A WEST Somerset caravan site has lost a bid to be allowed to keep 21 caravans on part of the land all year round without restriction on their size or appearance.

Home Farm, Blue Anchor, part of Brean-based Somerset Leisure, wanted to let people live in the caravans for seven months of the year and keep them empty on site for the other five months.

It argued a planning permission won by default two years ago after proving the land had been used for at least 10 years did not have conditions restricting their size or type of use.

Somerset Council planning officer Briony Waterman said the company claimed there was no time restriction, provided the caravans were only occupied between April 1 and October 31.

Ms Waterman said Home Farm, which advertises itself as a ‘touring campsite’, did not provide any evidence ‘static caravans’ had previously been kept on the land.

She said: “The introduction of static caravans would constitute a material change of use as touring caravans, by their nature, are temporary and seasonal, whereas static caravans are typically larger, and permanently fixed, they represent a more intensive use of land, and create the need for concrete or similar pads.

“Static caravans have a greater impact upon the visual amenity of the area, as they become a permanent feature of the landscape, although it is noted there is a caravan site adjacent to the application site.”

With changes in planning rules Home Farm needed to show ‘static caravans’ had been in place for four years in order to be granted a certificate for lawful use, as it had with the previous ‘touring caravans’ approval.

Ms Waterman said lawful use certificates were decided ‘on the balance of probabilities’ and the burden of proof to support an application lay firmly with the applicant.

Old Cleeve and Carhampton parish councils both objected to the plans and 60 letters of opposition were received from local residents.

One resident, Sarah Wilsher, said she also opposed a previous Home Farm application to install 60 static caravans in one of the site’s fields, a plan which was later withdrawn before a Government planning inspector could rule on it following the council’s failure to make a decision.

Ms Wilsher said: “I am afraid the applicant has a vision to change this beautiful scenic area into a sea of caravans, even though we are situated officially in an unsustainable location environmentally, plus the lack of public transport amenity.

“Unfortunately, there just seems a determination on the part of the applicant to gain in a roundabout way something that is not correct.”

Planning agent Michael Shepherd said there were no conditions attached to the previous approval which ‘expressly limits’ the use of or type of caravan to be located at Home Farm or for how long it could be located there.

Mr Shepherd said there might be slight differences in the appearance of ‘touring’ and ‘static’ caravans but they were essentially both used in the same way and had the same visual impact.