Testun llawn:
Dear Sirs
Re: Placement of Gypsy and Traveller Sites
We are residents of the above address and have a keen interest in the proposed placement of gypsy and traveller sites. We ask you to note our interest in this matter.
We also attended the recent meeting to discuss these issues held at Barford on 3 July 2013. We have heard various points of discussion and wish to put forward our views on the proposed sites.
Identification of Pitch Numbers for Warwick District Area
At the Barford meeting, it was discussed that the numbers of the proposed sites/pitches has been established by research conducted by Salford University. At no point have we as residents been advised of the methods used to obtain the data relied upon. Please provide a full copy to us. Until you do so, we reserve the right to raise legal argument about the appropriateness or otherwise of this selection process. Further, it was suggested that the Salford University research took place over a 3 month period but, again, the exact data has not been forthcoming. Please identify the period over which such research was conducted.
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The Legal Framework
We understand that pursuant to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) and the Housing Act 2004, that you as a Local Authority have a legal requirement to meet the needs of accommodation for the population. However, in implementing that NPPF you are required to comply with all other legal requirements.
Of particular interest to us is site GT20 - land at junction 15 of M40. This has been identified by you as a potential site. First of all, part of the land in question is owned by ourselves. We trust you are not possibly contemplating the use of Compulsory Purchase Orders (CPO) in this regard. We ask you to confirm this point by return. Until you do so, we reserve the right specifically to raise legal argument about the appropriate use of CPO powers. Clearly, and for the avoidance of doubt, purchase of land for gypsy and traveller sites does not fall into that category.
That aside, the land in question, GT20, is in fact a Greenbelt site. We are sure we need not remind you of the Department for Communities and Local Government's written Ministerial Statement dealing with the issue of planning policies towards gypsy and traveller sites. We are sure the Minister of State's Statement is well known to yourselves but, again for the avoidance of doubt, we quote:
"The Secretary of State wishes to make clear that, in considering planning applications, although each case will depend on its facts, he considers that the single issue of unmet demand, whether for traveller sites or for conventional housing, is unlikely to outweigh harm to the greenbelts and other harm to constitute the "very special circumstances" justifying inappropriate development in the greenbelt".
As you well know, the Secretary of State further advises in that Statement that particular scrutiny will be applied to traveller site appeals within greenbelt land.
Please allow us to be clear. If planning permission is given to develop gypsy and traveller sites in greenbelt land in Warwickshire, we will appeal the process, apply for a judicial review and invoke the Secretary of State's intervention.
Urban Areas
Your consultation document, chapter 8.1, suggests that land owned by Warwick District Council, (other than that contained in this document) has proved unsuitable. Upon what evidence and what basis has that conclusion been reached? Urban land is entirely appropriate for developments of this kind. Whilst we are not experts in the population statistics of gypsy and travelling communities, we would suggest that they may have children. Site GT20, and indeed for that matter many others, have no schools nearby. The residents of the site will also need access to urban amenities such as hospitals, GPs, shops etc. By placing gypsy and traveller sites in such a remote location it increases the level of services and amenities which will be required by this community. The roads surrounding site GT20 are often used by farming machinery; such machinery and farm traffic being unsuitable for developments of this nature. Placing a G & T site in this location will undoubtedly create difficulties between the existing population and the gypsy and travelling community.
Finally, we have to call into question the competence and integrity of the planning officers who have identified the proposed sites. Salford University has, we understand, identified the number of sites both residential and transient for Gypsy and Traveller use in Warwickshire. The local authority planning departments have then applied this information to their planning criteria. They have concluded that 40% of the proposed sites are to be built in greenbelt land, including the one of most immediate concern to us, GT20. This is totally inappropriate use of the green belt and not in any way being used as a last resort. These sites should never have been selected at this stage, but only in very special circumstances and as a last resort. This clearly flies in the face of clear guidance from the Secretary of State
We trust we have made our feelings clear on this issue and ask you to acknowledge receipt of our correspondence. We have taken the liberty of copying this letter to our Solicitor, James Leo, Partner in the firm of Coley & Tilley Solicitors, Neville House, 14 Waterloo Street, Birmingham. B2 5UF. We ask you to submit your response to this letter and the documentation we have requested in it to our Solicitor so that he may deal with any outstanding issues.