Agenda item

Full application for Use of Site as Gypsy Traveller Plot on Storage Yard – Retrospective at Ravens Gate, Holbeach St Johns, Spalding (report of the Development Manager enclosed).

Consideration was given to the report of the Development Manager upon which the above application was to be determined, including their recommendations, copies of which had previously been circulated to all members.

Members debated the matter and fully explored the details of the application in light of prevailing policies and guidance, with the following comments being raised:

• Members expressed significant concern regarding highway safety, particularly along Ravens Gate and the wider road network towards Saturday Bridge. Reference was made to the history of serious accidents in the area and to concerns raised by Members and the public about vehicle speeds, absence of footways, and lack of public transport provision.
  • Officers confirmed that Lincolnshire County Council Highways had raised no objection to the proposal, having assessed accident data and predicted trip generation. It was explained that the purpose of a planning application was not to resolve existing highway problems, but to ensure that the development would not result in severe highway harm. Members were advised that speed limits and Traffic Regulation Orders could not be imposed through planning conditions, but that concerns could be formally passed to the Highway Authority.
• Members queried compliance with local plan policy for Gypsy/Traveller accommodation, in particular criteria relating to accessibility to services, schools, and public transport.
  • Officers acknowledged some conflict with Policy 20, criterion G but advised that, when considered in the planning balance, the proposal was acceptable given that the overarching spatial strategy allows Gypsy and Traveller accommodation in countryside locations.
  • Officers also confirmed that the Council currently does not meet its identified Gypsy and Traveller pitch need.
• Clarification was sought on the restriction on commercial activity and whether business registration would be permitted.
  • Officers advised that residential use would be acceptable, but any business activity involving visits, deliveries, or material change of use would require planning permission.
• Members queried whether the site could be expanded to include more pitches in the future.
  • Officers confirmed that any extension or additional pitches would require a new planning application, and that approval of the current proposal would not bind the Council in respect of future applications.
• Clarification was sought on the definition of a gypsy/traveller.
  • Officers confirmed that the definition was set out in national planning policy.
• Members discussed the size and use of the proposed day room, with concerns raised about its potential future use as a separate dwelling.
  • Officers advised that day rooms are a common feature of permanent traveller sites and that any use as a separate residential unit would constitute a breach of planning control and be subject to enforcement action.
• Members emphasised the importance of achieving a high-quality landscaping and boundary scheme to ensure the development integrated appropriately into the rural landscape and did not appear as a visually intrusive compound.
  • Officers confirmed that amended conditions would require details of landscaping and boundary treatments to be submitted and approved prior to occupation, with provisions for replacement planting where necessary.

Councillor Brewis requested that his vote against the application to be recorded in the minutes.

The full debate was not repeated here as a livestream of this Planning Committee Meeting could be viewed on South Holland District Council’s Facebook page for a limited period of time, in line with the Democratic Services Privacy Notice.

AGREED:

That the application be approved for the reasons set out at section 9.0 of the report, with amendments being made to the following conditions:

·       Condition 3 - restricting the occupation to those who meet the definition of gypsys, and travellers set out in national policy.

·       Condition 7  – amended to require the submission and approval of a landscaping scheme and a scheme of boundary treatments to be agreed prior to occupation.

·       Condition 2 – wording to be added to tie the planning permission to a named person.

(Moved by Councillor Bingham, Seconded by Councillor Woolf)

Oral representations were received in respect of the above application in line with the Council’s scheme of public speaking at Planning Committee meetings:

Supporter: Mrs D Ellis (Resident)