The World of James Herriot was developed by Hambleton District Council and opened in 1999 but reverted to private ownership in 2011 after a period of declining visitor numbers. The regeneration of the attraction has seen year-on-year increases in visitors rising from 15k to over 30k in 2017. The attraction has won several awards including Welcome to Yorkshire White Rose Visitor Attraction of the Year Award 2014 and VisitEngland’s England for Excellence Visitor Attraction of the Year Award 2015.