Located in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, Hawes is the hub of the Upper Wensleydale community.
All the necessary services for the farming community, local residents and the tourism economy are established in Hawes. These include a doctor’s surgery, pharmacy, cattle market, mini market, delicatessen, several public houses, restaurants, a museum and visitors centre, primary school, library, post office, builder’s merchant, and other ancillary businesses.
In addition to the above there is one petrol station, Dale Head Garage.
It serves a resident population of approximately 1830, and the above businesses, which range in size from sole traders to medium sized employers.
Tourism generates a substantial income within the local community, and most of that tourism arrives by private motor car and motorcycle.
Local residents, businesses and visitors rely heavily on the Dale Head Garage for fuel supplies. Its importance to the local community cannot be understated.
Hawes is one of 17 very rural areas in England and Scotland to be part of a fuel rebate scheme that allows retailers to claim back up to 5p per litre duty relief on unleaded petrol and diesel and pass on the savings.
Since November 2017, Dale Head Garage has been operated by The Upper Dales Community Partnership (UDCP) Ltd., a not-for-profit community organisation that runs the library, Post Office, community bus transport, home to school bus transport and its social wellbeing project, The Good Life.
When the former owners decided it was time to sell, UDCP Ltd wished to protect Dale Head Garage from private investors who might potentially close the garage and use the site for other development. With this in mind, in June 2022 UDCP Ltd set up a Community Benefit Society for the specific purpose of buying
Dale Head Garage and protecting the asset. Members of the community came forward in droves to buy shares in this wonderful community initiative, and the purchase of Dale Head Garage was completed on 23rd August 2022.
UDCP Ltd continues to operate the garage under a new 10 yr lease, thus protecting its community run services for the foreseeable future.
This whole process was supported by The Plunkett Foundation, a charity that specialises in helping rural communities in the UK create and
run community-owned businesses.
Further information about The Plunkett Foundation can be found at www.plunkett.co.uk
Alongside share investment, this initiative was also supported by grants received from the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority
and the former Richmondshire District Council (now North Yorkshire Council).
Copyright © 2024 Dales Head Community Ltd - All Rights Reserved.
Dales Head Community Limited is a Community Benefit Society registered with the Financial Conduct Authority under the Co-operative
and Community Benefit Societies Act 2014, registration number 8877
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