Ash Green Traveller site approved despite more than 30 objections as council warns of land shortage

A Traveller site has been granted planning permission after officers warned there are “no alternative sites” available within the borough.

The proposals would see the land at Whitegate Copse, Ash Green, repurposed into a residential site for Travellers, with provision for both static and touring caravans.

It was brought before Guildford Borough Council’s planning committee for a decision after more than 30 letters of objection were submitted by nearby residents.

Several objectors raised concerns about the development’s potential impact on the green belt, as well as the surrounding forestry and wildlife.

One resident wrote: “It borders a walking trail and priceless woods which must be protected, and granting this application would not only deprive the wildlife but also upset the ecosystem; it would remove one of the few remaining amenities left for residents and visitors.”

Others protested, concerned that the site could place additional strain on the village’s infrastructure, including schools and health facilities.

But speaking before the planning committee, Lee Windebank, who is one of the applicants, said: “I have relatives that live in brick and mortar, and others who still live roadside travelling the country for work.

“We are law-abiding members of society who respect the settled way of life while honouring our traditional heritage and cultural ways. We run businesses, pay our taxes, and our children go to school.”

He told the committee his family had lived in and around Ash for generations. “The children being able to access schooling is important to our family,” he added.

“A settled base provides this, unlike roadside existence where you are constantly on the move.”

In their report, Guildford planning officers wrote that the site is of “modest” size and in a “reasonably sustainable location” that could support up to eight families with its proximity to health and education services.

“No alternative sites are available within the borough, and none are expected to come forward in the short to medium term,” the report warns.

Cllr Patrick Oven (Guildford Greenbelt Group: Send & Lovelace) said: “It seems to me that although this isn’t the most sustainable location, these pitches never are in an ideally sustainable location.

“The nature of them is going to be that they are always at some distance. If they were right in the middle of villages, there would be even greater complaints.”

His sentiments were echoed by Cllr Catherine Houston (Liberal Democrats: Shalford), who said: “The most powerful argument I’ve heard this evening is ‘if not here, then where?’”

She added: “Behind all the papers and the words, there are human beings who need homes.”

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Councillors voted in favour of officer recommendations to grant planning permission, subject to conditions aimed at helping mitigate any impacts on the area’s wildlife.