Villagers in gipsy site protest today

Campaigners are today marching on Selby District Council to present a petition over controversial plans to build a gipsy and travellers’ site in their village.

Over 1,000 signatures against the proposed site at Mill Farm, on Old Great North Road, in Brotherton, have been gathered just a month after it was launched by villagers.

Residents have accused Selby District Council of not carrying out a proper consultation over the plans.

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The site is one of four plots that have been earmarked for the scheme, which is part of a wider updated local development framework for Selby and could see as many as 20 caravans built on the chosen plot.

The four sites, which also include Kellington, Whitley and Hillcrest on the former A1 near Monk Fryston, were whittled down from a possible 60, and identified during the biggest public consultation the area has ever seen.

But Brotherton was not one of the sites named in the original plans, which sparked anger from villagers, who claimed they had not been given 14 weeks to respond like residents across the other 60 sites.

Now, they will hand in the petition to a full meeting of Selby Council this evening, where councillors are expected to put forward the preferred site for a second round of consultation.

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The petition highlights concerns over the site being too near retirement bungalows, as well safety fears owing to the location of a large high-voltage electricity pylon on the land.

A spokesman for Selby Council said, “Should full council decide to approve what is being proposed then another public consultation would follow, giving people a chance to have their say once more on what is being put forward. Even then any development would be subject to the normal planning process. This does not mean that development will definitely happen at particular sites; there’s a long way to go before we get to that.”

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