Call for gypsies to speak to council (From The Northern Echo)

Call for gypsies to speak to council

6:20am Thursday 16th February 2012 in Darlington

GYPSIES and travellers have been urged to seek permission before setting settling on illegal sites in Darlington in order to avoid unnecessary disputes.

Yesterday, permission was given for a gypsy family to settle on a site outside of Brafferton, near Darlington.

However, the chairman of Darlington Borough Council’s Planning Committee called for more dialogue between travellers and the council.

Robert Flannigan was given permission for a mobile home, two touring caravans and a stable block at the site at Lime Lane, Brafferton.

However, the planning committee meeting yesterday heard accusations from one angry villager that travelling families were being given preferential treatment to the settled community.

Stewart Hodgson asked why Mr Flannigan and his family were given permission to settle at Lime Lane when non-gypsy families who had previously owned the site were refused similar applications.

He said that it was partly the council’s fault for failing to provide enough permanent gypsy sites in Darlington.

He added: “Travellers get more priorities than ordinary citizens.

“This solves a problem because it’s providing a pitch for travellers.”

Planning officer Roy Merritt, the council’s planning development manager, said the authority had to abide by government legislation which stated that consideration should be given to applications for traveller sites in rural areas.

He said this application was suitable for approval as it was in a well-screened area, unlike two other similar sites in Brafferton which had been refused recently because they were visible from the road.

Local ward councillor Brian Jones said more travellers were setting up illegal sites because of the shortage of legitimate ones.

He said the council should not be supporting these people.

He added: “If people want to move onto land without planning permission we would not support them by giving that planning permission when they’re there unlawfully.”

Mr Flannigan told the meeting that he had not moved into the caravan on the site and all the buildings had been erected before he bought the land.

After granting permission, the chairman of the committee, Coun Paul Baldwin, said: “As a council, we do work hard with gypsies and we want to get the message across to come and speak to us first and not to skirt the rules and set up sites which officers have to investigate.

“I would say to them come and speak to the officers first to try and avoid any conflict from day one.”