Enforcement action over unauthorised traveller site

The council said unauthorised development took place on the site in August

An enforcement notice has been served over an unauthorised traveller site in a town in Leicestershire.

Blaby District Council said it took the action after refusing a retrospective planning application for a static caravan, gates and fencing on land near Bouskell Park in Blaby.

Officials said the enforcement required the area, off Sycamore Street, to be cleared of structures and vehicles and restored to its previous condition.

The BBC has contacted the agent of the applicant Martin McDonagh for comment.

The council said hedges were removed to form an access to the site and gates were erected over the August Bank Holiday and an application for planning permission was later submitted.

The council said it was concerned about the development's impact on the character of the Blaby Hall estate

The authority said it received 441 objections to the application and turned it down because it said the removal of the hedge "significantly harmed" the character of the area.

It also said the plot was close to the Grade II listed Blaby Hall estate and Victorian ice house and the caravan site would form "a discordant feature" in the area.

In documents sent to the council, Mr McDonagh said the scheme was intended "to provide accommodation for an extended gypsy/traveller family".

He said the development would meet a "pressing accommodation need" in the district.

However, the council said a number of previous applications for the site had been considered and were either refused or withdrawn.

It said a similar scheme for two caravan pitches plus a dayroom was rejected by its planning committee in May 2020 and a planning inspector then dismissed an appeal against the refusal in November 2022.

Councillor Mike Shirley, the council's planning and strategic growth spokesperson, said: "As the retrospective planning application was refused, the unauthorised development at Sycamore Street must cease, all vehicles and equipment must be removed and the land restored.

"We are committed to working closely with the applicant to ensure the process runs smoothly."