Retrospective application made for traveller site

Travellers have applied to put 12 mobile homes on land that was concreted over without consent during the early May Bank Holiday weekend.

Work began on the four-acre (1.6-hectare) field in Willows Green, near Felsted, Essex, within hours of the local council closing on 1 May.

Twelve pitches were built and one was later offered for sale on Facebook, the BBC revealed. A High Court injunction later blocked further development.

On Monday, a retrospective planning application was submitted to Uttlesford District Council by Anthony Mongan, who argued it would help meet a "significant" unmet need for such sites.

James Cleverly, the Conservative MP for Braintree, said the application would not impact the injunction in place.

"This cynical 'build now, apply later' attitude should never work," he wrote on Facebook.

The proposed traveller site was described as a "high quality living environment" in the plans.

It would comprise 12 pitches for mobile homes, as well as touring caravans and dayroom buildings for each plot if approved.

"[The proposal would] not result in an undue concentration of Gypsy and traveller development, nor would it materially alter the character or balance of the local community," the plans read.

Rare albino deer, great crested newts and badgers had been spotted on the field before the work, according to locals.

They described how about 30 lorries had delivered materials, including fencing and septic tanks, under the cover of darkness.

Speaking anonymously, one said: "It felt like a military operation. The sheer scale and enormity of it is breathtaking."

It led to 140 complaints to the local council, the High Court was told in May.

HM Land Registry records showed UK Real Estate and Land 2 Limited bought the land for £125,000 in April 2025.

Uttlesford District Council will decide on the application at a later date.

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