Gypsy and traveller site allocation

Planning guidance places a requirement on local authorities to assess the accommodation needs of Gypsies, Travellers and Travelling Showpeople and to set pitch targets for gypsies and travellers and plot targets for travelling showpeople that address the likely permanent and transit site accommodation needs of travellers in the District, working collaboratively with neighbouring local authorities.

In particular, planning guidance requires local authorities, in producing their local plans , to identify and update annually a supply of specific deliverable sites sufficient to provide 5 years’ worth of sites against the locally set targets; and identify a supply of specific, developable sites, or broad locations for growth for years 6-10.

If a local authority cannot demonstrate an up-to-date 5 year supply of deliverable sites, then this is a significant material consideration in any subsequent planning decision.

Local Plan Review

As part of the Local Plan review, Horsham Council has commissioned Opinion Research Services (ORS) to carry out a housing needs assessment of the Gypsy, Travellers and Travelling Showpeople community in Horsham District, with the aim of addressing their needs through the Local Plan. A copy of the Gypsy and Traveller Accommodation Assessment is available to view on the Local Plan Examination Library page. For information in relation to the current timescales of the Local Plan Review please view the Local Plan review timetable.

Call for sites 2022

Horsham Council is continuing to work with Opinion Research Services to assess the housing needs requirements of the Gypsy, Travellers and Travelling Showpeople community. We carried out a further “Call for Sites” exercise between Monday 7 November and 5pm Monday 19 December 2022 for stakeholders to propose any additional sites for consideration for use as Gypsy, Traveller or Travelling Showpeople use. See the proforma below. Potential sites will be assessed and consulted on at the next stage of the Local Plan Review.

Submit a site

Call for Sites Form 2022 (MS Word Document, 118.9 KB)

Call for sites 2020

As part of the Local Plan review, we held a call for sites exercise between Monday 7th September and Friday 2nd October 2020 to identify and assess potential sites for future use by Gypsies, Travellers and Travelling Showpeople. We asked for information about any potential sites in the District that may be deliverable and developable for these uses.

We received details on 6 potential sites for Gypsy and Traveller use. These are as follows:

1. Land North of Girder Bridge, Gay Street Lane, North Heath
2. Land East of Coolham Road, West Chiltington
3. Land South of Mill Lane, Littleworth
4. Plot 3 Bramblefield Crays Lane Thakeham
5. Parsons Field Stables, Pickhurst Lane Pulborough
6. Land north of Tisserand Farm, off Stane Street Five Oaks

Submitted Sites 2020

Call for sites 2019

As part of the Local Plan Review we held a call for sites exercise between 3 June 2019 and 30 August 2019 to identify and assess potential sites for future use by Gypsies, Travellers and Travelling Showpeople. We asked for information about any potential sites in the District that may be deliverable and developable for these uses.

We received details on 3 potential sites for Gypsy and Traveller use. These are as follows:
1. The Orchard, Cowfold Road
2. Land North of Girder Bridge, Gay Street Lane, North Heath
3. Land West of Ifield
4. Support has also been expressed for Smithers Rough in Rudgwick.

Submitted Sites 2019

Site Allocations Development Plan Document (April 2017 and December 2017)

The Council published 2 draft Development Plan Documents “Gypsy, Traveller and Travelling Showpeople Draft Site Allocations Development Plan Document (DPD) Preferred Strategy” in April 2017 and December 2017 (1 December 2017-26 January 2018) for public consultation with proposed site allocations to meet the identified need for Gypsy, Traveller and Travelling Showpeople provision in the District.

The December 2017 draft document identified a supply of 68 gypsy and traveller pitches, which met the 10 year required need for 60 pitches. The Proposed Submission version of the draft Gypsy & Traveller DPD was due to be presented at Cabinet on 24th May 2018. However, the owner of the site at Bromeliad Nursery, Billingshurst wrote to Horsham Council on 25 April 2018, formally withdrawing the site as being available for Gypsy & Traveller use. This meant that the removal of 15 pitches at Bromeliad Nursery meant that the Council could not demonstrate a supply of 60 pitches, as the supply had been reduced to 53 pitches.

The Council did not proceed with the Proposed Submission version of the Gypsy & Traveller Site Allocation DPD, and the document therefore carries very little weight in terms of identifying an unmet need for Gypsies and Travellers.

It was therefore decided to employ consultants to carry out an updated Gypsy and Traveller Needs Assessment in early 2019, so that a new draft Gypsy and Traveller policy and draft allocations could be produced as part of the local plan review.