CPRE GLOUCESTERSHIRE BRANCH

GYPSY SITES - TIME TO TALK

Full article by our County Director

When asked if I would like to write an article for this Newsletter I thought it appropriate to cover a topic which is of relevance to the locality in which I live and which I believe could be a real threat to rural Gloucestershire.

At about 5.15pm on Friday 22nd May 2009, horrified local residents of a quiet country lane on the outskirts of Newent stood by helplessly as men and machines commenced the transformation of an agricultural field into a building site. The new owner had chosen a Bank Holiday weekend to commence their unauthorised development, and therefore the majority of works were completed before any action could be taken by the District Council Planning Department. By the following week a large portion of the field had been transformed into a caravan site for Gypsies complete with vehicular access, hard-standing for 13 pitches, mains services and newly installed septic tanks.

In the absence of prior planning permission Forest of Dean District Council issued an enforcement notice. The new owner has responded by lodging an appeal against the enforcement notice and applying for retrospective planning permission for change of use. Locally this has led to a public perception of abuse of the Planning System and double standards.

The Problem

Unfortunately this type of unauthorised development is becoming commonplace across the UK as members of the Gypsy and Traveller Community, frustrated by the shortage of available sites, take matters into their own hands leading inevitably to tension with settled communities. Figures released from the Department of Communities and Local Government in January of this year put the total number of Gypsy and Traveller caravans in England at 17,865 of which 3,680 were camped illegally either on land which does not belong to them or on their own land without planning permission. The number of caravans on illegal sites in England on land owned by Gypsies and Travellers rose from 729 in January 2000 to 2,365 this year. To understand why this threefold increase has come about we need to look at the planning history.

The Planning Background

The Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 removed the statutory duty on local authorities to provide sites for Gypsies and Travellers. Since this repeal the emphasis has been on facilitating the ability of Gypsies and Travellers to find and buy their own sites to manage. Despite an increase in planning applications for privately owned sites this did not deliver the expected level of new sites by the private sector and the travelling community. As a result the Government reviewed the policy position and placed a requirement on local authorities to conduct Gypsy and Traveller Accommodation Assessments (GTAA).

Frustrated at the under provision of public sites and the perceived inadequacies of the planning system, a minority of the travelling community have taken matters into their own hands by buying cheap agricultural land, often in greenbelt areas, undertaking unauthorised development and subsequently applying for retrospective planning consent. There is evidence to suggest that the introduction of the Human Rights Act in 2000 has strengthened the Gypsy and Traveller’s case in instances of unauthorised development with less than 300 illegal sites in 1999 compared with 1,279 in January of this year.

The New Planning Framework

The Housing Act 2004 imposes a duty on local authorities to undertake GTAAs of the accommodation needs of Gypsies and Travellers residing in or resorting to their district and to identify pitch requirements. The GTAA then forms the basis of a Gypsy and Traveller Accommodation Strategy which feeds into the Regional Spatial Strategy (RSS). At a regional level the South West Regional Assembly was required to consider the results of GTAAs in drafting the RSS and to identify the number of pitches that need to be delivered for each local planning authority and which would be reflected in their Local Development Framework (LDF).

The LDF Core Strategy should set out criteria for the location of Gypsy and Traveller sites which will then be used to guide the Development Plan Document (DPD) in the allocation of specific sites to meet the number of pitches identified in the RSS.

The Position in Gloucestershire

The GTAA for Gloucestershire (October 2007) recommended that 187 additional permanent residential pitches be provided for Gypsies and Travellers within the County, distributed as follows:

The survey undertaken for the purposes of collating data for the GTAA identified that 71% of respondents had lived in Gloucestershire prior to occupying their present site, 29% having migrated to the County; 61% of respondents would like to own their own site and 86% of respondents would prefer a rural location.

There is an acknowledged shortage of site provision for Gypsies and Travellers in Gloucestershire and it is clear that local planning authorities need to press on urgently with identification of suitable sites if they are to stop the proliferation of unauthorised development across the County. Whilst local authorities clearly have mechanisms in place to engage with representatives of the Travelling Community during this process it is important to ensure that where consideration is being given to a particular site the settled community are given the same opportunity for early engagement. The Planning Act 2004 places emphasis on early consultation to ensure that plans properly reflect the needs and aspirations of all sectors of the community.

There is a clear preference amongst the travelling community to own their own site in a rural area as illustrated by the findings of the GTAA for Gloucestershire. Planning Circular 01/2006 gives guidance on the planning aspects of finding sites for Gypsies and Travellers and specifically deals with sites in rural areas. It provides for rural exception sites where there is a lack of affordable land to meet Gypsy and Traveller needs. It does not preclude the use of greenbelt land for sites in exceptional circumstances and it makes it clear that rural settings, where not subject to special planning constraints, are acceptable in principle. This effectively means that Gypsy and Traveller sites may well be allocated outside of defined development areas and in open countryside.

Many Gypsy and Traveller families are relatively settled and naturally wish to improve the quality of life on their pitches by having access to internal amenities whilst still maintaining an ability to travel when desired. This has led to the inclusion in planning applications of proposals to build utility or day rooms in addition to the siting of a residential pitch and a pitch to accommodate a touring caravan. Typically these buildings comprise a kitchen, day room, washroom and bathroom and have a tiled roof with rendered walls. Consideration therefore needs to be given when looking at such applications in rural areas to the impact on the landscape of these buildings and their associated hard-standing.

The Way Forward

Gypsy and Traveller Communities should have the same access to services and expectations as other sectors of Society. Key to meeting these needs is the provision of enough suitable sites within the County in sustainable locations. Whilst local authorities are working to identify suitable sites it is vital that during this process they engage at an early stage with both Gypsies and Travellers and the associated settled communities. It is essential to strike a balance between the needs and reasonable expectations of the settled community, local businesses and other landowners and the needs and aspirations of Gypsies and Travellers. Failure to do so will undoubtedly undermine community cohesion. CPRE’s national policy statement on Unauthorised Gypsy and Traveller Development advocates a common sense approach acknowledging the right of Gypsies and Travellers to a decent home but in obtaining their home undue harm should not be imposed on other people and the environment. No group whatever their housing need has the right to simply ignore planning policies and procedures.

Here at CPRE Gloucestershire, it is important that Districts start a dialogue with their planning authorities now so that we have the opportunity to engage with them at an early stage. It is only by early dialogue that we can hope to influence what will inevitably be a series of highly controversial searches for suitable sites across the County.

November 2009