'Disgusting' conditions could put people off visiting Knaresborough, residents warn

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It has voted to bring up the issue with Harrogate Borough Council (HBC) as town councillors feel the current conditions are unacceptable and are off-putting to tourists.

According to residents, bins in the town centre are not being emptied frequently enough and rubbish is being left in the street when the bins are too full. They also say that public toilets are causing a problem as they are often left unclean and without toilet paper, if they are open at all.

Igraine Skelton, Her Majesty’s Keeper of Castle Ravens at Knaresborough Castle, said she has seen people changing their baby’s nappy on the grass due to a lack of decent facilities and that the disabled toilets are often padlocked, meaning even those with a radar key can’t gain access.

She said: “It’s just disgusting. It’s even got to a point where I am having to provide toilet roll myself because I have heard more and more complaints from visitors.

“We are trying to encourage people to come and visit Knaresborough but when they do we are not providing them with basic facilities. If we want people to keep coming and enjoying our town then we need to give them something better than this.”

Knaresborough fire - Dramatic pictures show devastating extent of blazeKnaresborough Town Council will be asking HBC to look at placing double bins in the castle yard in order to reduce the number of collections needed.

It will also express how important the toilets are to tourists and how it is vital to make sure they are well-managed in order to keep people returning to the town.

A spokesman for HBC said: “As you can imagine, public toilets are exceptionally difficult to keep clean and are often vandalised. We do regularly clean them and they are unlocked between 8am 8pm in spring and summer and 8am to 6pm in autumn and winter. If anyone finds they are not available during these time they should contact us or visit the local tourist information centre, just off Market Place.

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