Passions running high over traveller site plans, says ET...

Haven't had a chance to sit down and say what I want to say on last night's meeting which I posted on briefly HERE.

But here's a photo and report from the meeting as seen by the Peterborough Evening Telegraph.

2,000 residents say 'No way' to travellers and gypsies in The Deepings...

At least 2,000 local residents turned out to the public meeting tonight to send a strong message against South Kesteven District Council's plans for a travellers and gypsy site in The Deepings which I posted on HERE.

Officers from Grantham-based SKDC bravely presented their plans which include five possible sites in Market Deeping, and attempted to answer a host of hostile questions.

The sports hall at Deepings Leisure Centre was filled to its 400 capacity half an hour before the meeting was due to start - it's always difficult to estimate the size of a crowd, but I reckon there were at least four times as many people standing outside as there were inside.

Unfortunately, a plasma screen due to relay the presentation was damaged during the set-up, so those outside (including yours truly) had to make do with listening to the meeting via speakers.

However, John Hayes MP, who chaired the meeting, frequently came outside to pass the microphone around to hear as many views as possible.

I managed to make a few comments as parish and county councillor for Deeping St James. I told SKDC that they had made a complete hash of the 'consultation' to date, and have no faith that it will result in fair and rational decisions.

Remember, this is the same Council who made a dog's breakfast with their failed £650,000 glossy campaign (funded by council taxpayers) to sell-off their entire stock of council houses.

That was only a few months ago. Now the traveller/gyspy site farce.

SKDC is consulting on 19 potential traveller gypsy sites in Grantham, Bourne, Stamford and Market Deeping, when only one site may - or not - be needed to serve the entire district.

It's late now, so I'll try to post a fuller report on the meeting tomorrow...

Travellers and Gypsy sites: nothing suitable in The Deepings...

I’m planning to be at tonight’s public meeting over the white-hot issue of possible traveller and gypsy sites in The Deepings.

I seconded a motion by Councillor Andy Pelling at last night’s meeting of Deeping St James Parish Council, to the effect that:

After initial consideration of the stated requirements for a traveller and gypsy sites, DSJ Parish Council believes that there are no such suitable locations in The Deepings.

Councillor Ray Auger, a member of the Conservative Cabinet at SKDC, suggested it was unreasonable for the Parish Council to come to a view before the consultation period begins. He was one of three parish councillors to abstain.

In the end, no-one voted against and the motion was passed.

While we need to listen to all the arguments put forward in South Kesteven District Council’s yet-to-begin consultation, I believe it is important that DSJ Parish Council provides leadership in big issues which affect our community.

We will fully debate the issue at our August meeting before making detailed representation to SKDC who will make the final decision in the autumn on identifying gypsy and traveller sites across the entire district.

Councillor Kate Shinkins will represent DSJ Parish Council at tonight's public meeting which starts at 7.30 at Deepings Leisure Centre here in Deeping St James.

There’ll be a presentation on SKDC’s proposals by Mark Harrison, Planning Policy Manager. The meeting has been organised by MP John Hayes.

Pray for our councillors over travellers site decisions says Vicar...

Pray to help our local councillors come up with the best locations for travellers sites says Reverend Mark Warrick, vicar of Deeping St James and former chairman of our parish council.

Mark also has words of wisdom for those campaigning against travellers sites in the Deepings following the massive outcry against South Kesteven District Council's announcement which earmarked sites in the Deepings.

I posted most recently on this issue HERE.

Writing in this month's Priory News, the local church magazine Mark says:

The district is required to provide more spaces than at present for the accomodation of travelling people - there are simply not enough pitches for the number of people living the nomadic life, which is why there are so many illegal camps, of course: the caravans exist and have to be parked somewhere.

Given that the travellers' site will go somewhere in the district, our Councillors will need to hear comments from us on where they might best place the site. Comments like, "We don't want it here," while possibly expressing a true sentiment from some, will not really help them make up their minds, because they are going to hear that comment from every town they consult!

In order to have a really effective consultation, comments which suggest the suitability of one location over another are what the Council needs to hear, or some locations over some others. If all they get is a general hubbub of dissent then the consultation will have achieved very little.

A simple remark that, for example, the proximity of Grantham and Stamford to the A1 gives them an advantage from the travellers' viewpoint over Bourne or the Deepings, will be much more helpful to our Councillors than several pages about house prices and crime which will sound exactly the same in all four towns! They do not need telling that a travellers' site will be unpopular: they already know this.

Councillors have to make some difficult decisions and do not get many thanks for some of them: please pray often for our councillors at parish, district and county level, and especially at this time for Ken, Ray and Bryan our District Councillors and their colleagues as they struggle with this important and difficult matter.

I haven't yet heard the views of our district councillors - Tories Ray Auger and Bryan Helyar and LibDem Ken Joynson on this most thorny issue.

But they'll need all the help they can get on this one!

Labour's Quentin Davies campaigns against travellers' site in Stamford...

Our local Labour MP - Quentin Davies MP - has joined the campaign against possible travellers sites in Stamford announced by South Kesteven District Council. Quentin told the Stamford Mercury

Stamford, in case the district council has forgotten it, is the oldest conservation area in the country. It is one of the loveliest – I always claim the loveliest – stone town in England. Only Bath really rivals it. As such it is a major tourist attraction and much of the business and therefore the economy of Stamford depends on tourism.

Stamford also has a major traffic problem. Jams regularly stretch half a mile north and south of the single bridge.

Far from my concerns being selfish, I am quite convinced that Stamford is quite the wrong place for the travellers themselves.

Many of them live on benefit. If they are to have any chance of getting into a job and escaping from permanent welfare dependency, they need to be near a major source of employment.

Travellers site proposals...

Working away until Friday, but have already booked my place at next week's public meeting when South Kesteven District Council will be explaining their controversial plans for travellers sites in the Deepings area.

It's clearly a highly emotive issue and I've asked SKDC for a full briefing on their plans prior to the public meeting.