A leaflet came through my door last week from Breckland Council. They are seeking to locate a 15 pitch gipsy site in one of two areas in 2011. One of the search areas runs from Silver Street in Besthorpe up to the Rory Holbrook site. There is the possibility of the site being shared between Breckland and South Norfolk (see link below).
This is a much bigger site than previously proposed by South Norfolk. 15 pitches which is about 45 caravans.
Breckland Council is having a consultation asking local people to vote on which area of search they prefer. If you oppose this site then I would encourage you to vote against it.
By suggesting the Besthorpe site and a site to the South East of Attleborough and asking for votes I believe that Breckland Council is trying to divide the community. A vote for either site will allow the council to say that x number of local people support the location of a large gypy site in the Attleborough area. I think we should stick together as a community and vote C which is "I consider that neither option is appropriate."
If this is a proposal to be shared with South Norfolk Council, will South Norfolk inform us and give us a fair and proper say - on previous consultations they haven't. Breckland Council should take our views into consideration as this will definately affect us being a camp of this size. I notice in their core criteria for selecting sites, parts a, b, c and d (see link on the above posting) that Breckland Council is interested in safety of the highway, facilities and services for site users and low impact on the landscape. Where is there criteria for affects and impact on existing residents close to these camp sites? As law abiding, tax paying citizens, we obviously don't count!! All this will do is divide the community over where the sites will go.
To make a comment and to vote for your preferred option (a,b or c) on-line, go to the Breckland Council website or click on this link provided by "Breckland Resident"
I went to the drop in session in Attleborough. Breckland only mailed the consultation booklet to NR16 and NR17 postcodes so no one in South Norfolk will get one. I'm sure Attleborough residents will be pleased there are no proposed sites in town. One of the members of the Breckland council said they plan to use Spooner Row School and Wymondham College so a Breckland site will be using South Norfolk schools (funding?). They seemed to have no clear search criteria except proximity to the A11, expecting G and T's to walk to Attleborough for amenities. It's a proposed 15 pitch permanent site, does anyone remember how many caravans each pitch can hold. There is a Parish Council meeting in Morley Village Hall on Monday night (6th) at 7.30 pm.
Currently, the gypsies and travellers prefer to live near the centre of Attleborough near their families and facilities. Why then has Breckland District Council not proposed a 15 pitch "permanent" site there in the centre which is where they want to live? Why move them right next to the A11 and what research have they done to prove they want to be stuck out in the middle of nowhere next to a trunk road? Have they actually asked the gypsies if they want to go there and if so, how many have they asked?
The shaded areas on Breckland District Council's map correspond to the proposed gypsy and travellers sites on the A11. Why is it that a third of the A11(North) proposed site is in South Norfolk District Council's area? What input has SNDC had in this and why were we not informed?
Having pinged back and forth between Breckland and South Norfolk Councils for the last few days, trying to get to the bottom of this, the only thing I'm sure about is that one of them is being less than transparent. According to spokesmen for Breckland, including the Snr Panning Policy Advisor Phil Mileham, they are not obliged to seek the opinions of S Norfolk residents. This is apparently the case even though their own map (www.breckland.gov.uk) clearly shows the border of S. Norfolk near Wymondham College ringed as an area of search for a possible travellers' site. They maintain that S. Norfolk Council and any schools, such as Wymondham College and Spooner Row, that might serve a site within that area have been informed - even though individuals living in the area have received no notification. They are adamant that the period of "consultation" ends in January 2011 and they have fulfilled their duties in seeking feedback from the public. However, S Norfolk Planning Officer Carole Baker has responded to an email from the clerk of Morley Parish Council saying that she will "strongly object" to the proposed area of search. Hardly the reaction of someone who was in the loop. Wymondham College has also been contacted by the Morley PC Clerk - and expressed surprise about the possibility of a travellers site within the area. Either Breckland informed S. Norfolk and the message failed to trickle down to any relevant parties, or it didn't tell its neighbouring Council in the first place. Neither option is very impressive. S. Norfolk is declining on cost grounds to to leaflet its residents in the areas surrounding the area of search. This may be a Breckland initiative but it, if a site is found in the so-called A11 corridor near Besthorpe, it will put pressure on already over-subscribed schools in S. Norfolk. The only way to alert local people to what is going on is through message boards such as this one and by organising from the ground up. Out of interest, have any residents of Spooner Row been directly informed of the Breckland proposals? It seems outrageous that a consultation process can be considered successful when such a large number of local people, never mind which side of the Council border they occupy, have not been told what is going on. Please spread the word among your friends and neighbours. Be prepared to sign a petition when it comes round. Seek enlightenment (ha ha!) from your Council and contact our MP, George Freeman. As things stand , we only have until the end of January to make ourselves heard.
Nobody in Spooner Row (as far as I am aware) has been directly informed of these proposals. I found out about it by chance on the posting on this Message Forum by Besthorpe Resident. I just wonder how much SNC knew about all this before Breckland Council put forward these sites. If only Breckland decided, then they have a damn cheek in selecting our land, yet not prepared to include us in their leaflet distribution.
We are the ones that will be affected, yet we are the last to know.
Once again we are drawn out of our nice and peaceful lives to fight our corner. Why should we be fighting against Breckland, when we have given ourselves breakdowns and been stressed fighting the very same thing with our own council? What is it about Attleborough that they are allowed to be spared their own fights? It seems to me that Breckland are proposing the sites to the south of the A11 because they know they will have no opposition from their residents. When the proposals were made by SNDC, most Breckland residents couldn't have cared less. The proposed sites are far enough away from them not to bother them, and that way, Breckland will have no opposition. They do not keep US informed and tell us that they are not obliged to as we do not come under their jurisdiction. SHAME ON BRECKLAND COUNCIL AND SHAME ON SOUTH NORFOLK COUNCIL for letting them get away with it! Sites in the proposed areas are not suitable for the same reasons that they were not suitable before. When will the councils wake up and realise that their proposals are rubbish and propose something that is workable? Put the sites where there are the facilities required. Most villages have lost their shops and post offices and the schools are overstretched. Wymondham College should make sure that they fight this all the way too. Look at the Attleborough council forum. This has not even warranted a mention on there! From what I hear about the 'drop-in'days in Attleborough, it would seem that the councillors there were just as un-cooperative and aggressive as Spooner Row experienced in their meetings. It's the 'them and us' attitude that is bringing this country down in all matters. Elected representatives, whether they be local councillors or MP's should listen to the people who elect them. Governing bodies today are a joke. And on what grounds I would like to know, that at a meeting, some people were told that the councillors were under no obligation to answer residents questions? What was the point of inviting people to a meeting to get informed, and then not informing them about matters which are relevant and important? The end of January deadline to object is a joke. People are very busy at this time of year, and this looks like another tactic to ensure that as few people as possible get involved in this. Incidentally, I have spoken to residents of Breckland, and although leaflets have been distributed, they are not comprehensive enough for people to understand what is going on. The map is a work of fiction and most of the leaflets undoubtedly were relegated to the recycling bins.
COUNCILS - TAKE HEED! GET BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD! Another piece of advice to them, get a dictionary and look up the meaning of the word 'TRANSPARENCY'!
Even if SNC did object to Breckland council building on SNC land, Breckland council could still build a gipsy & traveller site on its own land right up to the limits of their boundary line. Wherever this type of development goes it would have a massive impact on all the rural villages nearby no matter what side of the boundary they are. Best put this type of development in a more densely populated area to reduce the impact on existing communities.
On Friday, January 7th, at 7:30 pm there will be a meeting at Morley Village Hall, Golf Links Road, to give local people the chance to have their say and to discuss the options.The MP for mid-Norfolk George Freeman, representatives of Breckland and South Norfolk Councils, and the local press have been invited to attend.
As many of you may be aware a large permanent travellers' site, in an area that includes Besthorpe and adjoins Morley and Spooner Row, is currently being considered by Breckland District Council.
The consultation process ends less than a month away at noon on January 28th, yet people just over the border from Breckland, in the South Norfolk villages of Morley and Spooner Row, were not told about the proposals and their opinions are only now being sought. We feel many issues, including what impact a 15 pitch site (ie up to 30 caravans and about 100 people) will have on a small rural community, have been pushed aside. To address this there will be an open meeting as detailed below. Please encourage anyone who is likely to be effected by this proposal to attend.
Here are a few of the questions worth asking:
** Why are they looking in an area so close to a site near Spooner Row that has already been considered by South Norfolk - and rejected last year as unsuitable?
** Why has it chosen an area that fails current guidelines on the location of travellers' sites because it is too far from services such as shops and doctors' surgeries , has low local employment opportunities and presents a potential health and safety hazard because of its proximity to the A11?
** Why have the two already over-subscribed local schools in South Norfolk: Spooner Row Primary and Wymondham College, that would be closest to a travellers' site in the area of search not been informed?
In the Attleborough and Snetterton Heath Area Action Plan the consultation asks that if you consider neither parcel of land as suitable and another alternative should be considered then please outline where you think a gypsy and traveller site should be. Would the A11 junction where the A1077 to Great Ellingham begins serve as a better site? It would be within walking distance of Attleborough, therefore easy access (20 minute walk as laid down in Brecklands own criteria) to services like doctors surgeries and shops and greater choice of schools to accommodate the children with easy access onto the A11. Any other suggestions for an alternative site?
In the Attleborough and Snetterton Heath Area Action Plan the consultation asks that if you consider neither parcel of land as suitable and another alternative should be considered then please outline where you think a gypsy and traveller site should be. Would the A11 junction where the A1077 to Great Ellingham begins serve as a better site? It would be within walking distance of Attleborough, therefore easy access (20 minute walk as laid down in Brecklands own criteria) to services like doctors surgeries and shops and greater choice of schools to accommodate the children with easy access onto the A11. Any other suggestions for an alternative site?
I suggest that the best site for them is the area where they are wanting to live and settle at the moment which is near the centre of Attleborough close to services. I don't see any wanting to settle right next to a noisy A11 junction which is where councils want to put them.