Crimple Valley's Next Chapter
After more than three decades of community action, Save Crimple Valley has formally closed. Its remaining funds will support Harrogate Wildbelt, a new programme bringing together landscape protection, nature recovery and public access across the valleys surrounding Harrogate.
On 18 June 2026, former officers of Save Crimple Valley met with representatives of Harrogate Spa Society to mark a quiet but significant moment in the history of one of Harrogate's most valued landscapes.
After more than thirty years of voluntary action, Save Crimple Valley had reached the end of its life as an independent organisation. The reason was a practical one. Like many longstanding community associations, the group depended upon volunteers willing to take on its officer roles. When new officers could not be found, its members had to consider how best to bring the organisation's work to a close.
Rather than allow its remaining resources to disperse, the group agreed that its funds should support the development of Harrogate Wildbelt, a wider landscape initiative being established by Harrogate Spa Society.
The meeting brought together Save Crimple Valley's former chairman Peter Wrigley and treasurer Paul Cole with George Eglese, founder of Harrogate Spa Society, alongside others involved in developing the new programme.
It marks the end of an important organisation, but also the beginning of a new chapter for the landscape.
A valley worth defending
Save Crimple Valley emerged in the early 1990s, alongside a second organisation, Protect Crimple Valley, in response to development proposals that threatened to transform the open character of the valley.
The late Fred Willis chaired Save Crimple Valley, while Peter Rix chaired Protect Crimple Valley during these formative years. Together, the two groups successfully opposed proposals for a supermarket on the site now occupied by Weetons and plans for the local rugby club to take over the open field opposite, stretching north towards the River Crimple and Almsford Bank.
The two campaigns later came together under the Save Crimple Valley name. Derek Wilkinson served as secretary, Mike Lowsley as vice-chairman and Paul Cole as treasurer. At its height, the group had around 500 members, reflecting the depth of local attachment to the valley.
Its influence extended far beyond any single planning application. Save Crimple Valley became a consistent and informed voice in local planning, responding to proposals, participating in consultations and keeping the importance of the landscape firmly in public view. Council records show Derek Wilkinson representing the group in planning matters in 2005, while Save Crimple Valley was listed as a formal stakeholder in a further council consultation in 2010.
One of the most important developments during this wider period of community advocacy was the recognition of Crimple Valley as a Special Landscape Area. First designated in the Local Plan in 2001, the area is valued for its landscape quality and the important separation it provides between Harrogate and Pannal.
The work did not end with the campaigns of the 1990s. Over subsequent decades, speculative housing proposals continued to appear around the valley slopes, particularly near Almsford Bank. Applications were challenged, withdrawn, refused and sometimes resubmitted in altered forms. Save Crimple Valley continued to mobilise objections and maintain public awareness of what was at risk.
The valley that remains today was not preserved by accident. It survives as an open landscape in no small part because generations of residents organised, studied plans, wrote letters, attended meetings and refused to accept that development was inevitable. Their contribution deserves to be remembered.
From protection to possibility
Save Crimple Valley's closure comes at a time when the future of the landscape demands a broader conversation.
The original campaigns were necessarily defensive. They responded to particular development proposals and made the case for what should not be lost. That work remains important, but there is also an opportunity to move beyond individual planning battles towards a positive, long-term vision for the landscape.
Harrogate Wildbelt seeks to develop that vision.
The initiative begins with a simple geographical observation. Harrogate occupies a plateau surrounded by three distinctive valley systems: the Nidd to the north, Oak Beck to the east and the Crimple to the south.
Together, these landscapes form an extensive natural setting for the town. Rivers, becks, wetlands, woodland, pasture, wildlife habitats and historic routes connect them to the surrounding countryside, yet they are seldom understood or planned as a whole.
Harrogate Wildbelt seeks to bring these landscapes together through a connected programme of nature recovery, water stewardship, landscape management, access and public participation.
It is an ambition that extends beyond individual sites and administrative boundaries, seeking to establish lasting relationships between the town, its surrounding countryside and the people who care for it.
Beginning with the Crimple
Crimple Valley is one of the Wildbelt's principal landscapes, and a natural place to begin.
Two emerging projects are helping to shape the programme.
Crimple Common explores the potential for a richer, more ecologically diverse landscape through habitat restoration, woodland and wood pasture, improved management of water, and opportunities for community stewardship and public enjoyment.
Crimple Greenway explores the potential of the former railway corridor as a walking and cycling connection, linking communities and opening up new ways to experience the valley and its surrounding landscape.
Both projects remain at an early stage. Their development will depend upon further research, feasibility work and conversations with landowners, residents, public bodies and community organisations.
Together, they represent a shift towards thinking about the valley not simply as countryside to be defended, but as a living landscape with an important ecological, cultural and public future.
That wider ambition does not diminish the importance of continued protection against inappropriate development. Rather, it seeks to give the landscape a stronger, more positive place in the long-term future of Harrogate.
A wider landscape
Harrogate Wildbelt is one of the principal programmes of Harrogate Spa Society, a newly established organisation working to renew Harrogate's identity as a living spa town and reconnect the town with its water, landscapes, heritage and culture.
While the work begins in Harrogate, the Society has a wider national and international ambition, building connections between places, people and organisations concerned with the future of Britain's historic spa towns and their natural environments.
The Wildbelt is an important part of that ambition. It recognises the landscapes surrounding Harrogate as a shared natural inheritance and seeks to bring together the knowledge, partnerships and practical work needed to care for them over generations.
What happens next?
Save Crimple Valley's remaining funds will provide an initial contribution to the development of Harrogate Wildbelt, supporting the wider programme as it takes shape.
Over the coming months, we'll be sharing more about the emerging projects, the people and organisations becoming involved, and opportunities to participate through walks, conversations, events and practical activity.
We would particularly like to remain connected with former members and supporters of Save Crimple Valley. Their experience, local knowledge and understanding of the landscape are an important part of its inheritance.
Save Crimple Valley's history belongs to the people who made it possible. Its closure does not erase that history, nor does it mean that the community's commitment to the valley has disappeared.
The next chapter begins with that inheritance, but looks towards a wider landscape and a longer future.
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