A TASK force has been formed to try to co-ordinate Skipton's plans for the new millennium.

Local people are being asked how they would wish the town to celebrate the year 2000 and the Craven Herald has agreed to offer a £100 cash prize for the best suggestion chosen by the task force.

Minds were focused on just how Skipton is to mark the year 2000 at a meeting this week called by the town's current mayor, Coun Pam Heseltine.

She said she was worried that Skipton might let the millennium pass by unnoticed unless there was a co-ordinated approach to the event.

She said that while individual organisations might be planning to mark the date in their own way, the town as a whole appeared to have nothing planned.

Would locals congregate round the war memorial as the clock struck midnight on January 1 2000 and that would be it, or did the town want to do something more permanent, she asked.

A number of suggestions came from the floor but it quickly became apparent that individuals and groups had their own ideas but there was no synergy between the various bodies.

It was decided to form a task force - the word committee was deliberately avoided - which will galvanise some sort of action from the various bodies and eight people were nominated from the floor as representatives from a broad spectrum of the town.

They will meet next week to form a plan of action but they are keen to ensure that their ideas broadly reflect the wishes of Skipton residents. That's why they have asked for ideas. The feasability of each plan can be assessed and then action taken.

The chairman of the Skipton Millennium Task Force will be High Street jeweller Geoff Thomas while Ian Lockwood, editor of the Craven Herald, will act as secretary.

The other members are Rev Adrian Botwright, rector of Holy Trinity, David Buckroyd, head master of Ermysted's Grammar School, Derek Evans of Skipton Lions, Coun Robert Heseltine, who represents Skipton east ward on the county and district councils, Anne Marshall, who will be chairman of the Chamber of Trade in the year 2000 and Pam Heseltine, the mayor.

Ideas from the floor of the meeting fell into two camps:

Firstly there were plans for the night of December 31 and January 1 itself.

Should the High Street be pedestrianised for the day and a series of events held? The Chamber of Trade plans to continually improve its Christmas lights and is discussing with Holy Trinity Church a large lit star or cross on the church tower.

Other ideas were for a more permanent reminder or series of events which could run during the year, such as an obelisk in the High Street with the letters MM on one side of the base (Roman numerals for 2000) and significant dates on the other.

"We don't want to impose our own ideas and we would like to be sure that anything we attempt has popular support in the town," said Mr Lockwood.

To win the £100 simply outline your idea for celebrating the millennium and send it to Ian Lockwood at the Craven Herald, 38 High Street, Skipton, BD23 1JU - you don't have to be a Skipton resident to win the prize.

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