We’ve had over 292,000 visits to this site during the last year. That represents a 182% increase on the 2011 total of 103,616.

Thank you!

Most popular story in 2012 was one that gave details of the location of the Queens Jubilee Beacon on Bachelor Hill on 2nd June. (The media had failed to identify the site).

A lot of visitors arrived looking for details of the Olympic Flame route on 19th June.

Land Rover Defender owners visited in droves as North Yorkshire police reported a spate of thefts of this type of vehicle in November.

On the political front, a lot of visitors wanted to know more about Rebecca Taylor as she replaced Diana Wallace (27th Jan) as one of our local MEPs.

Most popular humorous article involved the Councils Leaders views on beer.

The latest traffic news was a popular choice amongst visitors with flooding news dominating the rest of the top 10
1. Flood-warning-in-York 5th Nov
2. A19-Fulford-Road-now-open 29th Sept
3. More-York-floods-photos-watersports-on-the-Knavesmire 30th Sept
4. Floods-in-york//2012/09/25/ 25th Sept
5. Elderly-care-costs-in-York-–-a-suitable-case-for-scrutiny 20th Sept
6. Flooding-update-–-York-open-for-“business-as-usual” 26th Sept
7. PCC-election-result-in-North-Yorkshire 16th Nov
8. Floods-update 27th Sept
9. Energise-pool-success 2nd Oct 2010
10. Derwenthorpe-–-“most-advanced-housing-development-in-York-for-over-a-century” 24th Apr

Not surprisingly, the vast majority of visitors came from York with many others accessing the site from Leeds, London and Newcastle.

Those from further afield included residents in the USA, Australia and Spain. We had only 1 visitor from Vietnam and none at all from Greenland (!)

Source Google Analytics

The Council has published a list of incentives that it will offer to encourage tenants to move from properties that are too large for them. There are several smaller homes available in the City while demand for family housing continues to grow.

The Council currently has 732 tenants (claiming housing benefit) identified as under occupied (unused bedrooms). These tenants (excluding pensioners who are not affected) will lose some of their entitlement to housing benefit in April.

The Council stays that, “There are a number of reasons why customers may have not considered downsizing or initially be unwilling or unable to move to a smaller home. These are often, financial (can’t afford to move), emotional (family home of many years) and practical (find it difficult to organise a move) whilst at the same time living in a home that they do not make full use of, find hard to keep on top of or expensive to heat”.

Where there is a financial constraint preventing a tenant moving the Council is suggesting several initiatives to help. These include:
• Incentive payments based on rooms freed up
• Cover cost of moving appliances, carpets and other associated costs.
• Practical and financial help in arranging and doing a move
• Practical and financial help with decoration.
• Purchase of white goods where these do not exist.

Where tenants are incapable of organising a move themselves practical help would be offered.

Similar schemes have cost around £400 per “mover” to run.
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