WORK is under way to prepare a document that could help preserve the character of Bramhope village in the face of future developments.

The village parish council and a cross section of the community are to investigate the possibility of drawing up a Village Design Statement (VDS).

If successfully drawn up, the document would give planners an outline of the kind of characteristics that the village community wish to preserve - and those they wish to discourage.

Bramhope Parish Council Clerk Janet Sunderland said: "We are hoping eventually to have a VDS for Bramhope and Carlton. We are having a meeting this month and we have invited certain individuals and councillors from the village to come and see whether they are interested in helping with this.

"We really need the input of the other people from the village who have got outside interests. We are going to show a video at the meeting from the Countryside Commission about making local character count in new developments."

Mrs Sunderland said that a mixture of people in the village were being asked to be involved in setting up the VDS, from the young to the old. "I think eventually it will become quite an important document. It will take a long time to set up. We need to do surveys of what is in the village now, what we would like in the village and what we don't want in the village.

"It is about preserving our green belt land as well - that is another issue.''

A spokesman for Leeds City Council's Planning authority said: "We are very supportive of the principle of design statements as a very practical way of involving local people in the way their communities are shaped and developed. We're actually looking to expand their role and are currently developing similar development strategies for the city centre of Leeds and a number of other towns within the district.

"With regard to village design statements, the Countryside Commission already provides useful guidance on the matter and we've already received an approach from East Keswick who we are now assisting. If Bramhope Parish Council want to talk to us we would be more than happy to listen and will offer whatever advice and assistance we can."

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