Plymouth City Council Transit Site Consultation

Plymouth City Council have begun a public consultation on a much needed proposed new transit site on Broadley Park Industrial Estate. Public consultation events start today (25/09) at Woolwell Community Centre from 2pm to 6.30pm and again on the 2nd October. An exhibition will also run for six weeks at the George Park and Ride between until the 12th October, as well as an opportunity to comment by completing an online survey. 06/10/12 - Plymouth City Council has announced it will be holding another Have Your Say meeting at Woolwell Community Centre 9th October 6 - 8pm Plymouth Herald article here

Claim that Traveller was asked on to council land

From the West Briton

AN INVESTIGATION is being demanded into claims a Cornwall Council officer encouraged a Traveller to move onto council-owned land.

St Agnes Parish Council is writing to chief executive Kevin Lavery over the allegation against Gypsy liaison officer, Phil Eaton, that he also urged the man to occupy private land next to a flagship business park.

The Traveller arrived on land behind Wheal Kitty business park last week, where David Knowles, a convicted drug dealer has also been living. Knowles was sentenced to two years in jail in July 2010 for the possession of amphetamine and intent to supply while at Wheal Kitty. He recently returned to the illegal camp.

Businesses there have complained about loud music and feeling intimidated by the travellers.

Parish councillor Dawn Brown said the new arrival dumped a dilapidated bus metres from offices.

Within hours of arrival he was seen trying to gain access to Cornwall Council-owned land vacated by Denis Watkins, who lived in a caravan near the park for several years. Mr Watkins was moved to sheltered accommodation after serving a nine-month prison sentence for shooting a teenager in the leg with a .22 air rifle last year.

"We've now got two people illegally camped at Wheal Kitty. The Traveller has been abusive and threatened people," said Mrs Brown.

She further claimed Mr Eaton had invited the Traveller to enter the site.

"What concerns me is that a business owner at Wheal Kitty was told by the Traveller that he had been told by the Gypsy liaison officer to park by the buildings and that he would be transferred to the Cornwall Council-owned field.

"The officer was then overheard telling the Traveller to move onto the site."

Cornwall Council refuted the claim saying the land was not offered for use by the Gypsy liaison officer.

But on Monday night, Mrs Brown told parish council members she wanted a fuller explanation on how the Traveller came to Wheal Kitty and the officer's handling of the case, repeating the claims.

Members agreed to call on Mr Lavery to investigate the claim.

Police were called to the scene on Thursday when contractor Cormac arrived to install large granite boulders in the entrance to the council-owned field. Cornwall Council has also imposed an injunction on the field vacated by Watkins to prevent anyone from entering.

The council can do nothing about the private land, owned by and registered to a woman in Australia.

A businesswoman, who did not want to be named for fear of reprisals, said she no longer invited clients to the park or visited the office alone at weekends. She said: "We have seen lots of cars and people arriving at night and weekends. They play rave music and there is human excrement everywhere."

She added: "We have been warned (by Cornwall Council) not to approach the Traveller without a police presence. When Denis was here we felt safe."

Travellers' group pitch up again at Central Park in Plymouth

From the Plymouth Herald

TRAVELLERS have illegally pitched up at Central Park – for the second time within two months.

Five caravans as well as 4x4s and several cars gained access to green space near Goals off Outland Road on Friday.

Cllr Martin Leaves, who represents Peverell ward, has asked council officers to investigate whether gates to the area were left unsecure.

He said: "This is the third time within a couple of years that we have seen Travellers gaining access to the green space of Central Park. Almost every time the gates have been left open.

"It is the same problem this time – the barrier located at the top of Barn Park Lane was left open, allowing the Travellers to get on to Loves Field.

"It is not good enough; gates are put in place to keep Travellers off the park, which once again will leave a mess for the city tax payer to clean up."

A Plymouth City Council spokeswoman said they had been made aware of the unauthorised encampment and were undertaking the required welfare checks.

She said: "We are following our normal procedures for dealing with unauthorised encampments."

The council deals with around 25 illegal encampments every year, partly because there are no organised transit sites in Plymouth.

Strict legal guidelines mean each unauthorised encampment can take between ten days and four weeks to evict.

The only permanent Gypsy and Traveller camp in the city is at The Ride, next to Chelson Meadow.

Plymouth and Devon Racial Equality Council was unavailable for comment last night.

Public consultation over planned Gypsy and Traveller site in Plymouth

From the Plymouth Herald

A PUBLIC consultation has been launched over a proposed Gypsy and Traveller site.

Fifteen transit pitches could be built on land owned by the council at Broadley Park, near Roborough, under the controversial plans.

Councillor Chris Penberthy, cabinet member for co-operatives and community development, said: "I know that this is a sensitive issue but we do need a proactive approach to dealing with unauthorised encampments. These are affecting more and more neighbourhoods and we can't ignore the problems they cause. Providing a transit site would mean we expect to see a reduction in the number of unauthorised encampments and subsequently we hope to ease community tension."

Residents and businesses are being asked for their views on the site designs and management arrangements.

Unauthorised encampments in Plymouth cost the council up to £300,000 a year in clean-up costs. Last year there were 40.

The six-week consultation will include two public events at Woolwell Community Centre, on September 25 and October 2, from 2pm to 6.30pm. There will also be an exhibition at the George Park and Ride between September 24 and October 12. Further events will be held for businesses and Gypsy and Traveller communities.

Travellers can stay on Newquay 'death trap' site

From the Cornish Guardian

A FAMILY of six Travellers has moved onto a "death trap" derelict hotel site in Newquay, the Cornish Guardian has learnt.

The group, which includes two adults and four under-18s, set up camp at the former Cedars Hotel at the junction between Mount Wise and St George's Road last week.

Police and social services visited the "rat-infested" site on Tuesday to check on the youngsters' welfare, but decided no action was necessary.

The resort's police chief, Inspector Ian Drummond-Smith, said the landowners were aware of the Travellers and had not requested eviction.

Cornwall Council's environmental health team has advised the family it is unsafe to live on the site. It is understood they had intended to move on but one of their children developed an abscess on her foot and needed medical treatment in the resort.

Mr Drummond-Smith said police would continue to monitor the site, adding: "We have limited powers to move Travellers from land. We have contacted the landowners and are happy they are aware of the situation. At this time we have not received any request to remove the Travellers."

The news has sparked fresh calls for the eyesore site to be better secured, or even demolished, after children were spotted playing on bikes within the perimeter fence.

John Coltman, owner of the nearby Trelinda Hotel and vice-chair of Newquay Town Residents' Association, said: "We've had enough. This has been going on since 2003 and the place is a death trap. Are they waiting for someone to get killed in there?

"I'm paying rates here on my hotel and just up the road we've got a site that's infested with flies and rats. It looks like something out of Slumdog Millionaire. This isn't Bombay, it's the main tourist town in Cornwall. This is negligence in a big way by Cornwall Council."

Kevin Brader, the council's senior environmental health officer, said two enforcement notices had been served on the owners, aimed at securing the site and removing rubbish. Contractors have been on site this week.

"The building is in a state of disrepair," he said. "We want it secured and we will ensure this is carried out. Any costs incurred will be recovered from the landowner."

A structural assessment was carried out on the hotel which found the building was not in danger of collapsing.

Mr Brader said: "If it was likely to fall down we could insist it was demolished but it is structurally stable so that isn't required."

An application was lodged in August last year to build 35 residential flats on the site. The site owners, believed to be Cornwall-based Rockmount Developments Ltd, could not be contacted.

St.Keverne and Coverack new sites

Despite the Councillors' fears that St.Keverne might become a 'hub' for Travellers, the New Travellers currently living in the quarry were unaware of the Coverack site and the proposed new pitches. Their arrival is coincidence.

From the West Briton

Parish council told of plans for official Travellers' site

MORE details have emerged of a potential official site for travellers in the Coverack area.

They came at Thursday's St Keverne Parish Council meeting when there was also concern voiced that the parish could become "a hub" for Travellers.

The remarks came after it was revealed that a group of Travellers has moved onto the Dean quarry site.

The parish has previously taken issue with the presence of a separate group of Travellers' at a car park in Coverack and fojavascript:void(0)r a time on one of the approaches to St Keverne.

Members were told of plans for six permanent pitches and two temporary ones if an official site is approved.

The meeting also heard that negotiations were taking place with Cornwall Council as part of an overall scheme for Travellers and affordable housing in the village.

But the exact location is not yet being divulged for fear of attracting more travellers to the area.

Earlier in the meeting, Councillor Anthony Richards said Travellers in vans and tents had moved into the former Dean quarry site.

He said: "Presumably they will be evicted in due course," but he also believed the council should make sure the landowners were aware of the situation.

"We should really push Cornwall Council into completing its Travellers' site within the parish."

Councillor Roger Combe questioned how the Travellers had got onto both the car park site a few years ago and now the Dean quarry location.

Councillor Dorothy Kemp said a lot of people living near the quarry site were concerned.

Councillor Bill Frisken also pointed out there had been gates at Dean quarry.

"It would appear Travellers generally have got wind of the fact there are going to be sites provided in this region," he said. "St Keverne is going to become a hub for travellers."

see also westcountrynews.co.uk - Travellers move onto St Keverne quarry

Looe Transit Site Proposal

An Irish Traveller living in Looe has has put in a planning application to develop a ten pitch transit site on her land. Given the other proposed developments adjacent to this proposed site it is hard to see what objections can be made to this much needed facility.

Cornish Guardian coverage:

Travellers' plan draws objections

Site objectors stay away

Travellers' Advice Team Newsletter Now Online

Travellers' Advice Team's Spring 2012 newsletter is now available online with legal updates and articles on "Gypsy status", responses to new Government policies and proposals, Dale Farm and legal updates. Get it here (pdf)

Travellers Advice Team have a new national telephone helpline for Gypsies & Travellers 0121 685 8677. Mondays to Fridays 9.00am - 5.00pm There's no operator service, so you get straight through to an expert.

Travellers' site for Halvasso?

It would appear that Cornwall Council has made a mistake and this proposal has not been re-submitted, both the original applicant and the landowner were unaware of that it had reappeared on the Council's planning website before the article was printed in the West Briton.

From the West Briton

PLANS for a two-pitch Travellers' site may be back on the table at Halvasso.

Pre-application discussions have taken place with Cornwall Council planners about a site at Potter's Farm.

A previous application was submitted early last year but subsequently withdrawn.

Luxulyan Parish Council loses as Gypsy site is agreed

From the Cornish Guardian

COUNCIL planning chiefs have granted permanent residence to a Gypsy site, despite objections.

Two mobile homes and two caravans can now be permanently sited on land at Carne Cross, near Trethurgy, following the decision by Cornwall Council's central sub area planning committee on Wednesday.

The site was granted temporary planning permission back in 2008 but the application for its permanent retention had angered Luxulyan Parish Council, within whose boundary it falls.

They argued that the site, in an "open countryside setting" was inappropriate and would set a precedent for further Gypsy sites nearby.

Councillor Jim Currie told the committee that he believed that Luxulyan Parish Council already had its "fair share" of Gypsy sites.

"I am concerned about the application, on behalf of Luxulyan Parish Council," he said.

"They have had more than their fair share. Has there been an equality impact assessment carried out? Where is the fairness?"

However, in a swift rebuttal, Councillor Steve Eva, vice-chairman of the council's planning committee, told Mr Currie: "If you want to talk about fairness talk to the people of St Dennis. They can have the Gypsy sites and Luxulyan can have the incinerator."

The discussion also angered Councillor John Fitter, who said: "Talking about quotas and people numbers; it's like were talking about some disease and I find that quite disturbing."

Luxulyan Parish Council also objected to the application on the grounds that it should not be approved while Cornwall Council is developing a strategy for future Gypsy sites.

Instead, the parish council was happy to support a further three-year extension of temporary permission.

However, Cornwall Council planning officers said the new strategy would not be able to identify many specific sites for Gypsies and Travellers and so other sites would be needed.

The committee, who were also told the Gyspy family currently living on the site was "well integrated into the local community", voted by 12 to 1 in favour of approving the application, on the condition that the site was tidied and suitable landscaping carried out.