York Scouts seek new hut as membership doubles

The new hut would offer a larger hall, along with office space and a function room

One of the largest Scout groups in North Yorkshire has applied to build a new hut as its membership has doubled in the last 15 years.

York-based 1st Holgate Scout Group has more than 350 members and said a new hut would help it meet the demand from young people.

It currently uses four sites across the city for meetings and activities.

The organisation wants to build on land to the east of Acomb Primary School at the southern end of West Bank.

Formed in 1981 it has doubled its membership since 2009, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The proposed building has overall dimensions of 115ft (35m) by 49ft (15m), which would include a main hall, an office, meeting rooms, a kitchen and toilets.

'Unnecessary demands on volunteers'

It said its current accommodation had reached a point where "suitably robust, spacious accommodation with outdoor space" was unavailable to meet the demand.

It said this compromised the group's ability to provide the "quality of Scout experience" it would like and placed "unnecessary demands on its volunteers".

The planning application states that "careful consideration has been given to the impact of the use of the building and land on the neighbouring dwellings".

City of York Council has not yet set a date to consider the plans.