Setback for community bid to buy Severus Hill in York

The Friends of Severus Hill had raised almost £100,000 from local donations to help them in their bid to buy the hill, next to the Holgate water tower.

Owners Keyland – a sister company of Yorkshire Water – gave the Friends until the end of June to submit an offer.

Severus Hill, a wild corner of York (Image: Friends of Severus Hill)

But in an update on their crowdfunding page, the Friends have admitted that their initial offer has been declined.

They say they were told sale of the site has now been ‘paused’ so that Yorkshire Water can conduct a ‘feasibility study to see whether the site might have a role to play in providing future resilience to the water supply network in York’.

Jo Patton of The Friends of Severus Hill admitted that the news that Yorkshire Water were still looking at potential uses of the land had come as a ‘curve ball’.

But he said the Friends remained in contact with both Keyland and Yorkshire Water, and remained hopeful that there might still be an opportunity to buy the hill for the community in future.

Severus Hill has been reclaimed by nature, and is now home to a wealth of wildlife, including foxes (Image: Friends of Severus Hill)

In a statement to The Press, Yorkshire Water confirmed it was ‘undertaking a feasibility study to see if this land can offer any resilience to the wider community and the supply of water to York as a whole’.

It said the study would take 3-6 months to complete. "Once concluded, Keyland will assess all options for future use of the land.

“Any plans for this site will take into account the recent designation as a Local Wildlife Site and there are currently no plans for developing housing on Severus Hill."

Severus Hill with its water tower (Image: Friends of Severus Hill)

Locals describe the hill as a ‘hidden environmental gem’. It has been fenced off for 30 years and was gradually reclaimed by nature, to the point that it is now home to a wealth of wild plant and animal species.

Plans to build 43 new homes on the land were rejected in 2017 because of the impact on people already living in the area – as well as on views of the Minster and on wildlife on the wooded hillside.

It was then due to be sold off by Auction House in October last year, with a guide price of £95,000.

But Keyland agreed to pause the sale until June this year to give the Friends a chance to put together a community bid.

More than 1,200 people have supported the Friends of Severus Hill on their crowdfunder page – donating almost £85,000. With Giftaid, that is worth more than £100,000.

Severus Hill rises above the Holgate skyline (Image: Friends of Severus Hill)

Keyland was said to be asking in the region of £170,000 for the land.

The Friends say that, after taking advice, they submitted a bid which was below the asking price but above the market value of the land.

They say when their original bid was rejected, they were not given the chance to submit a revised bid, because the sale was paused by Yorkshire Water.

Cllr Kallum Taylor, one of two Holgate Ward Labour councillors who backed community efforts to buy the hill, said: “The campaign to save Severus Hill has been incredible, but this is an unexpected turn by Yorkshire Water.

Cllr Kallum Taylor (Image: Supplied)

“While it could be worse - they still haven’t sold it to a developer who would destroy the site - we must keep the pressure on to ensure that this serious community bid still gets preferential treatment if they do decide they no longer need it.”

In their update on their crowdfunder page, the Friends say they ‘remain hopeful’ that they will be able to ensure the hill ‘remains wild for many generations’.

“We have continued conversations with Keyland the landowner,” the update says.

“If possible, they would like to give the community bid preferential treatment in a second formal approach for the site, once Yorkshire Water have satisfied their surveys.”

In the meantime, the Friends say, ‘we will ensure all donations remain in a secure account, which will allow us to continue these negotiations’.

Severus Hill – a potted history

Severus Hill is believed to have been formed in the last ice age. And it has an amazing, ‘layered’ history quite apart from its value as a wildlife haven, according to the Friends.

The hill is believed to have been named by the Victorians after the Roman emperor Septimius Severus. The legend goes that Severus, who died in York in 211 AD, may have been cremated in a huge funeral pyre on the hill, which was the highest place outside the Roman city of Eboracum.

Severus Hill from the air (Image: Sky Filming)

There is evidence of a Roman road at the hill. And it has other military connections.

The hill was used by the Parliamentary forces during the Civil War siege of York in 1644 to fire cannonballs at Royalist forces within the city.

Then in the early 1800s, when there were fears of a Napoleonic invasion of Britain, it was chosen as the site of the city's warning beacon - earning the name Beacon Hill.

There are also stories about unexploded bombs, and about the hill being targeted by the Luftwaffe during the Second World War.

“Severus Hill is more than just a piece of land—it's a living testament to York's resilience, diversity, and enduring legacy…a treasure trove of historical artefacts and insights into York's past,” a potted history written by the Friends of Severus Hill says.

The Friends are keen to buy the hill so that it can be kept as a wild corner of York, rather than being developed.

They would not turn it into a public park, they stress – instead it would be kept wild, with access limited to occasional visits by school groups, environmentalists or conservation groups.