Following a public inquiry, the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government has backed Barnsley Council's decision to refuse planning permission for a Gypsy and Traveller caravan site at the former Cudworth Railway Station at Station Road, Lundwood.

The government has confirmed the recommendation of the Planning Inspector that the proposal for 24 caravan pitches be dismissed because it would cause considerable harm to the visual appearance of the Green Belt. This was due to the scale of the intended development and the prominent location of the site in a sensitive, narrow section of Green Belt between Cudworth and Lundwood.

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The Secretary of State, Hazel Blears MP, accepted there was an unmet need for Gypsy and Traveller accommodation in Barnsley. However, she agreed with the council that granting permission for such a large-scale site would be premature and undermine the proper planning process, given that Gypsy and Traveller sites have not been identified through the ongoing Local Development Framework process.

In addition, the applicant, Station Developments of Royston, Barnsley, had failed to provide sufficient evidence of any other very special circumstances that could be seen to outweigh the strong presumption against inappropriate development in the Green Belt. For this reason, the Secretary of State also discounted the possibility of granting a temporary permission on the site.

A Barnsley Council spokesman said the proposal would have undermined the openness of the Green Belt between Cudworth and Lundwood and was also premature in advance of proposals for Gypsy and Traveller sites in the emerging Local Development Framework.

He added: "The council takes the issue of Gypsy and Traveller accommodation very seriously. A strategic approach is needed and the identification of appropriate sites must be informed by the data on the size and type of demand for accommodation."

(CD/JM)