A MAJOR redevelopment scheme has been given the green light at Ripon's leading employer - but the company must sign up to a travel scheme aimed at curbing car use on the site.

Plumbers' merchants and building firm, Wolseley Centres, which employs nearly 500 people, has been granted planning permission to erect three and four-storey offices at the firm's Boroughbridge Road headquarters.

The go-ahead includes permission to demolish buildings and convert an existing warehouse into a two-storey car park, along with a new access.

Harrogate Borough Council's planners will approve the scheme once a travel plan has been agreed and signed by the firm with North Yorkshire County Council.

County highway chiefs want car parking reduced on site from 335 spaces to 286 in line with new government guidelines to curb use of cars.

The travel plan has been specified to cost £30,000 over a five-year period.

A report to the area planning committee in Ripon said the firm had given assurances that commercial traffic should be significantly reduced because of the firm's new depot at the industrial estate at Melmerby, north of Ripon.

Planning chiefs urged councillors to consider the Boroughbridge Road site application as part of the firm's total reorganisation, notably moving distribution to Melmerby.

Five letters of objection were tabled to the scheme.