Appeal By Gypsy Travelers To Build A Permanent Site Next To Our Village

[eastern]

Some fields came up for sale on the outskirts of the village where my family live in the Darlington area. The fields have been used to keep horses and other animals in over the years but then were sold to "persons unknown". It later transpires that they had been sold to some members of the Gypsy community and they then applied for planning consent to construct a permanent residential caravan site with two amenity buildings and hard standing for a number of caravans. This has obviously been met with considerable out rage by the nearby village who got together to raise several thousand pounds and wrote in excess of 200 letters of complaint, the most the council had ever received against a planning application. Their application was unanimously rejected by the council much to the delight of the nearby residents. Now as you may gather they, the Gypsy's have appealed, every body has resigned themselves to the fact that the appeal will more than likely succeed. According to what the council have said they do not have the funds to fight this application and the Gypsy's have employed a top barrister to fight their case. I know this seems a lost cause but has anybody got any useful input on this situation. Thanks in advance.

[DJHawkes]

Barmaid can you explain what a Barrister is needed for if the application was conditionally granted?

[emmie]

pool your resources once more if you can - money talks, and i do know other people who had the same problem, and the mess, filth was as they put it was indescribable.

[Barmaid]

I have no idea, Dot. I didn't read it all and I'm not even sure it was the same site.

But they could be appealing the conditions.

[DJHawkes]

If they use a Barrister then, no legal aid and so that's a considerable cost to them isn;t it? Whether they win or lose? (whatever the appeal is about)

[kylesmum]

In our area we have two resident traveller sites.They are well managed and well run.There hasn't been any problems which differ from anyone on a housing estate.

There is a huge difference between a managed, static site and travellers who just see a piece of land and camp on it illegally and do leave mess.

In this case I don't see anything illegal.

[Sharingan]

Oh Mags!, how naive. My father welcomed several families of travellers onto our land when I was growing up every year during the winters, likewise just outside of the village where I live now are six traveller families on a permanent ' family' site. Their kids go to the local school and the men drink in the pub at night and oh amazing behave like everyone else. They do do scrap metal, they do have horse but so what? Get a life.

[Khandro]

Barmaid is right, any objections should be on environmental grounds only. Don't even hint that you are objecting the development because the potential occupants are gypsies or you will be up to your neck in human rights and discrimination claims.

[bednobs]

i don't really understand the original Q - if the application was turned down, what makes you so certain that an appeal will be successful anyway? If it was turned down, it must have been on good grounds, which presumably still exist?

[themorrigan]

Barmaid there are already 3 large Traveller sites around Darlington. They tend to congregate in certain areas, there is already one official site near the area but I believe that this is an adjoining piece of land, or something near.

[kylesmum]

I hope they win their appeal.

If they are on a permanent site they have to register with Doctors, Schools etc so they are not transient gypsies.

I'll refrain from saying what I think about inherent snobbery....

[DJHawkes]

yes if they have a permanent site and address they will also be liable for taxes, council tax, car tax, car insurance, national insurance. All good stuff like that.

[themorrigan]

Sharingan , if you are addressing me (what does Mags! mean?) then you could at least answer in a polite manner and not tell someone to 'get a life'. I respect in your short life you have had nothing but positive experience of Travellers, in turn you could respect that others may have both alternative experiences and therefore alternative opinions.

[bednobs]

Please don't turn this into the shari/mags show AGAIN
(and to be clear, by Mags i mean that you are the poster who went previously by the name Magsmay and were banned)
I prefer not to read about your spat on loads of posts so please just both stop it.

[Bazile]

As the saying goes -

'' In anyone else's backyard , other than mine ''

[naomi24]

The answer is clear. Offer these people land in areas where the residents have no objections.

[themorrigan]

bednobs, I've done a search of that user and they are not banned. I have never posted on here before and indeed was brought to this site by someone who posts on here quite frequently and has been a member since 2003, and who I am friends with on FB LOL!

[sherrardk]

You were also sebhfion.

[tamborine]

sharigan, does your father have planning permission for additional dwellings ie caravans on his site; do the gypsies pay the requisite council tax ?

[Barmaid]

And back to the OP:-

Planning permission has been refused but the decision is being appealed. What can I do to help resist the appeal?

NB:- "Please refrain from being rude, abusive or judgemental - members come here for advice, not judgement! Members who offer only moral judgement will be suspended."