Gypsy and traveller site proposal rejected again
PLANS for a gypsy and traveller site have been refused for a second time.
The proposal by Michael Winter wanted to turn vacant land next to Newquay Close and the A47 in Hinckley into a site for four gypsy and traveller pitches.
Mr Winter said the plan would meet the “urgent need” of four families.
Previous plans attracted 143 objections before being rejected last summer.
A new plan, which offered no amendments to the original, also generated 98 objections including the loss of green land, the impact on traffic safety due to the location off the A47 and possible noise issues.
The planning application said there was a shortage of gypsy and traveller pitches regionally and nationally.
Alison Heine, on behalf of Mr Winter, said the families at the centre of the application currently lived in “inappropriate accommodation”.
She said that the best interests of their young children should be taken into account when making a decision on the scheme.
She added the site was “urban fringe” rather than open countryside.
However, officials at Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council said the land was undeveloped and had much beauty.
They said the site would create “permanent and significant” adverse impacts on the green space and harm the intrinsic value of the countryside.
A report said: “The development fails to protect the role and function of the designated green wedge.
“The significant adverse impacts of the development significantly and demonstrably outweigh the benefits of the scheme.”
The authority said the turn-off from the A47 Normandy Way could become an “additional source of danger” on an already “busy, highspeed road” and the scheme should be rejected on highways grounds.