How Burley was Governed - (page 2 0f 3)
_After an official enquiry into the health and sanitary condition of
Burley, permission was given by the General Board of Health to set up
the Local Board in November 1854. Nine people were to be nominated or
elected to serve on the Board. They had a duty to raise a Sanitary rate,
bring about reforms and to report directly to the General Board in
London. William Forster became the first Chairman.
For twenty years after its formation, with only one exception in 1861, the chairmanship of the Board was in the hands of Forster or his partner, William Fison, the mill owners. Burley had nevertheless moved significantly towards a modern system of democratic government. Elections were held annually with three of the nine councillors standing down each year.
The Local Board of Health was succeeded by the Burley Urban District Council in 1898, a body with even wider democratic powers.
The Burley Urban District Council got into its full stride in the 20th century. From its records we have a very good idea of the state of the village. The Council purchased the Grange in 1904 for £1660 and had the buildings converted for Council offices by 1905. Prior to that, they had shared the old Township school premises. At the opening ceremony, the Chairman said that Burley could boast a suite of offices as “convenient and much more prettily situated than any to be found in Yorkshire” (Wharfedale and Airedale Observer, August 1905). As in the previous Local Board of Health, there were nine elected Councillors, and several remunerated Officers, including a Clerk, Treasurer, Surveyor, Medical Officer, Rate Collector and Overseers of the Poor.
The Council had control over expenditure on local services including gas supplies, water and public baths, refuse collection and disposal, maintenance of highways, lighting, public halls, parks and gardens, the fire brigade, housing and public health. Rates were set each year to cover the cost of these services, and the Council often prided itself in setting the lowest rate in Wharfedale.
The West Riding controlled educational services, and Burley Council appointed school managers and representatives on the District Education Committee. Burley had had its own gas works, near Greenholme Mills, for street and house lighting, but in the 20th century the village was linked with Otley gas works.
In 1926 public baths were opened at the Grange, in a building which stood on the present car park. These were not for swimming but for personal cleanliness and laundry. The charge for a “slipper” bath was 6 pence. Males and females were allocated separate times in the week.
The Recreation Ground off Main Street and the area around the Grange were tended by Council gardeners. Peel Park was added to Council administration in 1930. Allotments could be rented from the Council in Grange Road and Prospect Road.
Burley had its own part-time fire brigade and in 1926 it consisted of six members with a captain.
The Council had control of Victoria Hall (The Drill Hall) in Peel Place and the Lecture Hall (Queen's Hall), which was purchased from the Mill.
Streets and roads were always causing problems, and the maintenance of good surfaces was resolved to some extent when in 1922, the Council purchased, with the aid of a government grant, a horse drawn road roller.
One issue that dominated the Council and local political discussion in the 1930s was the proposed fusion of small Councils into larger districts, on the ground that economies of scale might be achieved. This arose from the Local Government Act of 1929, which followed the recommendations of a Commission on Local Government set up in 1923 to address the problems in administration caused by too many small authorities. Unlike many County Councils, the West Riding was keen to eliminate its smaller Urban and Rural Districts.
For Wharfedale, it was proposed to have an Urban District Council covering Otley and Ilkley, and surrounding villages, including Burley and Menston. Some thought that the village might become the administrative centre, because of its geographical position, it quickly became obvious that Ilkley and Otley would never agree to that.
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For twenty years after its formation, with only one exception in 1861, the chairmanship of the Board was in the hands of Forster or his partner, William Fison, the mill owners. Burley had nevertheless moved significantly towards a modern system of democratic government. Elections were held annually with three of the nine councillors standing down each year.
The Local Board of Health was succeeded by the Burley Urban District Council in 1898, a body with even wider democratic powers.
The Burley Urban District Council got into its full stride in the 20th century. From its records we have a very good idea of the state of the village. The Council purchased the Grange in 1904 for £1660 and had the buildings converted for Council offices by 1905. Prior to that, they had shared the old Township school premises. At the opening ceremony, the Chairman said that Burley could boast a suite of offices as “convenient and much more prettily situated than any to be found in Yorkshire” (Wharfedale and Airedale Observer, August 1905). As in the previous Local Board of Health, there were nine elected Councillors, and several remunerated Officers, including a Clerk, Treasurer, Surveyor, Medical Officer, Rate Collector and Overseers of the Poor.
The Council had control over expenditure on local services including gas supplies, water and public baths, refuse collection and disposal, maintenance of highways, lighting, public halls, parks and gardens, the fire brigade, housing and public health. Rates were set each year to cover the cost of these services, and the Council often prided itself in setting the lowest rate in Wharfedale.
The West Riding controlled educational services, and Burley Council appointed school managers and representatives on the District Education Committee. Burley had had its own gas works, near Greenholme Mills, for street and house lighting, but in the 20th century the village was linked with Otley gas works.
In 1926 public baths were opened at the Grange, in a building which stood on the present car park. These were not for swimming but for personal cleanliness and laundry. The charge for a “slipper” bath was 6 pence. Males and females were allocated separate times in the week.
The Recreation Ground off Main Street and the area around the Grange were tended by Council gardeners. Peel Park was added to Council administration in 1930. Allotments could be rented from the Council in Grange Road and Prospect Road.
Burley had its own part-time fire brigade and in 1926 it consisted of six members with a captain.
The Council had control of Victoria Hall (The Drill Hall) in Peel Place and the Lecture Hall (Queen's Hall), which was purchased from the Mill.
Streets and roads were always causing problems, and the maintenance of good surfaces was resolved to some extent when in 1922, the Council purchased, with the aid of a government grant, a horse drawn road roller.
One issue that dominated the Council and local political discussion in the 1930s was the proposed fusion of small Councils into larger districts, on the ground that economies of scale might be achieved. This arose from the Local Government Act of 1929, which followed the recommendations of a Commission on Local Government set up in 1923 to address the problems in administration caused by too many small authorities. Unlike many County Councils, the West Riding was keen to eliminate its smaller Urban and Rural Districts.
For Wharfedale, it was proposed to have an Urban District Council covering Otley and Ilkley, and surrounding villages, including Burley and Menston. Some thought that the village might become the administrative centre, because of its geographical position, it quickly became obvious that Ilkley and Otley would never agree to that.
Read more ...