HELMSLEY councillors and businesses are working together to provide an answer to concerns by National Park planners over the growing number of advertisement signs in the town.

Town council chairman Councillor Chris Parkin said the aim is to provide signs on the approach roads from Stokesley, Thirsk and Scarborough, advising visitors of what events are planned.

But the issue has a problem, said Coun Parkin, because half the town comes under the National Park as a planning authority and the other half under Ryedale District Council, and while the park authority has made policy decisions on signage, the district council has yet to do so.

“Having attractive signs on the approaches to the town will be the answer to having random signs, and discourage the temptation for people to put up signs in Ryedale council’s area before it makes a decision on signs,” he said.

However, councillors decided that the planned metre-square signs would not be large enough to be effective and easily read and are to seek a larger design.

In addition, Councillor Martin Vander Weyer suggested that solar-powered signs should be explored.