GYPSIES IN HIGH COURT BATTLE FOR THE RIGHT TO LIVE AT A BEAUTY SPOT - Sussex

From the Daily Express

A GYPSY family took on the Government in the High Court yesterday over their right to park mobile homes at a beauty spot.

The Searles said Local Government Secretary Eric Pickles was “fundamentally unfair” in ordering them to move the homes.

They have occupied a three-acre plot of land in the picturesque South Downs National Park since 2009. To the horror of locals they moved in one Bank Holiday weekend after buying the land for £120,000.

Then this February police told villagers to move their cars as an extra wide prefabricated mobile home, complete with fake brickwork and slate roof, was delivered to the site near South Harting, West Sussex.

The plot of land currently has two mobile homes and a touring caravan, which are occupied by Jimmy and Christopher Searle and their families.

The Travellers’ occupation led to Chichester District Council serving an enforcement notice requesting the removal of mobile homes from the site.

But the Searles lodged an appeal against the order.

The matter ended up at the Royal Courts of Justice after Mr Pickles threw the appeal out stating that residential use “unacceptably harms” the natural beauty of the picture postcard village.

Two members of the Traveller family sat in court as their barrister Timothy Jones argued that Mr Pickles did not deal with the Searles’ appeal properly.

He said that Mr Pickles’ decision to take a different view from that of a qualified Government-appointed planning inspector, who visited the site, was “unfairness that will become apparent”.

At the heart of the hearing is whether Mr Pickles – who has said local councils should take tough decision on Gypsy and Traveller site provision – was right to throw out the Searles’ appeal without making a site visit.

Mr Jones argued that the only way anyone could assess the impact on the tranquil nature of the area was by visiting it.

He argued that Mr Pickles was not equipped to take a decision when he had no photographic evidence to show how the Gypsy family had made efforts to screen the site off.

The hearing continues.

see also: The Daily Mail - Gypsy family take fight to keep mobile homes with fake brickwork and slate roof on countryside beauty spot to High Court