'We've nowhere else to go', say Travellers living on flood plain in Brigg - Lincolnshire

From the Scunthorpe Telegraph

Travellers have insisted they have done all they can in a bid to get consent for a site in Brigg.

A previous application was refused by North Lincolnshire Council and denied by a planning inspector on appeal because the Mill Lane was on a flood plain.

Despite the ruling, 12 families continue to occupy the land close to the River Ancholme but Brigg town councillors say permission for a revised application should be refused due to the flood risk.

However, Mary James, who previously applied for a site at Mill Lane, said there was nowhere else to go.

"There should be more grounds for the Gypsies to build on," she said.

"There is nowhere else for us to go. Everybody has their own individual mobile caravan. We don't want to go in concrete housing."

Fellow Traveller Robert Lee-Smith said the new plans included raising ground levels that would alleviate the problem of flooding.

"They have raised the ground level by about three feet so that should not be a problem anymore," he said.

"We want to live here, not anywhere else. We don't want to move, we want to live here."

For now, Brigg town councillors have accepted a proposal by councillor Ben Nobbs to allow a further 12 months for a suitable site to be found.

Mr Nobbs, chairman of Brigg Town Council planning committee, said: "The previous tolerance for the five original families should continue for a further 12 months, in which time North Lincolnshire Council can bring forward the sites already identified.

"Clearly every effort should be made to ensure that the five remaining families are found a suitable place and surely they deserve better than this site."

Mr Nobbs said recent figures showed there was a need for a further site, despite some of the original applicants finding alternative accommodation.

Citing the recent Government planning policy for Traveller sites, Councillor Nobbs also said there were further grounds to oppose the application.

Town councillors said there would be three sites in close proximity if the scheme was approved.

And they said this would not encourage integration with the wider community and would dominate the countryside.

The recommendations made by Brigg town councillors will now be passed on to North Lincolnshire Council, which will have the final say on whether to grant the application.