Gypsy and Traveller review

The South East England Regional Assembly (SEERA) is reviewing its draft South East Plan to include policies on meeting the accommodation needs of Gypsies, Travellers and Travelling Showpeople. The policies will include targets for the number of new pitches that must be provided on caravan sites in each local authority area in the South East. The specific locations for new sites will ultimately be decided by local authorities through their local development frameworks.

To help SEERA develop the right policies, the county, city, district and borough councils in East Sussex and Brighton & Hove have provided joint advice to the Assembly on:

• the number of new, permanent pitches that should be provided in this area between 2006 and 2016
• how these extra pitches should be distributed between districts
• associated needs for additional transit pitches
• the delivery and implementation of new sites.

Our advice has been used in SEERA’s development of options for public consultation.

Consultation

SEERA are holding a public consultation between 1 September and 21 November 2008. For more details and to submit comments, see the SEERA website – Somewhere to Live: Planning for Gypsies, Travellers and Travelling Showpeople in the South East.

Information about this consultation can also be viewed at drop-in exhibitions around the county, from 2.30pm – 7.30pm, at:

• De La Warr Pavilion, Bexhill – Tuesday 14 October
• Town Hall, High Street, Lewes – Thursday 16 October
• Town Hall, Queens Road, Hastings – Monday 20 October
• Civic Centre, High Street, Uckfield – Tuesday 21 October
• Town Hall, Grove Road, Eastbourne – Tuesday 28 October

Following this consultation SEERA will agree and submit its proposals to Government in spring 2009. Government will then hold another consultation on the proposals followed by hearings lead by independent inspectors and then a further consultation on any proposed modifications. The final report is expected summer 2010.

The need for extra pitches

Tensions can sometimes arise between Travellers and the settled community because of unauthorised camping. These problems are largely caused by a shortage of caravan pitches to meet Travellers’ needs. They will only be resolved if there are enough authorised pitches for Travellers to live on.

In East Sussex, there is a modest but unfulfilled need for more permanent residential and transit pitches, so new sites must be found to ease the problems. We aim to strike a balance between the needs of the settled and the Traveller communities through our East Sussex Traveller Strategy. This includes:

• advising SEERA on the need for extra pitches in this area
• developing proposals for future pitch provision, locally
• bringing forward bids for new or refurbished transit sites.

Our advice to SEERA

Following consultations with local stakeholders, the councils decided that there should be no changes to our draft proposals on the number and distribution of the extra permanent pitches. Full details of all the comments received and our response to them are included in the consultation report which is available below.

Building on the on the results of our Gypsy and Traveller Accommodation Needs Assessment (GTAA), the local authorities have therefore advised SEERA that an extra 47 permanent residential pitches should be provided in East Sussex and Brighton & Hove between 2006 and 2011. No more pitches are likely to be needed over the following five years.

We have also provided advice on two options for distributing this requirement between districts.

• Option A is a distribution based on needs where they arise
• Option B is a sustainable distribution that takes account of wider social, economic and environmental issues.

More detailed information on these options, including a table of proposed numbers of pitches in different areas, is available in the documents below.

Acrobat (PDF)
Final advice to SEERA, October 2007 (123k) The councils’ joint advice to SEERA on the accommodation needs of Gypsies and Travellers. This is presented using the Assembly’s pro-forma.
Consultation report, September 2007 (69k) A report of the consultations carried out with local stakeholders on the councils’ draft proposals for future pitch provision. This includes details of all the comments received – in writing and at meetings – and our responses to this feedback.
Transit needs, October 2007 (73k) A qualitative assessment of the need for any additional transit pitches in East Sussex and Brighton & Hove.
Implementation and delivery, October 2007 (91k) Further advice to SEERA on the implementation and delivery of sites for Travellers, including suggested strategic planning criteria for locating suitable sites.
Meeting the accommodation needs of Gypsies and Travellers, July 2007 (255k) Our main consultation document which set out the local authorities’ draft proposals for the overall number and distribution of permanent pitches needed in this area over the next ten years.
Towards a baseline distribution of future pitch provision, July 2007 (188k) Supporting technical paper on the approach we have taken to establishing how many extra permanent pitches should be provided in this area. Also presents similar detail on Option A – the needs-based distribution of future requirements.
Developing a more sustainable distribution of future pitch provision, July 2007 (244k) Supporting technical paper presenting more detailed information about the approach the local authorities have taken to developing Option B – a more sustainable distribution of future pitch requirements.
Guidance on pitch requirements, March 2007 (72k) SEERA has provided more detailed guidance on the approach local authorities should take to advising the Assembly on future caravan pitch requirements in their area.
Brief for the submission of advice, December 2006 (144k) SEERA’s original brief for the advice it needs from local authorities on the accommodation needs of gypsies and travellers.