A BLUEPRINT for the future of the Yorkshire Dales National Park has generated 1,500 comments from almost 250 organisations and individuals.

The first draft of the authority's Local Plan sets out policies for the future, with the first round of consultation completed on July 31. Comments from the public will now be considered for inclusion in a second draft, which will be circulated for further debate early next year.

ART ON SHOW: The Dales Countryside Museum, Hawes, is staging an exhibition of paintings, prints, photographs, pottery and sculpture, by seven professional artists working in the Yorkshire Dales. The exhibition runs until Wednesday, September 4, and features work by Emma Amsden, Piers Browne, Daphne Chandler, John Degnan, Robert Nicholls, Peter Hibbard and Andrew Hague. Entry is free and the museum is open daily between 10am and 5pm.

AWARD GIVEN: David Richards, Regimental Sergeant Major for the Ministry of Defence, in Monmouth, Wales, is to receive the British Safety Council diploma in safety management. Mr Richards, from Otter Wood Paddock, in York, will receive his award later this year at a ceremony in London.

ANTIQUES fair: There will be an antique and collectors fair in Danby Village Hall, Danby near Whitby next Monday. The fair will be open between 10am and 4.30pm and the 30p admission charge will be donated to local charities. Refreshments will be available from fundraisers for the Holistic Cancer Care Project. Following the fair on Danby Show Day £97 was donated to the Esk Valley Lifeline.