Gipsies with ‘aversion to bricks’ win green belt war
A FAMILY of travellers who illegally set up home on green belt land have been allowed to stay for three years because it would breach their human rights to move them on.
The four gipsy households moved on to the moorland site more than a year ago and ignored an order to leave after retrospective planning permission to change the land from agriculture to a caravan site was refused.
The Irish travellers had previously been forced to live in ‘housing’ and, in their rejected planning claim, it was argued on their behalf they had a cultural ‘aversion to bricks and mortar’ and it affected their mental health.
During their appeal, a planning inspector agreed with the council that a ‘residential’ development of nine caravans and the laying of 3,000 square metres of hard surface would damage the countryside spot. But the inspector John Murray nonetheless granted temporary planning permission for three years because of their rights to ‘private and family life’ under the 1998 Human Rights Act, which he said included ‘the traditions and culture associated with the gipsy way of life’.
The family living at the site at Scammonden, near Huddersfield, is made up of Thomas Ward, his three adult sons and their wives and ten children, aged between one and 13, with two more babies ‘on the way’.
The family own the land where they pitched their caravans.
Their ‘ nomadic’ way of life means they travel for six to eight months a year, with the wives and children joining the men in the school holidays. Kirklees Council itself had argued it would not be reasonable for the travellers to live in its conventional social housing – which was all it had to offer because there were no available travellers’ sites in the area.
But local authorities have a duty to facilitate the lifestyle of travellers, the inspector’s report stated, adding: ‘At such young ages, all of the children would patently benefit from the stability derived from living on a settled base.’
Mr Murray concluded that rejecting the appeal ‘would force the family to resort to roadside camping’ and granted them the right to stay given their ‘very special circumstances’. The moorland site enables them to send the children to a local Catholic school and use nearby health facilities.
Under the terms of the ruling, the land must be ‘restored to its former condition’ when they leave in three years’ time.
Explaining his decision further, Mr Murray said: ‘It would protect the green belt in the long term while meeting the best interests of the children and avoiding a violation of the occupiers’ rights under the Human Rights Act.’
He said it was also in keeping with the Equality Act 2010, which
‘People are annoyed’
concerns the ‘ need to eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation, and to advance equality of opportunity and foster good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and people who do not’.
Donna Bellamy, a local Conservative councillor, said residents were upset at the decision to let them stay. She added: ‘ I was extremely surprised that the inspector allowed it and people are annoyed. Local opinion is that it shouldn’t be there as it spoils the green belt. Nobody is allowed to build houses there.’