Careless parking which churns up grass verges or damages paving is one example of a deterioration in the appearance of Ilkley which could easily be prevented.

The maintenance of local streets, particularly in the town centre, is something brought into sharp focus in recent weeks by a local councillor, who carried out a survey highlighting some of the worst examples of untidy and poorly maintained features.

Bradford Council, whose job it is to keep the pavements and street furniture in good order, has come in for criticism, but so have property owners and businesses which allow the condition of prominent premises to deteriorate, leave rubbish outside, and advertising boards in the streets.

The ever-decreasing council funding for non-priority maintenance has been cited, even if not all agree with this approach, as a major factor in the perceived decline in standards.

However, it has also been suggested there are things others could do to keep the surroundings in good condition. The state of pavements was recently called into question, where vehicles frequently park on the kerb, cracking paving stones and breaking up the surface.

Now the issue of parking on grass verges has been flagged up as something else which is eating away at the state of the town. The difficulty of finding parking space in Ilkley is hardly new, as was cited during the debate about parking on pavements.

But it is difficult for the community to put forward a good case to cash-strapped authorities for investment locally when sections of the community are simultaneously playing their own part in the decline. The same goes for food packaging and other litter found on the streets.

There would be no call for the council, or indeed businesses, to check for and remove litter if people did not drop it in the first place.

Our thoughts are with little Thea

All our thoughts are with the family of little Thea Paterson, who next week will undergo a bone marrow transplant operation.

Thea, just seven months old, was diagnosed with a rare genetic condition at the beginning of the year and the intervening time must have been traumatic both for the little girl and her family.

Left untreated, the condition would halt Thea’s growth and development and reduce her life expectancy to just nine or ten years. Everyone is hoping against hope that the operation is a complete success and will save Thea’s life.

She has already gone through far more than any tiny child should have to endure, including gruelling chemotherapy treatments. Her future is in the hands of the medical experts who are preparing for the procedure next week.

The family say that when they were given the diagnosis of Thea’s condition in January it was the worst day of their lives.

Let us all hope that next Tuesday, when Thea undergoes the operation at Manchester Royal Children’s Hospital, it will be the opposite and signal the start of the rest of Thea’s life.