Temporary travellers sites in Birmingham delayed
Birmingham City Council’s plan to introduce temporary sites for travellers has been delayed.
The pilot scheme will not now start until the autumn.
It’s aimed at relieving “pressure” caused by unauthorised traveller camps in parks and open land which often spring up over the summer.
Sites at Longbridge, Bartley Green, Yardley, Billesley and Kings Heath have all been reported in recent weeks.
The city’s two permanent transit sites, where travellers can be directed to, have both been unavailable. One has suffered from repeated damage and vandalism while another has been home to “long-term occupants”.
The council’s ‘negotiated stopping’ pilot programme would see unused pieces of land in the city used by travellers for “short term stays”.
But a spokesperson for the authority confirmed last month the start date of the pilot had been pushed back from June.
In a new update, the council said it was now set to begin in October, with the trial set to last for at least 12 months.
A report to the public protection committee said consultation with communities and businesses near the proposed stopping sites was due to take place in August and September.
On the possible sites, it said: “An initial shortlist has been drawn up by officers.
“It is being considered jointly by planning, housing and property colleagues before wider consultation can take place on a finalised shortlist.”
Explaining the delay, the report said the work required “more extensive engagement” as well as a communications strategy.
It said additional time was needed to ensure “thorough consultation” on the sites had been carried out and that a final list of sites was agreed.
They will then require further approval, the council said.
The council previously said the ‘negotiated stopping’ approach was “favoured by Gypsy Traveller communities as it provides a balanced and sensitive approach” and “offers more flexibility”.
It pledged to take “everyone’s views into consideration” over the pilot scheme and was also focusing on “community cohesion”.
“The council will need to assess the success of adopting the negotiated stopping approach before it can be embedded more broadly as a way forward,” it said.
The update on the pilot will be discussed at a licensing and public protection committee on Wednesday, July 16.
