Equality impact assessment (EIA) form: evidencing paying due regard to protected characteristics

(Form updated October 2023)

Harrogate Transforming Cities Fund Proposals 

If you would like this information in another language or format such as Braille, large print or audio, please contact the Communications Unit on 01609 53 2013 or email communications@northyorks.gov.uk.

Equality Impact Assessments (EIAs) are public documents.  EIAs accompanying reports going to County Councillors for decisions are published with the committee papers on our website and are available in hard copy at the relevant meeting.  To help people to find completed EIAs we also publish them in the Equality and Diversity section of our website.  This will help people to see for themselves how we have paid due regard in order to meet statutory requirements. 

Name of Directorate and Service Area	Environment – Highways & Infrastructure
Lead Officer and contact details	Matt.roberts@northyorks.gov.uk Economic & Regeneration Project Manager
Names and roles of other people involved in carrying out the EIA	Alex Richards Alex.richards1@northyorks.gov.uk
How will you pay due regard? e.g. working group, individual officer	Project Team
When did the due regard process start?	Project initiation – September 2019

Section 1. Please describe briefly what this EIA is about. (e.g. are you starting a new service, changing how you do something, stopping doing something?)

A previous EIA looked at the impact of proposed new transport infrastructure under the Transforming Cities Fund in Skipton, Selby & Harrogate and was then updated to take into account the third public consultation for the Harrogate TCF scheme.

This latest update considers any potential impacts in relation to the final scheme for delivery.

Section 2. Why is this being proposed? What are the aims? What does the authority hope to achieve by it? (e.g. to save money, meet increased demand, do things in a better way.)

The Transforming Cities fund is an initiative funded by Department for Transport aimed at driving economic growth through sustainable and inclusive access to employment and education opportunities. The aim is to deliver an improved Station Gateway in Harrogate (and also Skipton and Selby) with enhanced access for pedestrians & cyclists, balanced with the needs of car users to encourage more people to use public transport and to access public transport by sustainable travel modes. Safety, accessibility and security for all is also a consideration.

Section 3. What will change? What will be different for customers and/or staff?

The proposals seek to make changes to how people access the rail/bus stations and the surrounding streets with the introduction of a cycle lane, widening of footways, new one-way traffic flows, and improved public spaces. Users will experience easier, safer and quicker routes to travel by sustainable means. This will encourage more people to travel in this way and open up more opportunities to education, training and employment. The area around the bus and rail stations will encourage people to stay in town longer, contributing to improved spend in the town centre. Namely:

Station Parade North

· A one-way southbound traffic restriction on Station Parade North.

· A southbound bus lane on the east side of Station Parade North. 

· The prohibition of turning left from Commercial Street and Cheltenham Parade on to Station Parade.

· The prohibition of a right turn from the Network Rail land to the rear of the bus station on to Station Parade.

· Parking and waiting prohibitions with exemptions – including new provision for disabled badge holders.

· Revocations of previous TROs.

Station Parade Central

· Parking and waiting prohibitions with exemptions – including new provision for disabled badge holders.

· The prohibition of loading/unloading between 7:30am to 9:30am and 4pm to 6pm.

· Revocations of prior TROs.

Station Parade South

· A prescribed route from Station Bridge in a south-westbound direction at its junction with Station Parade.

Section 4. Involvement and consultation (What involvement and consultation has been done regarding the proposal and what are the results? What consultation will be needed and how will it be done?)

The Traffic Regulation Order proposals have been subject of consultation and public advertisement. Ahead of this consultation the Harrogate Disability Forum was directly consulted on the scheme throughout its development.  

However, the proposals  have been developed using around 4,500 responses received across three consultation stages in addition to face-to-face drop-in days, business meetings/updates, stakeholder focus groups and online question & answer sessions. Reports on all three consultations can be found here: https://www.yourvoice.westyorks-ca.gov.uk/harrogate

Section 5. What impact will this proposal have on council budgets? Will it be cost neutral, have increased cost or reduce costs? The scheme is largely funded by DfT. However, the council will be contributing £1.05 million. It is anticipated that the maintenance impact will be modest as much of the infrastructure replaces older infrastructure.
Section 6. How will this proposal affect people with protected characteristics?	No impact	Make things better	Make things worse	Why will it have this effect? Provide evidence from engagement, consultation and/or service user data or demographic information etc.
Age		X		Harrogate has an older than average age profiles, with an average age of 41.2 years old. 23.4% of the district population is aged 65+ compared to 22.4% nationally (Census). The district’s population is ageing rapidly; with a forecast 49% increase in people (17,800) aged over 65 by 2035. However, it has proportionately more children and teenagers than North Yorkshire generally. New infrastructure has been designed to comply with current best practice standards and legislation facilitating accessibility by all. Whilst some feedback has suggested a concern that those in higher age categories may rely on cars to travel, the proposals retain access and parking. The amount of blue badge parking is being maintained. Whilst there is a reduction in other parking Harrogate town centre is recognised to have more than sufficient parking within or close to the project area.
Disability		X		16.1% identified as being disabled (Census 2021), below the England average of 17.3%. Similarly more residents than average described their health as "very good" or "good", both slight. Harrogate is the least deprived part of North Yorkshire and has the highest life expectancy in the county, but has some areas of disadvantage leading to worse health outcomes and there is an 11 year gap in life expectancy between wards (JSNA 2019). During consultation and engagement it was pointed that the lack of public transport for some people meant a greater reliance on private cars or taxis. The scheme improves the environment for people with disabilities via: •New areas of dropped kerbs with tactiles •Speed tables introduced around the crossing points, reducing vehicle speed approaches •Additional crossing points on the northern section of Station Parade •Less bollards in the square •Crossing distances reduced where possible •Waiting times reduced at crossing signals. •Tonal differences in primary paving areas with the Yorkstone flags and Granite Kerbs •Footway widths mostly around 2m in line with the Inclusive mobility docs. Blue badge spaces are to be removed opposite the bus station. However there will be two new bays on northern section and three new bays in the car park opposite. Overall numbers remain the same in the area – arguably improved in terms of distribution and ease of parking. On-street bays (including on the southern part of Station Parade) have space behind for rear loading accessible vehicles. Engagement with disability groups will continue throughout the scheme’s development and after completion to understand impacts.
Sex	X			Consultation feedback highlighted a need to ensure people feel safe in the area, especially in the evening/nighttime and in the One Arch area. This feedback was raised especially in relation to those people with protected characteristics, especially lone women, who might feel more vulnerable in public spaces. A Designing Out Crime approach has been taken. The design has considered sight lines and lighting to ensure that people feel safe.
Race	X			New infrastructure will be designed to comply with current best practice standards and legislation facilitating accessibility by all.
Gender reassignment	X			New infrastructure will be designed to comply with current best practice standards and legislation facilitating accessibility by all in improving the perceptions of safety for transgender, gender queer, and non-binary people and communities.
Sexual orientation	X			New infrastructure will be designed to comply with current best practice standards and legislation facilitating accessibility by all.
Religion or belief	X			New infrastructure will be designed to comply with current best practice standards and legislation facilitating accessibility by all. There are a number of places of worship close to the project area. Improving access generally is likely to improve access for those using these buildings.
Pregnancy or maternity	X			New infrastructure will be designed to comply with current best practice standards and legislation facilitating accessibility by all. Wider pavements will provide more space for those walking through the area, whilst public realm enhancements will provide more seating enabling those who need to stop and rest more easily in this area.
Marriage or civil partnership	X			New infrastructure will be designed to comply with current best practice standards and legislation facilitating accessibility by all.

Section 7. How will this proposal affect people who…	No impact	Make things better	Make things worse	Why will it have this effect? Provide evidence from engagement, consultation and/or service user data or demographic information etc.
..live in a rural area?	X			The proposals focus on town centres, whilst the towns and the stations service wider rural hinterlands where car travel may be necessary the proposals will not remove the ability to access the town centres and stations by car or park in the near vicinity. If the aims of the project of encouraging shifts to sustainable transport are met, then access for those from more rural areas may improve. The project is unlikely to affect those in rural areas as it will not result in change to public transport provision. It may however, provide a more sustainable opportunity for those at last mile journeys from arrival at the bus or rail station.
…have a low income?		X		Provision of new infrastructure enabling easier lower cost cycling and walking access is anticipated to benefit those on lower incomes who are less likely to access to a car, by providing better access to more opportunities to education, training and employment.
…are carers (unpaid family or friend)?	X			Carers who travel by motor vehicle are anticipated to experience the same impacts to journeys as the rest of the population. It may be that some find that active and sustainable travel modes become easier as a result of the changes.
….. are from the Armed Forces Community	X			No impact identified

Section 8. Geographic impact – Please detail where the impact will be (please tick all that apply)
North Yorkshire wide
Craven
Hambleton
Harrogate	X
Richmondshire
Ryedale
Scarborough
Selby
If you have ticked one or more areas, will specific town(s)/village(s) be particularly impacted? If so, please specify below.
Harrogate Town

Section 9. Will the proposal affect anyone more because of a combination of protected characteristics? (e.g. older women or young gay men) State what you think the effect may be and why, providing evidence from engagement, consultation and/or service user data or demographic information etc.

The proposals will not affect those with a combination of protected characteristics more.

Section 10. Next steps to address the anticipated impact. Select one of the following options and explain why this has been chosen. (Remember: we have an anticipatory duty to make reasonable adjustments so that disabled people can access services and work for us)	Tick option chosen
1. No adverse impact - no major change needed to the proposal. There is no potential for discrimination or adverse impact identified.	X
2. Adverse impact - adjust the proposal - The EIA identifies potential problems or missed opportunities. We will change our proposal to reduce or remove these adverse impacts, or we will achieve our aim in another way which will not make things worse for people.
3. Adverse impact - continue the proposal - The EIA identifies potential problems or missed opportunities. We cannot change our proposal to reduce or remove these adverse impacts, nor can we achieve our aim in another way which will not make things worse for people. (There must be compelling reasons for continuing with proposals which will have the most adverse impacts. Get advice from Legal Services)
4. Actual or potential unlawful discrimination - stop and remove the proposal – The EIA identifies actual or potential unlawful discrimination. It must be stopped.
Explanation of why option has been chosen. (Include any advice given by Legal Services.) The designs and TROs are not considered to have any adverse impacts on people with protected characteristics. The decision to complete a full EIA at this stage was based on feedback as part of the consultation process. This highlighted some areas that need careful consideration at full design stage to ensure that they do not disadvantage those people with mobility related characteristics. As the design process has progressed feedback has resulted in regular review of the designs and amendments to take concerns into account.

Section 11. If the proposal is to be implemented how will you find out how it is really affecting people? (How will you monitor and review the changes?)

A monitoring and evaluation plan is being developed that will seek to collect a range of qualitative and quantitative data. Direct consultation with Harrogate Disability Forum will take place post-scheme.

Section 12. Action plan. List any actions you need to take which have been identified in this EIA, including post implementation review to find out how the outcomes have been achieved in practice and what impacts there have actually been on people with protected characteristics.
Action	Lead	By when	Progress	Monitoring arrangements
Review proposals to ensure safe segregation of users	Project manager	Final design	Complete	Monthly project team meetings
Engage further with disability groups to maximise opportunities and address concerns	Project manager	End of initial post-completion monitoring	Ongoing	Quarterly

Section 13. Summary Summarise the findings of your EIA, including impacts, recommendation in relation to addressing impacts, including any legal advice, and next steps. This summary should be used as part of the report to the decision maker.

The proposals are at a detailed design stage and have completed three rounds of public consultation in addition to the statutory TRO consultation. The intent of the scheme is to improve accessibility to and within the town centres and the design philosophy has been to comply with current legislation, relevant standards and best practice and to seek to incorporate views received.

The provision of quality streets and public realm, with more walking and cycling is likely to help promote a sense of safety and place more "eyes on the streets", contributing to deterring crime and reducing fear of crime. This is more likely to

benefit people who are more at risk of crime, typically women, young people, older people and those with disabilities, but also LGBTQI+ people and people of different ethnic and/or belief who can be targets of hate crime.

Section 14. Sign off section

This full EIA was completed by:

Name: Matt Roberts

Job title: Economic and Regeneration Project Manager

Directorate: Highways and Infrastructure

Signature: M Roberts

Completion date: 03/09/2025

Authorised by relevant Assistant Director (signature): Barrie Mason

Date: 12/09/2025