmondshire Cricket Club on Wednesday (November 25) Upper Dales councillor John Blackie said he had heard from parish councils concerned they are being placed in an impossible position.

Cllr Blackie, leader of Hawes and High Abbottside Parish Council, said he and the council were “implacably against” the introduction of charges for grit bins being imposed by North Yorkshire County Council.

He said: “The parish council is particularly unhappy that the grit bin outside Hawes Primary School is to be removed unless the council pays an initial charge of £50 and an annual charge of £75 to refill it.

“I have also heard from Newsham Parish Council which has offered to buy its own grit bin and rock salt at a lower cost to the council’s offer – but this was refused because of highway safety reasons.”

Cllr Don Mackenzie, executive member of North Yorkshire County Council, said: “We are seeking consistency of provision throughout the county and that does mean that some parts of the county have lost some grit bins in order to bring them into line with the county-wide criteria used to determine whether or not grit bins are provided.”

Bob De'Ath, clerk of Newsham Parish Council, had appealed for help from Cllr Blackie regarding the grit bins.

He said: “In an isolated rural community, we need to be self sufficient and the existing salt bins are essential on icy and snowy days.

“We have throughout the village in key locations a number of salt bins, all of which have failed the assessment.

“If we pay the authority to maintain the existing number of salt bins we will need to raise our precept by nearly 40 per cent.”

Mr De’Ath said the council had been told it could not provide its own bins – but at the meeting Cllr Mackenzie said parish councils could provide their own bins and grit as long as they were stored in a safe area.

Cllr Mackenzie added: “The county council seems to be painted as a kind of Dick Turpin, holding up parish councils to ransom – but we are not doing that.

“If a parish council wants to buy its own grit bin and salt they can as long as they contact the area highways office – but they must chose to either be in the county council scheme or out of it.”