Romany Gipsy family may be allowed to stay in ‘rolling countryside’ near village

A Romany Gipsy family who set up camp on “rolling open countryside” near a picturesque village in North Yorkshire may be allowed to permanently stay because of the “unlivable conditions” on an approved traveller’s site nearby.

Planning officials have recommended Oathie Sykes, and his extended family, which includes nine children, be allowed to live next to Sheriff Hutton despite 76 objections from residents.

The family argued that living at the official travellers’ site in Tara Park, a 15-minute drive away, was “intolerable” and not “conducive to their wellbeing”.

A planning application submitted to North Yorkshire county council said of Tara Park: “There is apparently no control of fly-tipping, raves, loud music playing, rat infestation and intolerable mixed tenants with threats of violence and total disregard of the Covid-19 regulations.”

The Sykes family have parked seven caravans on the stretch of countryside alongside dog kennels, children’s play equipment and chicken huts.

The family are seeking permission to set up four pitches each with a static caravan, along with an “amenity building” to offer a “communal kitchen, laundry, dining, and daytime facilities”, documents show.

They have also applied to run a dog-breeding business out of a nearby former disused agricultural building.

A report submitted to the Thirsk and Malton Area Constituency Committee said several members of the family suffer from “chronic health-related issues” and that refusing planning permission would force the family “to return to a life on the road”, harming their children’s “educational needs”.

“The agent for the applicant has made it clear that a refusal of planning permission for the family would force the family to return to a life on the road due to what they consider to be unlivable conditions at Tara Park,” it added.

However several residents, including the local parish council, have voiced objections to the family’s wishes.

Blight on the landscape

Public comments attached to the planning application, include those from Hannah Nelson who said their proposals would be a “blight on the landscape”.

Matthew Willgoss commented the caravans were an “eyesore” and the family disturbed the “peace and quiet” of the area, and Simon Adamson-Mullins said the lives of friends who live in a neighbouring property would be ruined, the Mail Online reported.

Guy Newbury, who lives 300 metres away from the Sykes family, claimed in an objection letter to the council, that “those member(s) of the family that suffer from a series of chronic health related issues are no longer on site”.

In November, the Supreme Court ruled that councils can ban travellers from their land.

Local authorities can take out court injunctions barring travellers from sites across their boroughs before they arrive, even if they cannot identify who they are in advance, five judges ruled on Wednesday.

There are estimated to be 25,000 traveller caravans in the UK, accounting for a quarter of the traveller population, most of which are on private or local council sites.

Justifying the recommendation to approve the plans, North Yorkshire planning officials said: “Limited alternative provision and the personal circumstances of the applicant and his family (including the best interests of children at the site) weigh in favour of the proposal and are on balance to outweigh harm to the character and appearance of the landscape and the location of the site in the open countryside”.