54°08′20″N0°47′24″W / 54.139°N 0.79°W /54.139; -0.79
Ryedale | |
|---|---|
 Ryedale shown withinNorth Yorkshire | |
| Sovereign state |  United Kingdom |
| Constituent country |  England |
| Region | Yorkshire and the Humber |
| Ceremonial county | North Yorkshire |
| Administrative HQ | Malton(Ryedale House) |
| Government | |
| • Type | Ryedale District Council |
| • Leadership | Alternative |
| • Executive | |
| • MP: | Kevin Hollinrake |
| Area | |
• Total | 582 sq mi (1,507 km2) |
| Population (2021) | |
• Total | 54,897 |
| • Density | 94.35/sq mi (36.43/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC+0 (Greenwich Mean Time) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+1 (British Summer Time) |
| ONS code | 36UF (ONS) E07000167 (GSS) |
| Ethnicity | 99.4% White |
| Website | ryedale.gov.uk |
Ryedale was anon-metropolitan district inNorth Yorkshire, England. It was in theVale of Pickering, a low-lying flat area of land drained by theRiver Derwent. The Vale's landscape is rural with scattered villages and towns. It has been inhabited continuously from theMesolithic period. The economy was largely agricultural with light industry and tourism playing an increasing role.[1]
Towns includedHelmsley,Kirkbymoorside,Malton,Norton-on-Derwent, andPickering. Part of Ryedale lies within theNorth York Moors National Park. TheA64 passed through Ryedale and villages such asRillington.[1] In the 2011 Census, the population of this primarily rural area of 150,659 hectares, the largest district in North Yorkshire, was 51,700.[2]
The name refers to theRiver Rye and was previously used for the Ryedalewapentake ofYorkshire, which covered roughly the same area. The non-metropolitan district was formed on 1 April 1974, under theLocal Government Act 1972, and was a merger ofurban district of Norton andNorton Rural District, from the historicEast Riding of Yorkshire, along with the urban districts ofMalton andPickering withFlaxton Rural District, Helmsley Rural District, Kirkbymoorside Rural District, Malton Rural District and Pickering Rural District, all from theNorth Riding of Yorkshire.
In the Middle Ages, there were markets in several Ryedale towns; Malton, Pickering, Kirkbymoorside, and Helmsley. A monastery was built at Lastingham in 654. Over the centuries, Celts, Romans and Anglo Saxons all inhabited the area around Pickering.[3][4] The district had many ancient Saxon churches and some can still be visited, including St Peter's in Scrayingham, St Martin's in Wharram Percy, St Martins in Bulmer, St Helens in Amotherby, All Saints in Appleton-le-Street,St Peter and St Paul's Church, Pickering, All Saints in Hovingham, Holy Trinity in Stonegrave,St Gregory's Minster, Kirkdale built around 1055-1065, All Saints in Sinnington and St Andrews in Ailsby/Middleton.[5] TheKirkdale sundial above St Gregory's door dates to the 11th century (c. 1055 to 1065).[6]
Several abbeys and priories were also built in the 12th century, includingKirkham Priory, the very largeByland Abbey,Ampleforth Abbey, now the site of the CatholicAmpleforth College, and the finest ruined abbey in Yorkshire,Rievaulx Abbey nearHelmsley; it was seized in 1538 during the dissolution of the monasteries. All can be seen but all except Ampleforth are ruins.[5]
Ryedale has two impressive castles, both now ruins. The traditional stylePickering Castle was a royal hunting lodge with a moat, whileHelmsley Castle was a fine medieval structure with double earthworks. The latter was extensively damaged during the Civil War, in 1644.[5]
In July 2021 theMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local Government announced that in April 2023, the non-metropolitan county would be reorganised into aunitary authority. Ryedale District Council was abolished and its functions transferred to a newsingle authority for the non-metropolitan county of North Yorkshire.[7][8]
The district lost about half its population in 1996, when an expandedCity of York became aunitary authority area, specifically the parishes ofClifton Without,Earswick,Haxby,Heworth Without,Holtby,Huntington,Murton,New Earswick,Osbaldwick,Rawcliffe,Skelton,Stockton-on-the-Forest,Strensall,Towthorpe, andWigginton.[9][10] According to the 2001 census, those parishes that were moved into York had a combined population of 50,163, compared to the population of those parishes remaining in Ryedale district, which numbered 50,872.
The market towns ofHelmsley,Kirkbymoorside,Pickering andMalton were the largest centres of population in the Ryedale District with about half of the population living there. The eastern part of the area is dominated by the influence of Scarborough. Each of the market towns within the Ryedale District had areas set aside for industrial use and small firms engaged in light industry and the service industries occupy these. The largest employer in the district was the pork processor Karro Food Group (once known as The Malton Bacon Factory), now employing around 1,100 people in this location.[11]
The village ofSherburn in what was eastern Ryedale is home to factories of bothSeverfield[12] and theKingspan Group[13] who purchased the local Ward Brothers steelworks business. The Kingspan factory also hosts a 5 MW solar array, one of the largest commercial rooftop solar projects in the UK.[13]
Between 1981 and 2022, the district had hosted theRyedale Festival, which features concerts and performances at various venues during the summer months.[14]
In terms of television, the area is served by bothBBC Yorkshire andITV Yorkshire broadcasting from either theEmley Moor orOliver's Mount TV transmitters[15][16] andBBC North East and Cumbria andITV Tyne Tees which broadcast from theBilsdale TV transmitter which is nearHelmsley.[17]
Radio stations for the area areBBC Radio York,Greatest Hits Radio York and North Yorkshire,YO1 Radio,This is The Coast, andCoast & County Radio.[18]
Ryedale is served by the local newspapers:
For all districts in theYorkshire and the Humber region, Ryedale had the lowest rate ofteenage pregnancy between 2000 and 2013, and remained below the national average for England.[23]
