Planning inquiry into Birch Green Traveller site concludes - Hertfordshire

From the Mercury

A PLANNING inquiry into building a Traveller site in Birch Green has concluded this week.

Parties for and against the change of use of land north of The Old Coach Road and west of 12 Birch Green finished giving their representations to planning inspector Claire Sherratt at East Herts Council’s headquarters in Wallfields, Hertford, on Monday.

Travelling brothers Thomas and Myley Cash, aged 30 and 25 respectively, controversially moved their families onto a field and then the village green in August last year, which caused uproar with neighbouring residents, as reported in the Mercury.

Some £44,000 in taxpayers’ money, most of which came from East Herts Council, was spent on moving the travellers from the site, including £20,000 in legal costs in taking action in the High Court and £15,000 in security costs to bring in bailiffs on a number of occasions.

And Hertingfordbury Parish Council, which is responsible for the village green, spent more than one tenth of its yearly precept on dealing with the situation.

The travellers finally left in October that year.

The incident also led to a massive fall-out between the district council and Hertfordshire Constabulary, with former East Herts chief inspector Jon Speed criticising the local authority for not taking action quickly enough and saying that in his view, “the council is dysfunctional, has no leadership, no direction and is a can’t do organisation”.

The Cash brothers, who lodged an appeal for three mobile homes and three touring caravans, as well as an appeal against enforcement action to be taken for laying down a hard surface on land by The Old Coach Road, made their final arguments on Monday afternoon.

East Herts Council representatives opposed the scheme, claiming it would damage the Green Belt among other objections.

Concerns were also raised by the Greens Residents Action Group over the visual impact, amenity to neighbours and danger to highways users.

Ms Sharrett visited the site after the hearing and will make her recommendations to the community and local government secretary MP Eric Pickles, who will decide whether to grant the appeal.

The decision is expected to be announced around the end of January or beginning of February next year.