Plans to Put Gypsy Sites at Pirton & Whitwell Shelved
| Published: 26th June 2008 22:13 |
Plans to put gipsy pitches on the edge of villages in the rural area beyond the Green Belt have been shelved by North Herts District Council following overwhelming opposition from the public.
Instead the Council is looking at areas of search to the north and west of Stevenage for the 15 pitches (equal to about 25 caravans) which it must provide. New guidance from central government now suggests traveller sites should be sought in areas of large scale growth. Proposals to this effect were expected to be approved by the NHDC Cabinet last Tuesday (24 June).
NHDC officers consulted the public on six proposed sites at four villages, Barkway (2), Pirton, Sandon (2) and Whitwell. The 3,000-strong response was overwhelmingly against the proposals.
Objections included:
- Small and isolated communities could not meet the needs of gipsies and travellers
- A lack of suitable services and facilities
- Site constraints
- The impact of the proposals on the landscape and neighbouring properties
- Gypsies and travellers might not want to live in small villages
- Concern about preserving the qualities of rural and village life for the local community
- Better locations are available on the outskirts of urban areas
- The planning process is flawed - in particular the need to look at non Green Belt sites
F John Smith, Leader of North Herts District Council, said, "This has been an emotive issue for residents and difficult for the Council, as we have obligations to the travelling community. It was a pity that government's revised guidance to locate traveller sites nearer to urban areas and in areas of growth, did not come before we started this exercise as it would have saved a lot of trouble."
NHDC officers accepted that all six proposed sites have serious shortcomings and decided that none of them should go forward to the next stage, the Land Allocations - Preferred Options document scheduled for spring 2009. Instead they will focus on larger urban areas to the north and west of Stevenage that are likely to be removed from the Green Belt.
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