Traveller site plans near Lutterworth expected to be refused by planners
Plans for a Traveller site which had been served with a temporary stop notice is expected to be refused by officials next week.
Retrospective plans were submitted for the site in Woodway Lane, Claybrooke Parva, near Lutterworth, after a legal notice was served over reported “criminal activity” in the area.
The council issued a temporary stop notice last September for the land after an “unauthorised change of use” started at the site. The site was then made subject to a court order in November for a period of two years.
Applicant Mr Smith then applied to the council for a retrospective change of use of the land to nine “self-build and custom build” Traveller pitches, “including associated access and works”.
A total of 126 objections have been filed against the proposal.
In planning documents, the application site is described as open countryside, while there is the presence of “a cluster of incidental, single-storey, corrugated steel sheet buildings” in a central part of the land.
One of the many objectors said the proposal would add nine further pitches “to an area already accommodating a disproportionately high concentration of Gypsy, Traveller and Travelling Show people sites”.
They added: “The development was carried out without planning permission and is significant in scale and environmental impact.”
Another objector said: “Planning should be applied for through the correct procedure, not started and then proceed, at speed, to flatten an area and move in with numerous caravans, digging equipment, vans and many families, totally ignoring a stop notice.
“The site is very close to a busy junction that frequently has many accidents. There are no amenities on site such as sewers or water.”
A number of politicians and parish councils have also written in objection to the plans, including Alberto Costa MP, Cllr Rosita Page, Claybrooke Parva Parish Council and Wibtoft Parish.
Previously, South Leicestershire MP Alberto Costa weighed in on the controversy and called on the council to refuse the plan.
In a letter to HDC chief executive John Richardson, Mr Costa said the site is not in the council’s Local Plan – a document which sets out where developments can and cannot take place – and should “therefore be refused”.
He said: “Whilst I recognise the need within Harborough District for sites to accommodate members of the Traveller community, such sites must be located in areas that are suitable in planning terms and consistent with the Local Plan.
“Furthermore, given the site’s proximity to the A5 – a major highway that has undergone various safety improvements over the years – any additional traffic generated by this development would likely have a detrimental impact on road safety. For this reason, too, the application should be refused.”
The plan is due to be discussed at HDC’s planning committee on Tuesday, February 10. It has been recommended for refusal by officers due to concerns around vehicles, access and flood risk.
Harborough District Council has confirmed to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) that should the recommendation to refuse planning permission be accepted the authority will review enforcement options.