VILLAGERS are fuming after a farmer gave travellers the green light to build on fields next to their homes – without planning permission.
Outrage was sparked among neighbours in Blythe Bridge, Staffordshire, after the peaceful street was overrun by lorries and tractors.
The heavy duty vehicles were called in on Friday to start work on a field in Stallington Road and have wreaked havoc since.
Pictures show the roads bottlenecked with lorries and police cars, causing travel chaos.
Nearby homeowners claimed tonnes of hardcore has been dumped on the greenbelt site over the weekend.
And shocked council officials blasted the illicit works as “stressful” and “worrying”.
Police responded to frantic calls from the community but admitted there was nothing they could do to stop construction because the landowner had granted permission.
Officers also referred to it as a civil matter, not criminal.
Stafford Borough Councillor Alec Sandiford told Stoke-on-Trent Live there is “no planning application”.
He asked if the “unauthorised” work could be held off until the start of next week, but to no avail.
“They’ve been bringing in tonnes of hardcore on lorries and tractors and rollers coming through,” the councillor said.
“I’m not even sure the road itself can sustain the weight because it’s only a small road with no curbs or road markings.”
Alec confirmed the council is trying to halt construction through enforcement officers until a planning permission application has been submitted.
He said one had previously been made for stables, but this was denied.
“My worry is if the police [officers] leave there will be increased hostility towards the residents,” continued Alec.
One resident who wanted to remain anonymous said their had been a communal effort to talk to steer the landowner in another direction.
Planning permission guidance according to gov.uk
You will need to request planning permission if you wish to build something new, make a major change to your building or change the use of your building – for example starting a business.
To find out if you need planning permission you should contact your Local Planning Authority through your council.
If planning permission is refused you can appeal.
You are able to appeal if you were refused planning permission for reasons that you think go against the LPA’s development plan or planning policy (you can usually find these on their website).
You can also appeal if you were granted planning permission with conditions you object to – you’ll need to explain why you think they’re unnecessary, unenforceable, vague, unreasonable or irrelevant.
Another ground for appeal is if the LPA has not given you a decision on your application and 8 weeks have passed since the date they told you they’d received it (or a different deadline you agreed with them has passed).
They explained how from 6am on Saturday, until 8am on Sunday there had been around 15 trucks swarming the area.
Locals were told work would stop at 5pm and were disappointed the police couldn’t intervene.
The anonymous resident further alleged there were untaxed cars and trailers with no licence plates in the area.
“There are four schools within half a mile from here, it’s not safe for the community,” they said.
“We’re surrounded by green belt land – about 80 percent is greenbelt – so they can’t really develop on that.”
They added how residents have found it difficult to get home improvements such as garages approved.
But now locals fear neither Stafford Borough Council nor Staffordshire Moorlands, who share authority of the land, will volunteer to tackle the problem.
