New plans lodged for traveller site in sleepy North Devon hamlet

A sleepy hamlet near Brayford is set to hit the headlines again following a new planning application for traveller pitches in the rural location.

There was a flurry of objections from residents last year when an initial application was lodged for four pitches in a 2.2 hectare field near the hamlet.

Some works to create hardstanding were carried out without planning permission and the news hit the national headlines last June.

That application has since been withdrawn and a new one lodged seeking permission for two pitches and day rooms on the site.

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Planning documents to North Devon Council say the current application is part retrospective due to the ‘minor engineering operations’ to create a topsoil bund (barrier) and gravel hardstanding.

Agent ET Planning, acting on behalf of applicants Philip and Kathleen Doran, said the proposal would seek to directly address the under supply of traveller sites in North Devon.

The application says the new proposal enables a lower intensity form of development with substantially greater on-site amenities, in line with planning policy.

This includes a communal play and recreation area for children, enhanced soft landscaping and improved spacing between pitches.

There are residential properties to the south of the site but the planning agents said low-intensity of the use and two pitches in total, ‘would not amount to any harmful level of noise or disturbance’.

Commenting on the previous application, county councillor Richard Hopley said he had received complaints about ‘excessive noise’ from the site and alleged there was ‘drone footage of many caravans on the site’, which had been removed before a visit by planning enforcement.

Another objector, a neighbour to the site, claimed there was ‘intolerable’ noise in the summer ‘from generators and the badly ridden motorcycles’.

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North Devon MP Ian Roome also commented on the previous application, saying he had a number of planning-related concerns including the impact on Charles, the environmental impact and questioned whether allowing it would set a precedent.

There is currently a limited supply of traveller accommodation in North Devon. The local plan outlines a requirement for at least 15 permanent pitches and at least two transit sites.

North Devon Council’s planning committee will consider the revised scheme in the coming weeks.