Mole Valley District Council

1 Mole Valley District Council Gypsy and Traveller Accommodation Assessment Final Report February 2018. Opinion Research Services | The Strand Swansea SA1 1AF | 01792 535300 | | Opinion Research Services | Mole Valley District Council Gypsy and Traveller Accommodation Assessment February 2017. Opinion Research Services | The Strand, Swansea SA1 1AF. Steve Jarman, Claire Thomas and Ciara Small enquiries: 01792 535300 Copyright February 2018. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government \licence v Contains OS Data Crown Copyright (2018). Opinion Research Services | Mole Valley District Council Gypsy and Traveller Accommodation Assessment February 2017.

2 Contents 1. Executive Summary .. 1. Introduction and Methodology .. 1. Key Findings .. 2. Additional Pitch Needs Gypsies and Travellers .. 2. Additional Plot Needs - Travelling Showpeople .. 3. Transit Requirements .. 4. 2. Introduction .. 5. Definitions .. 5. The Planning Definition in PPTS (2015) .. 5. Definition of Travelling .. 6. Legislation and Guidance for Gypsies and Travellers .. 8. PPTS (2015).. 8. 3. Methodology .. 14. 14. Stakeholder Engagement .. 15. Working Collaboratively with Neighbouring Planning Authorities .. 15. Timing of the 18. 4. Gypsy, Traveller & Travelling Showpeople Sites & Population.

3 24. 24. Sites and Yards in Mole 25. Traveller Caravan Count .. 25. 5. Stakeholder Engagement .. 26. 6. Survey of Travelling Communities .. 40. Interviews with Gypsies and Travellers .. 40. 7. Current and Future Pitch 42. 42. New Household Formation Rates .. 42. Breakdown by 5 Year Bands .. 44. Applying the Planning 44. Pitch Needs Unknown Gypsies and Travellers .. 46. Pitch Needs - Gypsies and Travellers that do not meet the Planning Definition .. 47. Opinion Research Services | Mole Valley District Council Gypsy and Traveller Accommodation Assessment February 2017. Travelling Showpeople Needs .. 48. Plot Needs Travelling Showpeople that meet the Planning Definition.

4 48. Plot Needs Unknown Travelling Showpeople .. 49. Plot Needs Travelling Showpeople who do not meet the Planning Definition .. 49. Transit Requirements .. 49. DCLG Traveller Caravan Count .. 49. Stakeholder Interviews and Local Data .. 50. Potential Implications of PPTS (2015) .. 50. Transit Recommendations .. 50. List of Figures .. 52. Appendix A: Glossary of Terms .. 53. Appendix B: Unknown Households .. 55. Appendix C: Households that do not meet the Planning Definition .. 57. Appendix D: Sites and Yards Lists (June 2017) .. 59. Appendix E: Household Interview Questions .. 60. Appendix F: Technical Note on Household Formation and Growth Rates.

5 70. Opinion Research Services | Mole Valley District Council Gypsy and Traveller Accommodation Assessment February 2017. 1. Executive Summary Introduction and Methodology The primary objective of this Gypsy and Traveller Accommodation Assessment (GTAA) is to provide a robust assessment of current and future need for Gypsy, Traveller and Travelling Showpeople accommodation in the District of Mole Valley . As well as updating previous GTAAs, another key reason for completing the study was the publication of a revised version of Planning Policy for Traveller Sites (PPTS) in August 2015. This included a change to the definition of Travellers for planning purposes.

6 The key change that was made was the removal of the term persons who have ceased to travel permanently, meaning that those who have ceased to travel permanently will not now fall under the planning definition of a Traveller for the purposes of assessing accommodation need in a GTAA (see Paragraph for the full definition). The GTAA provides a robust and credible evidence base which can be used to aid the implementation of Development Plan policies and the provision of new Gypsy and Traveller pitches and Travelling Showpeople plots for the period up to 2033. The outcomes of this study supersede the outcomes of any previous GTAAs completed in Mole Valley .

7 The GTAA has sought to understand the accommodation needs of the Gypsy, Traveller and Travelling Showpeople population in Mole Valley through a combination of desk-based research, stakeholder interviews and engagement with members of the travelling community living on all known sites. A. total of 22 interviews were completed with Gypsies and Travellers, and 1 interview was completed with a Travelling Showperson. Details of 1 household that was not able to be interviewed were obtained from a recent planning application. ORS attempted to contact 9 families living in bricks and mortar and on the waiting list for a public site, however half of the telephone numbers provided were not in service and the 4 others did not want to take part in the study.

8 One interview was completed with a Gypsy who current has no fixed abode; however this person had already been included in the Reigate and Banstead GTAA. The fieldwork for the study was completed between May and August 2017, which was after the publication of PPTS (2015). As a result of this, questions were included in the household interviews to enable the planning status of households to be determined. The baseline date for the study is June 2017 which was when the majority of the household interviews were completed. 1. Opinion Research Services | Mole Valley District Council Gypsy and Traveller Accommodation Assessment February 2017.

9 Key Findings Additional Pitch Needs Gypsies and Travellers Overall the additional pitch needs for Gypsies and Travellers from 2017-2033 are set out below. Additional needs are set out for those households that meet the planning definition of a Gypsy or Traveller, for those unknown households1 where an interview was not able to be completed (either due to households refusing to be interviewed, or not being present despite up to 3 visits to each pitch) who may meet the planning definition, and for those households that do not meet the planning definition. Only the need from those households who meet the planning definition and from those of the unknown households who subsequently demonstrate that they meet it should be formally considered as need arising from the GTAA.

10 It is recommended that the need arising from households that meet the planning definition should be addressed through site allocation/intensification/expansion Local Plan policies. The Council will need to carefully consider how to address the needs associated with unknown Travellers as it is unlikely that all of this need will have to be addressed through the provision of conditioned Gypsy or Traveller pitches. In terms of Local Plan policies, the Council should consider the use of a criteria-based policy (as suggested in PPTS) for any unknown households that do provide evidence that they meet the planning definition.