Agenda item

Provision of 3 gypsy and traveller pitches and associated works including day rooms, parking, turning, septic tank and landscaping.

Public Participation

Cllr Jeff Ligo, reading statements on behalf of local residents, spoke in objection to the application.

Ruth Munns, Agent, spoke in support of the application.

Cllr Jeff Ligo, on behalf of Bratton Parish Council, spoke in objection to the application.

Andrew Guest, Head of Development Management, presented a report which recommended permission be granted for provision of 3 gypsy and traveller pitches and associated works including day rooms, parking, turning, septic tank and landscaping. 

Details of the application and the site were provided, as well as relevant council and national policies. A Gypsy and Traveller Accommodation Assessment (GTAA) had taken place, identifying the need for pitches between 2022-2038 across the council area. 120 new pitches for travellers who meet the planning definition in Planning Policy for Traveller Sites (PPTS) Annex 1, 61 pitches for households who do not meet the definition but may be protected under the Equality Act, and up to 18 pitches for households who could not be determined. This application would therefore contribute 3 pitches against the final criterion, and as the GTAA was newly updated, current delivery was zero. Further details were provided on recent appeals and substantial unmet need being of considerable weight. It was confirmed there was no mains power proposed for the site, but in isolation and without other sufficient reasons the recommendation assessed that the proposal should be approved.

Key details therefore included the principal of development, impact upon the area, neighbouring amenity and highways impacts.

Members of the Committee then had the opportunity to ask technical questions of the officers. Details were sought on the impact of generators on the site, and a condition had been proposed to mitigate this. It was confirmed energy generation would be domestic scale, and the council could encourage generation be through solar power. Normal household waste could be burned on the site as with any residential site. Details were also sought about the road alongside the site and visibility splays. It was confirmed no objections had been received from Highways.

Members of the public then had the opportunity to present their views to the Committee, as detailed above.

The local Unitary Member, Councillor Suzanne Wickham, spoke in objection to the application. She highlighted concerns about lack of local need for sites, concerns with highways, lack of essential services for the site, access, and impact upon character and appearance and amenity.

The Committee then debated the application. A motion was moved by Councillor Pip Ridout, seconded by Councillor Christopher Newbury, to refuse the application as contrary to Core Policy 47.  Comments in support of the motion included the narrow road and high speed limit, and the lack of pedestrian access, as well as adverse amenity access and lack of essential services for the site. Comments against the motion included that the site was already suitable for the current pitch, including the access as acceptable, and that concerns regarding the impact of generators and other aspects could be mitigated by condition. The lack of objection from highways or drainage officers was noted, as well as the wider need for pitches. Details were sought of previous permissions on the site, and it was confirmed restrictive conditions were to enable management of the site so that if there was intended to be an increase this would require formal permission.

Following debate, the vote on the motion to refuse was lost.

A motion was then moved by Councillor Tony Trotman, seconded by Councillor James Sheppard, to approve in accordance with the recommendation in the report, and an additional condition in respect of sewerage and acoustic barriers for generators. The Committee discussed whether it was reasonable to condition the site for a particular family, with officers stating the recommendation was the site was acceptable against policy regardless of who the occupier was. It was agreed an informative could be included on preferring the use of solar power.

At the conclusion of debate, it was,

Resolved:

To GRANT planning permission subject to the following conditions.

1 The development hereby permitted shall be begun before the expiration of three years from the date of this permission.

REASON: To comply with the provisions of Section 91 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 as amended by the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004.

2 No part of the development shall be first occupied, until the visibility splays shown on the approved plans have been provided with no obstruction to visibility at or above a height of 900mm above the nearside carriageway level. The visibility splays shall always be maintained free of obstruction thereafter.

Reason: In the interests of highway safety.

3 The site shall not be permanently occupied by persons other than gypsies and travellers as defined in Annex 1 of Planning Policy for traveller sites (DCLG, 2015).

REASON: The site is in an area where residential development other than accommodation for Gypsy and Travellers is not normally permitted and must therefore be defined for use as a Gypsy and Traveller site only.

4 No more than two caravans as defined in the Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960 and the Caravan Sites Act 1968, of which only one caravan shall be a static caravan, shall be stationed on each pitch at any time.

REASON: in order to define the terms of this permission and avoid proliferation of caravans at the site.

5 Contaminated water shall not be discharged into any stream, watercourse or underground strata, whether direct or via soakaways.

REASON: To minimise the risk of pollution to the water environment.

6 No controlled waste shall be burnt on site.

REASON: In order to minimise nuisance.

7 No external lighting shall be installed until plans showing the type of light appliance, the height and position of fitting, illumination levels and light spillage in accordance with the appropriate Environmental Zone standards set out by the Institute of Lighting Professionals in their publication "Guidance Notes for the Reduction of Obtrusive Light GN01:2011", have been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. The approved lighting shall be installed and shall be maintained in accordance with the approved details and no additional external lighting shall be installed.

REASON: In the interests of the amenities of the area and to minimise unnecessary light spillage above and outside the development site.

8 All soft landscaping comprised in the approved details shall be carried out in the first planting and seeding season. The hedge planting shall be maintained free from weeds and shall be protected from damage by vermin and stock and if within a period of five years, if it should die, be removed, or become seriously damaged or diseased shall be replaced in the next planting season with others of a similar size and species, unless otherwise agreed in writing by the local planning authority.

REASON: To ensure a satisfactory landscaped setting.

9 No more than one commercial vehicle shall be kept on each of the three pitches for use by the occupiers of the caravans hereby permitted, and they shall not exceed 3.5 tonnes in weight and no commercial activity or use, including the storage of materials and waste, shall be carried out on the site.

REASON: In the interests of residential amenity, highway safety and the character of the countryside.

10 No development shall commence on site until a scheme for the disposal of sewerage has been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. No part of the site shall be first occupied until the approved scheme has been fully implemented in accordance with the approved details.

REASON: The application contained insufficient information to enable this matter to be considered prior to granting planning permission and the matter is required to be agreed with the Local Planning Authority before development commences in order that the development is undertaken in an acceptable manner, to ensure that the proposal is provided with a satisfactory means of drainage and does not increase the risk of flooding or pose a risk to public health or the environment.

11 No development shall commence on site until a scheme (to include details of the siting and specification of equipment and/or machinery) for the delivery of electricity to the development has been submitted to, and approved in writing by, the local planning authority. Should the scheme include the use of diesel / petrol / other fuel powered electricity generators or other related noise-generating equipment, then it shall include details of the acoustic insulation of the equipment. No part of the development shall be first occupied until the approved scheme has been fully implemented in accordance with all the approved details.

REASON: The application contained insufficient information to enable this matter to be considered prior to granting planning permission and the matter is required to be agreed with the Local Planning Authority before development commences in order that the development is undertaken in an acceptable manner and to safeguard the amenities of the locality from potential noise disturbance.

INFORMATIVE: In addressing the above condition the applicant is encouraged to prioritise renewable energy systems in preference to diesel / petrol / other fuel powered systems, in the interests of the environment.

12 The development hereby permitted shall be carried out in accordance with the following approved plans:

Site Location Plan - undated
21146/02A (Proposed Site Layout) - August 2021
21146/03 (Proposed Dayroom Plan and Elevations) - August 2021

REASON: For the avoidance of doubt and in the interests of proper planning.