Skipton has become the official host of this year’s Yorkshire Day following a handover ceremony in Scarborough.

Yorkshire Day, on August 1, will signal the start of a three-day festival in Skipton involving businesses and organisations and is set to be a real celebration of all things Yorkshire.

To start festivities, a new official Yorkshire Day flag was presented to Skipton Mayor, Coun Wendy Clark and Keith Madeley, chairman of the Yorkshire Society, by Coun Helen Mallory, mayor of Scarborough, which hosted last year’s event.

The flag, which will now be passed on every year to the new host, has been donated to the Yorkshire Society by Skipton Town Council and Scarborough Borough Council.

It features the Yorkshire Rose, together with the town crests of both Skipton and Scarborough.

Dave Parker, Skipton Town Council chief officer, said it was a real honour for the town to be chosen to host Yorkshire Day.

Yorkshire Day will see dozens of civic guests, including mayors from across Yorkshire, descend on the town.

There will also be a party from Skipton’s French twin town of Erquinghem-Lys, including its mayor.