Purpose

The purpose of this decision is
for the Lead Member for Housing to approve the consultation
response relating to the proposed changes to the Traveller Caravan
Count Statistics.
 
Details
 
This consultation seeks
feedback on proposed changes to the collection and publication of
data relating to Gypsy, Traveller, and Travelling Showpeople communities. The key proposals include
reducing the caravan count frequency from bi-annual to annual to
ease administrative burden, determining whether to retain summer or
winter counts, and discontinuing site-level data collection for
socially rented sites and information on site opening or
refurbishment dates. Additionally, it suggests moving questions on
new affordable residential pitches to the Local Authority Housing
Statistics (LAHS) dataset for better integration. While most
proposals are supported, there is a preference for continuing the
annual collection of Travelling Showpeople data, as it provides useful information
for monitoring and contributes to a national overview of
provision.
 
Overall the proposed changes will
not adversely impact the Council and will help to reduce the
administrative burden of a bi-annual count.

Content

To
approve the Council’s response to the consultation, as set
out at Appendix A.

Reasons for the decision

Approving this response ensures that the Council’s
position on proposed changes to the Gypsy, Traveller, and
Travelling Showpeople data collection is clearly represented. The
response reflects a balanced approach; supporting measures that
reduce administrative burden and improve data integration, while
highlighting areas where continued data collection remains valuable
for monitoring and planning.

Alternative options considered

Option 1: Choose not to submit
a formal response to the Government’s proposals.
Reason
for Rejection: It is important that the Council has the opportunity
to share its views, whether concerns or support, regarding the
proposed changes.