'Mendip is making a fool of itself over camped Travellers' - Somerset

From the Shepton Mallet Journal

Angry Pilton residents spoke out at Mendip District Council's Cabinet meeting last week demanding action to stop Travellers camping illegally on land in their village once and for all.

They claimed Mendip was: "making a fool of itself" and had "failed the residents of Pilton" by allowing the problems of illegal Travellers camped on the Guppy Barn site at Cock and Bull Drive to continue over the last eight years despite numerous planning permission refusals, failed appeals by landowner Rob Williams, and enforcement notices to clear the site of Travellers that had never been activated by Mendip officers.

Matters came to a head this month after Mr Williams submitted his latest application to allow Travellers to live on his site.

He wants permission to change the use of the land from agricultural use to a Travellers site and provide eight pitches (seven permanent and one transit) plus the construction of a washroom/wc building.

Speaking at the Cabinet meeting angry Pilton resident Brian Derrick said that planning decisions and lost appeals in the past had decreed that it was unlawful for that site to be occupied by Travellers. But no enforcement action to move Travellers off the site had ever been taken.

It was, he said, "an insult" to the people of Pilton that the situation was being allowed to continue and that Mendip had failed them. And he declared they were allowing "democracy to break down" by not taking any enforcement action to stop the illegal site.

His concerns were echoed by neighbour Jackie Batt who complained about Mendip Council's whole handling of the situation by not taking any action to clear the site of the illegal campers.

And she said residents objected to the council's planning department's officers negotiating with the applicant Mr Williams on the latest bid for permission when they were the same department which should be stopping the nuisance being caused to residents by the site's existence in the first place.

"You are allowing the applicant to make a fool of Mendip District Council and yourselves thereto." she declared angrily.

Council leader Harvey Siggs said there would be no debate on the matter, the councillors had clearly heard what the residents were saying and would now have "very clear discussions with the officers" about the situation.

Thanking the residents for bringing the situation to the council's notice he said: "We understand clearly what you are saying and we have a great deal of sympathy with it."

After the meeting Mr Williams said several people had already vacated the site after the last appeal failed.

But he hoped his latest application would be approved so the people still currently living there could legally stay.

"We desperately want it to be approved – all we can do is wait and pray," he said.