SIR - Further to your article and subsequent correspondence on the subject of the BD20 postcode, Lothersdale Parish Council fully supports Coun Fairbanks' campaign, as do all the parish councils in the affected area which have considered the subject.

I have discussed this matter with many residents and I have yet to find one person who does not favour changing to a North Yorkshire address.

Whilst in many ways this is a small irritation rather than a major problem, it is still worth tackling.

At one level it is about insurance premiums and access to services, at another it is about identity - being recognised as an integral part of Craven rather than an outpost of Keighley and Bradford.

It is also about who makes the decisions which affect our lives.

This is not really a issue of postcodes but of post towns. If our post town changed from Keighley to Skipton our county would change automatically. At present the county does not form part of the postal address but the post town does.

The BD20 would simply mean 'via Skipton' rather than 'via Keighley' and all the computer databases at insurance companies etc would be updated to reflect the change.

However, to change our post town would appear to be virtually impossible according to the 'Royal Mail Code of Practice: Changing Postal Addresses and Postcodes' unless the Royal Mail changed the sorting and delivery office from Keighley to Skipton, which is a commercial and operational decision for them and which does not need to take into account the wishes of the local residents.

The Code of Practice clearly states that the Royal Mail will not change the post town unless there is an operational need to do so.

Furthermore, they would also require proof that at least 75 per cent of people affected wanted the change and that it had the support of postwatch, the local MP and Chamber of Commerce.

Postwatch has told me that they have no remit to consider changes for what could be seen as 'cosmetic' reasons, so that seems to rule that out!

So what can we do? Firstly, people with BD20 postcodes can lobby their councilors, their MP, local media and anyone else who may be able to help in order to raise awareness of the support for a change.

Secondly, we can change our addresses ourselves. Why wait for the Royal Mail to agree? Start replacing 'Keighley, West Yorkshire' with 'Skipton, North Yorkshire', the mail will still get through (especially if you remember to use the postcode) and it may irritate the Royal Mail sufficiently to make them consider our case.

True, it won't alter where the insurance companies or Arriva think we live but at it would be a start.

Andrew Wheatstone,

Ghyll Field, Lothersdale.

SIR - The debate being conducted in the columns of the Herald about discounted fares is illuminating but Coun Pat Fairbanks, I beg to suggest, is wrong to link insurance and travel. They are two separate issues and must not be confused or nothing will ever be done to rectify either.

May I suggest it's the big picture that needs addressing if the whole community is to benefit. Take transport - in my opinion the burning of the two issues raised by Coun Fairbanks. A large number of Craven residents could already be using Metro cards on buses and trains from Skipton.

How? Because passenger transport authorities possess powers to extend their geographical boundaries by up to 25 miles. That means, given political goodwill, there's already nothing to stop citizens living in Skipton and other areas of Craven taking advantage of Metro cards.

The advantages are obvious and would mean, for instance, Craven residents could join the Airedale line at Skipton railway station and not have to drive to Steeton before their Metro cards kick in.

At a stroke that would cut pollution.

So, why hasn't the West Yorkshire PTA acted to take in places like Skipton, Harrogate and York when directing public transport policy?

Well, have North Yorkshire councillors or Craven District councillors bothered to ask the PTA to look towards inclusion? If not, why not?

Am I the only one to hope that petty party politics (West Yorkshire PTA is Labour-controlled) are not choking such an important public transport initiative that would bring immediate resuts for the pocket and the environment.

John Thorpe,

Cross Street, Skipton

SIR - I read with some incredulity in the Craven Herald that the Yorkshire Dales National Park planning committee has turned down the application for extending the number of days that Pantlands field at Malham can be used for car parking.

They (the committee) raised several points so let's address each of their "concerns" in turn:

1 The visual impact.

Surely cars parked neatly in a field would be a vast improvement on cars parked on both sides of the road right out to the brow bottom (and I would imagine a great deal safer!)

Perhaps if the Notional (sic) Parks provided an adequate car park in the first place this argument would not arise! If the committee is "concerned" about the visual impact of various developments etc around the village, perhaps they might like to reconsider the visual impact on Malham (and the view of the village from all the surrounding skylines) of the development that has been recently approved, after several years faffing about, by the same "concerned" committee, at Kirkby Top.

2 Interference with the footpath.

The footpath in this field runs near the wallside next to the beck. The cars never park there! As for the access....cars enter and exit this field at less than a walking pace, thus negating any danger to walkers.

3 Flooding

Oh Please! What are this lot talking about? If there is a problem with flooding I think the field owner might just have the presence of mind to not open the field that day....and who in their right mind would park their car in a flood anyway?

What's more, if it was so wet that flooding was a risk, hadn't it occurred to the committee that visitor numbers might, just might, be less that day and the proper car park might cope.

You may think that the tone of this letter is scathing, but I can't help feeling that in this case the planning officers and the committee have found fault for the sake of finding fault, and have not considered the overall impact.

Do any of them ever visit Malham on a busy weekend and see what a chaotic mess the parking is when none of the overspill parking is in use?

Here was chance to vote for something that would benefit visitor and resident alike and they blew it!

I have no connection whatsoever with the field in question, I just think once in a while the planning committee and officers should be forced to take a long hard look at some of the decisions and comments they make.

Stuart Gledhill,

Malham.

SIR - Having read the letters of praise written by former patients of Airedale Hospital in response to comments of Mr Ramsbotham, I felt I would like to write in his support and endorse the constructive observations he makes.

From experience he is quite accurate and correct; to jump to any conclusion that the comments he makes are anti-Airedale would be quite erroneous.

There is undoubtedly room for improvement and the observations made are intended to help management to pinpoint its omissions. There are some shortcomings, as indeed there are in all organisations, and I am sure they are wise and skilled enough in management not to ignore them.

Praise combined with criticism can help to make for near perfection, if this is possible.

Harold Rose,

Main Street, Long Preston.

SIR - I could not help but notice from your publication, national newspapers and indeed local papers in the part of the world where I now live that many of the top performers in recent A-levels wish to go on to study "veterinary science".

I wish them all the best, but am a trifle saddened that whereas we once produced a nation of engineers and scientists, our brightest minds now want to work with cuddly bunnies.

I understand we have a national shortage of doctors. We certainly have a national shortage of civil and mechanical engineers. But these professions, which make life easier for society, are undervalued when we pay spotty-faced youths millions to shout down telephone lines on the Stock Exchange.

It does appear that becoming a vet is the number one choice for our top brains. Rolf Harris has a lot to answer for!

A McCready,

West End Avenue, Harrogate.

SIR - The Human Rights Act does not take precedence over primary legislation in its application of the European Directive on Human Rights.

Lest parents, on reading your leader of August 2, think they can challenge the right of a school to impose detention, I must advise them that there is provision for detention of pupils after school in the Education Act 1997. This detention is lawful even if the parent has not given his/her approval, therefore the Human Rights Act does not apply in the case of school detentions.

However, there are safeguards for parents in that the school's disciplinary policy will, no doubt, be set out in the information that is available for parents and, under normal circumstances, 24 hours notice of an after-school detention has to be given.

Bob Hargreaves,

Field Officer,

Secondary Heads Association,

Hilltop Fold, Grassington.

SIR - Who said that crime doesn't pay? Jeffery Archer stays at his home in Cambridge each weekend only one year into his so-called four year sentence, signs a £10 million book deal whilst languishing in prison and drives his own BMW 40 miles to his new job in a theatre in Lincoln.

I think rich people, like he is, should pay for their keep whilst in prison.

Did we not hear that money or gains, such as property, would be confiscated and people like Archer would not gain from crime. Maybe Archer is different.

Whilst on the subject, what about the money you pay for Lottery tickets going to a group's fighting fund to prevent people who have already been turned down for political asylum - and this includes known terrorists - being extradited from this country?

The so-called do-gooders have a lot to answer for and the honest people in this country get put on.

I used to laugh when I read things like this because it sounded so ridiculous but I don't find it funny any more, when you hear the same joke over and over it gets tiresome.

Peter Gardiner,

Wellington Street, Barnoldswick

SIR - As representative of the Chernobyl Chilrden's project, I would like to thank Skipton Lions for the wonderful day out that they gave our children on Sunday.

Our happy group of 14 visitors and their hosts was taken to Camelot theme park where they experienced roller coasters and gravity defying rides, plus the water splash, all with much enjoyment.

Some of our hosts may now be a little fragile, but we have learnt a new Russian word: sumasshedshig - crazy.

So thank you Lions for a great day.

Anne Hodgson,

Meadowcroft House,

Draughton.