Derbyshire Dales: Gypsy site approved in Rowsley

From the Derbyshire Times

Members of Derbyshire Dales District Council have approved plans for a Gypsy site at Old Station Close car park in Rowsley for a period of nine months.

Following last night’s planning committee decision to approve – by a vote of nine to seven – the authority must now make an official offer to the Traveller family in question as to whether they actually want to move there.

If they accept, surfacing work will start straight away and the district council will instruct Severn-Trent Water to connect a water supply to the site.

A Derbyshire Dales District Council spokesperson said: “The timescale of their work is out of our hands, but we will be requesting that action is taken as soon as possible. The nine months’ time limit is activated from the day the Travellers move onto the Rowsley site.”

If the Travellers decide they do not want the site, the matter will go to County Court to see if the offer made by the authority was a reasonable one.

The district council spokesperson added: “While we understand some of the concerns expressed by local residents who live in the vicinity of the approved temporary site and potential permanent sites, we must reiterate our absolute legal duty to provide accommodation for the Traveller family.”