King Charles coronation: North Yorkshire councillors approve almost £6,000 worth of funding for local events and celebrations

The grants have come from councillors’ individual locality budgets which give each elected member an annual budget of £10,000 “to allow them to respond to local needs by recommending the allocation of small amounts of funding to support specific activities”.

As of Wednesday, April 26, the largest grants had come from Cllr David Jeffels, who represents the Derwent Valley and Moor division and Cllr Bridget Fortune, who represents the Hutton Rudby and Osmotherley division, both of whom had approved £1,000 of funding.

Cllr Jeffels also granted a total of £1,000 divided between three seperate grants.

This was made up of £300 for “souvenirs and entertainment for the coronation events with Hutton Buscel Village Hall Committee”, £400 for the “purchase of souvenirs and entertainment for the coronation events with Ayton Jubilee and Coronation Committee”, and £300 for “the purchase and planting of trees to mark the king’s coronation and the late queen with Hackness and Harwood Dale Group Parish Council”.

Cllr Fortune granted £1,000 “to fund children’s activities at the coronation event with Rudby Parish Council”.

Other councillors representing Scarborough areas also approved grants from their locality budgets, with councillors Phil Trumper, Derek Bastiman, and Liz Colling each approving grants between £350 and £400 for the purchase of food, refreshments, souvenirs, decorations, and hall hire.

The coronation weekend and bank holiday between Saturday, May 6 and Monday, May 8 will see events and street parties across the country celebrating King Charles’ accession to the throne.

Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, Cllr Bridget Fortune said: “Providing a portion of a project that will be used in village halls or other public places within the villages is helpful for community cohesion.

“The upcoming coronation is the catalyst, as it will be a bank holiday and the villages I support and represent will be coming together to celebrate, in their own unique ways.”

She added that she did not want smaller villages to be “lost or miss out” as she said larger towns and cities “have bigger funds and facilities to draw from”.

Cllr David Jeffels said he was “happy to give grants to a number of villages” which he hoped would “encourage communities to get involved, especially in the wake of the Covid pandemic”.

Cllr Jeffels added: “I detect a return to the pre-pandemic period as people become enthusiastic about celebrating the coronation and at the same time join with friends and residents, in general, to give new impetus to community life which has become so important after a challenging time for so many people.”

In the past, locality budgets have been used by councillors to support a wide range of local initiatives including improving accessibility, purchasing IT equipment for community centres, and supporting cultural activities.

However, since North Yorkshire Council was formed, almost a third of locality budget grants have focused on coronation events with 15 grants ranging between £300 and £1000 having been approved since April 1.

In addition to purchasing food and refreshments, the grants have gone towards purchasing “a coronation mug for all the children in the parish with Spofforth Parish Council” as well as other souvenirs, raffle prizes, and entertainment.

While most councillors contacted by the Local Democracy Reporting Service said they were happy to fund such events from their locality budgets, one elected member questioned the use of public funds on coronation events.

Cllr Rich Maw, who represents the Weaponness and Ramshill division said that if he had been asked for funding he would “have to consider its merit weighed against other projects” but would prefer for coronation events to “be paid for by those who wish to participate in such”.

Meanwhile, Cllr Liz Colling, who represents the Falsgrave and Stepney division, said: “The coronation is an opportunity to invite all those participants, volunteers, and partners together to enjoy afternoon tea and each other’s company in a relaxed, familiar and friendly environment.

“I believe the benefits, in terms of building and reinforcing community links, addressing social isolation in the elderly, and encouraging social interaction is an appropriate use of my budget.”