London’s Gypsy and Traveller community and its allies have made their views on the London Plan known, submitting hundreds of responses to the London Mayor’s proposals for growth, home-building and environmental protection in the capital.
Over 600 signed postcards calling on the Mayor to keep minimum pitch targets and protect travelling culture were personally received at City Hall by Deputy Majors Tom Copley and Jules Pipe (pictured).
This followed a series of site visits by LGT representatives during the London Plan consultation period, where the plans and what they meant for Gypsies and Travellers were discussed and response postcards (pictured below) distributed, signed and collected.
The consultation ended on 15th October. The draft Plan includes proposals on how local councils should meet the needs of Gypsies, Travellers and Travelling Showpeople. Legally, London Boroughs must consider it in their decision-making and make sure that their local plans conform.
For the first time, the Plan specifies that local councils should build a specific minimum number of pitches over the next ten years. They should also provide stopping places (transit sites) or adopt a more humane approach to people practising the cultural tradition of travelling/living roadside.
“These proposals are the result of decades of community campaigning,” said Rhianna Ketley, LGT’s Community Development and Campaigns Lead. “But we know there will be opposition from local authorities and the media, so it has been extremely important that, through our postcard campaign, the community has shown its support and emphasised the need for councils to deliver.”
Many community members – including young people, community campaigners and individuals who have never responded to consultations before – have also sent personal letters to the London Mayor giving their views. Alongside this, allies of the community – both organisations and individuals – have been responding to the consultation via an email campaign organised by LGT.
LGT’s own response to the draft London Plan has been informed by its consultations with the community.
City Hall and Greater London Authority officers will now consider all the responses to the Plan before making any amendments. The Plan will be subject to an independent examination in public by government planning inspectors in 2027.
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