A jewel in the tourism crown of this country is on our doorstep. Millions of people, spending millions of pounds, have made the trip over the years to Haworth, the 'shrine' of the Bronts.

Of late parking problems, claims of tacky shops, litter and poor public toilet facilities have dented the image of this tourist trap.

Today a major action plan for the future of Haworth has been revealed. It follows a study - one of only three of its kind in the country - by national environmental charity the Civic Trust.

One look at the proposals shows that this is not a pie-in-the-sky package. Each one of the ideas is workable, extremely practical and would bring benefits to both visitors and locals alike.

The basic but ever so important baseline is, as the Civic Trust states, that tourism can be disruptive for a local community but it can also bring significant benefits. These proposals do try to address some of the problems and facilitate some of the positive impacts.

Take the suggestion of developing Haworth First School into a hotel. It would allow more visitors to stay in Haworth rather than the surrounding towns and cities, at the same time as providing facilities for the local community.

Moving on to the proposals for the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway - an all-day, all-year service to provide for the growing local and tourism needs. A great idea.

An aim of the study was to maximise community benefits from tourism while minimising the drawbacks.

With a positive attitude and a will to succeed, these proposals would change the fortunes of Haworth.

It is to be hoped that the local authority, government and private sources as well as the local community back this initiative. By implementing these proposals Haworth will set a lead for others in the country to follow.

The opportunities must be seized.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.