Council defends traveller site decision process

A Powys County Council consultation on potential new Gypsy and Traveller sites in the North Powys area has come under scrutiny after documents released by the council under environmental information laws appear to confirm that the locations were presented to residents without a documented assessment process.

Powys has to provide increased capacity for the community and the consultation, held in autumn 2025, asked residents to comment on six potential sites in Leighton, Forden and Churchstoke as part of work supporting the county’s Replacement Local Development Plan.

However, information later disclosed by the council under the Environmental Information Regulations states that the spreadsheet used during the site search “does not constitute a formal list, methodology, or decision record” and was simply an “informal internal communication tool” used for officer discussions.

The Council has defended its process, but acknowledged that concerns had been raised and it is their view that “an informal internal spreadsheet used during the early site search stage”, and the absence of a “formal long‑list to short‑list methodology did not render the autumn 2025 consultation procedurally unsafe or non‑compliant”.

But a local resident claims that the disclosure shows that when the consultation took place there was no recorded methodology, scoring system or formal site-by-site assessment explaining how the proposed locations had been identified.

Planning guidance issued by the Welsh Government states that consultation on potential development sites should normally be supported by published evidence explaining how locations were assessed and shortlisted so that communities can understand and comment on the authority’s approach.

Local resident, Gareth Tannatt Nash, who submitted a detailed representation during the consultation, said the documents raise serious questions about transparency in the process.

“The public were asked to comment on potential sites without being shown the assessment process used to identify them. If there was no formal methodology or decision record, residents could not see how or why those locations had been chosen.”

Concerns about the consultation process were formally raised with Powys County Council’s Monitoring Officer in October 2025.

When a Stage 2 complaint response was not issued within the council’s published complaints timescales, the matter was referred to the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales.

The Public Services Ombudsman for Wales has since intervened after the council failed to issue the Stage 2 response within its own deadline, requiring Powys County Council to provide a response earlier this month. We have carried their full statement below.

The Gypsy and Traveller site search forms part of the evidence base for Powys County Council’s Replacement Local Development Plan, the strategic planning document that will guide future development across the county and will ultimately be examined by an independent planning inspector.

Mr Tannatt Nash said the issue is about transparency rather than opposition to providing accommodation.

“This is not about whether Gypsy and Traveller accommodation should be provided. The council has a statutory duty to meet accommodation needs. The concern is whether the consultation was conducted transparently and with the evidence that residents would reasonably expect to see.”

Powys County Council has previously said the consultation represents an early stage in the process and that feedback from residents will be considered before any final decisions are made.

What Powys County Council told us about the claims:

“The council can confirm that concerns raised about the gypsy and traveller accommodation site options consultation have been formally considered under Stage 2 of the council’s Corporate Complaints Policy.

“It is the council’s view that while an informal internal spreadsheet was used during the early site search stage, the absence of a formal long‑list to short‑list methodology did not render the autumn 2025 consultation procedurally unsafe or non‑compliant.

“The council’s position is that the consultation was intended to gather views on broad site options, with more detailed technical assessments, including equality, flood risk and sustainability considerations, to be undertaken once one or more preferred sites are identified.

“All representations submitted during the consultation, including detailed submissions, will be considered alongside other responses before any site is progressed further.”