Gypsy & Traveller Site Allocations Position Statement

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Gypsy & Traveller Site Allocations Position Statement

1 The first stage in the preparation of the Gypsy and Traveller sites allocation Development Plan Documents is to establish the context and the relevant baseline information. 

2 National policy is set out in Circular 01/2006 'Planning for Gypsy and Traveller Caravan Sites' . This explains how those sites are to be planned for in the new development plan system. The first step is the preparation of a Gypsy and Traveller Accommodation Assessment which identifies the pitch requirements. These are taken forward in the Regional Spatial Strategy which assesses the accommodation requirements for the region and specifies pitch numbers for each local authority area.

3 Circular 01/2006 requires that the number of pitches set out in the Regional Spatial Strategy must be translated into specific site allocations in one of the local planning authority's development plan documents. A requirement of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 is that development plan documents must be in general conformity with the Regional Spatial Strategy.

4 Whist Government guidance on the preparation of Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessments (SHLAA) makes no specific reference to the inclusion of sites with potential for Gypsy and Traveller accommodation the 2004 Housing Act requires local authorities to assess the need for Gypsy and Traveller accommodation in their areas when they assess the housing requirements of the rest of the population. Thus local planning authorities in their SHLAA should consider sites with the potential for all types of housing.

5 The approach that many authorities is taking is to prepare a Core Strategy  which, among other things, establishes the overview of the Gypsy and Traveller accommodation requirements for their area. This is likely to include a criteria based policy that will replace adopted development plan policies. There is almost certainly to be an identified need for additional pitches, thus required additional sites are proposed in site allocation Development Plan Documents.

6 There is as yet no established “best practice” and few examples of allocation policies and procedures for Gypsy and Traveller sites – those in existence are not very detailed. In drawing up a draft policy, local authorities need to rely on:
•  general needs allocation policies
•  examples of other policies used by other agencies
• CLG Guidance  which sets out good practice for both the allocation policies and site waiting lists.
•  consultation with Representatives from the Gypsy and Traveller  community and support workers attached to existing Gypsy and Traveller sites

7 Circular 01/2006 ‘states that where possible, sites should be developed near to housing for the settled community as part of mainstream residential developments. Sites should respect the scale of, and not dominate the nearest settled community. They should also avoid placing an undue pressure on the local infrastructure; and that new Gypsy and Traveller sites in the Green Belt are normally inappropriate development.

8 In order to assess the contribution that the future Gypsy and Traveller site allocations and policies make in achieving sustainable development it is necessary to compare them against a range of sustainability objectives and indicators. Many authorities recognise that the constraints of council land ownership and planning policies means that matching preferences to available sites may not always be possible.

9 There is undoubted public interest shown in this matter, and Development Plan Documents need to be able to set out in a transparent manner an auditable process, that demonstrates how and why sites have been selected or rejected in the context of national, regional and local legislation and guidance. Notwithstanding compliance with this good practice public response to such documents often generates considerable opposition to the allocation of Gypsy and Traveller sites within existing communities.

10 A number of authorities are investigating the possibility of identifying and delivering Gypsy and Traveller sites as part of wider housing schemes through s106 agreements, although it is understood this has not proved to be an entirely smooth process.

11 In response to a survey  undertaken in 2007 on behalf of the Gypsy and Traveller community only seven local authorities were planning to bring forward dedicated Development Plan Documents to address Gypsy and Traveller accommodation issues. Other authorities indicated they were planning to make site allocations through site allocation DPDs. The Gypsy and Traveller community has also raised deep concerns regarding the robustness of many GTAAs.

12 Local authorities remain challenged by the site allocation process and the inherent dynamic tension that it creates with both the Gypsy and Traveller and settled communities in their area. Nevertheless they should not and cannot ignore the requirement imposed on them to allocate Gypsy and Traveller sites.

John Silvester
Spokesperson for the Planning Officers Society
27th February 2009