Pickering
North Yorkshire
The town is 8 miles north of
The ancient town at the gateway to the
They include the southern terminus of the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, the longest of Yorkshire's
Another attraction of the town is its Norman castle, which was originally built when King William the Conqueror held the manor of Pickering. (More details can be found below.)
The Parish Church of St Peter and St Paul is built on the site of a Saxon church. The present church is of Norman origin with additions from the 14th and 15th century, the most spectacular of which are the mid-15th century wall paintings.
The town itself has plenty of characterful historic architecture with listed buildings lining its Market Place and nearby streets .
Catering for the tourists, Pickering has a good selection, of cafes, tearooms, inns and restaurants.
Town features















Travel
Bus travel
The town has bus services to neighbouring towns and villages, the Yorkshire coast, York and Leeds.
Pickering
Pickering has a station on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, the longest of Yorkshire's heritage railways. See 'Places to visit' below.
Road travel
Pickering can be reached via the A170 A169 .
Places to visit

North York Moors National Park
The Ryedale district north of Helmsley, Kirkbymoorside and Pickering includes some of the beautiful scenery of the North York Moors National Park. The park covers a total of 554 square miles (1,435 square kilometres). Within its area are moorland and coast, historic stateley homes, remains of castles and abbeys and attractive villages. The North Yorkshire Moors Railway provides a historic railway journey into the National Park from Pickering. For more information see our page dedicated to the
Pickering Castle
Castlegate, PickeringPickering Castle was originally built as a Norman motte and bailey timber castle at a time when the Manor of
More information at the
English Heritage - Pickering Castle website.

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Pickering Castle

Helmsley Castle
Helmsley Castle is at the western side of
Find out more at the
English Heritage - Helmsley Castle website.

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Helmsley Castle

Rievaulx Abbey
Rievaulx, near Helmsley, North YorkshireThe first Cistercian abbey in the North of England was founded in 1132 but became one of the most important in the country, quickly growing to a 650-strong community within its first 30 years. However by the time of supression of the monastery in December 1538 the number had fallen to 23 monks. The abbey in the valley of the River Rye in the
More information at the


Nunnington Hall
NunningtonMore information at the

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Byland Abbey
Byland, near Coxwold, North YorkshireByland Abbey features the ruins of one of the largest and grandest Cistercian abbey churches in England. Completed towards the end of the 12th century, it is noted for its Gothic architecture which inspired that in other church buildings, including York Minster. The lower portion of a huge rose window gives some idea of the scale and magnificence of the building before the dissolution of the monastery. The abbey also has tiled floors surviving from the 13th century. The abbey is in the
More information at

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North Yorkshire Moors Railway
A heritage railway running for 18 miles through the beautiful scenery of the
For details see the

Castle Howard
The Stray, between Welburn and Coneysthorpe, near MaltonFurther details can be found on the Castle Howard official website.
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Eden Camp Modern History Theme Museum
The museum, just north of the A64 Malton by-pass, is the site of what was established in 1942 as a Second World War camp to house Italian Prisoners of War. It also provided accomodation for Polish forces for a time before returning to use as a prison camp for German prisoners. After a number of post-war uses, a museum was opened in 1987 and has seen a growing number of displays in the original camp huts concentrating mainly on the Second World War but also covering the home front and post-war housing with further exhibits on the First World War and conflicts since the Second World War.
Further details at the


Flamingo Land
Kirkby MispertonOpened as a zoo in 1959, Flamingo Land has since the 1970s been blended with a growing number of theme park rides and now also offers a holiday village. The resort, covering 375 acres, is situated 3 miles south-south-west of Pickering and 5 miles north of Malton.
Kirkham Priory
Kirkham, near MaltonSituated in a beautiful section of the Derwent Valley around 5 miles south-west of
More information at the

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Sheriff Hutton Castle
The village of Sheriff Hutton has the spectacular towering ruins of a medieval castle. The stone castle was built during the 1390s on a different site from an earlier 12th century wood and earthwork castle in Sheriff Hutton, built by the Sheriff of York. In the 14th century the land passed to the Neville family, which was responsible for raising the crenellated stone building. The quadrangular design with stone towers at its corners was of similar style to the more intact Castle Bolton, near Redmire. Just over 70 years after its building, Sheriff Hutton Castle became a royal castle. In the year before his marriage in 1472 to Anne Neville it was granted to Richard, Duke of Gloucester, who would 11 years later begin his short reign as King Richard III. Middleham Castle, granted at the same time, would however become the main residence for Richard's household. The castle remained in Crown hands and, in the 1520s, for a few years became the childhood home of Henry FitzRoy, the illegitimate son of King Henry VIII. Young Henry was born in 1519 to Elizabeth Blount, lady-in-waiting to the queen, Catherine of Aragon. The decay of the castle started in the 1600s when the castle was sold and stone was plundered for buildings around a new manor house. Today, the castle ruins and adjoining farm continue to be in private ownership, but are now promoted as a wedding and events venue. The ruins can, however, be easily seen from footpaths surrounding the castle site.
More information at the

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Wharram Percy

Wharram Percy is the best preserved of many deserted medieval villages across Yorkshire. Situated in a beautiful hidden valley in the Yorkshire Wolds, the village was abandoned early in the 16th century after being occupied for around six centuries before that. The part-ruined church with its half-collapsed tower provides some clues as to when the village initially grew. Foundations of other buildings have also been exposed during archealogical excavations. The village can only be reached by a walk along sometimes muddy paths, the nearest road being just under a mile away. However, the deserted village offers an attractive place to pause on longer walking routes, including the Yorkshire Wolds Way and Centenary Way.
Find out more at the

Emergency services
North Yorkshire Police 
North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service

Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust

Local government
Civil parish council
Pickering Town CouncilProvides some local services in the area.
Link to council website

District authority

With its administrative centre in Malton, Ryedale District Council covers 575 square miles (1,489 square kilometres) and serves around 52,900 residents.
It is one of the seven large district councils within the North Yorkshire County Council area. Its
The district has boundaries to its south-west with the City of York, with North Yorkshire neighbours Hambleton in the west and Scarborough in the East and with the East Riding of Yorkshire to the south.
Much of the north of the district lies within the North York Moors National Park while the west of the district includes most of the Howardian Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
In addition to
The council is divided into 20 wards, each served by between one and three councillors. All 30 councillors are elected every four years, with elections due in 2019. There are also 121 parishes within Ryedale, 91 having a civil parish council and the remainder holding parish meetings.
Link to
Ryedale District Council website.

The political composition after the May 2019 election was:
County authority
North Yorkshire County CouncilIncludes the Ryedale borough and six other non-unitary districts of North Yorkshire.

Police and Crime Commissioner
Police and Crime Commissioner North YorkshireCovers the county of North Yorkshire and City of York.

Fire Authority
The North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service was previously governed by the North Yorkshire Combined Fire Authority made up of elected members from across the broad areas of North Yorkshire and City of York councils which it serves. Following a ministerial announcement in June 2018 the governance of the fire service was transferred to the Police and Crime Commissioner for North Yorkshire from 15 November 2018.Further information at the


Ceremonial county
North YorkshireHistoric
-1974 Most of the Rydale district was within North Riding of Yorkshire, however the area south of the River Derwent, including Norton-on-Derwent, was within the East Riding of Yorkshire.1996 Ryedale was reduced in size when the City of York expanded and became a unitary authority. Although the area lost was relatively small compared to the overall area of Ryedale, it did house around half its original population.
Also in Yorkshire.guide
