EIGHT potential Wyre Forest traveller sites have been dropped, two accepted and the public will have its say on another three.

Recommendations made by Wyre Forest District Council’s Overview and Scrutiny Committee on Monday were rubber stamped by cabinet last night.

Land at Nunn’s Corner and The Gables Yard in Stourport, were put forward to be included in the site allocations and policies development plan document. They are areas currently occupied by travellers without authorisation, known as ‘tolerated’ sites.

Another three in Sandy Lane were also suggested for consultation, causing councillors to call for measures to make the town exempt from taking on more travellers in the future.

At the scrutiny meeting, Conservative councillor John Holden said he hoped the sites were approved, as travellers were already “quite happy” living there but added: “Stourport has done its bit for the gypsy community.

“We have accommodated them, we have worked alongside them and I live alongside them in my particular house.”

He suggested that the planning policy for the future should “include wording that Stourport has done its bit and the rest of Worcestershire should take heed and do their bit.”

Cabinet agreed draft policy wording for a criteria-based approach to providing future traveller sites. It included the scrutiny committee’s desire to see no further pitches in the Sandy Lane area of Stourport.

Sites at Stourport Road in Bewdley, the former Sion Hill school in Kidderminster, the former Lea Castle Hospital in Cookley and Manor Farm in Stourport were disregarded.

It was also agreed that sites at Hoobrook Trading Estate in Kidderminster, Wilden Lane in Stourport, the former Yieldingtree packing site near Churchill, and Clows Top garage site should be taken no further as officers had not confirmed their availability.

At Monday’s meeting, concerns were raised that Clows Top garage had been on and off the shortlist and could find itself back in consultation a few years down the line.

District council leader, Conservative John Campion, said he had “utmost sympathy” for residents of Clows Top and did not support the site being used for travellers.

“It would be a difficult site to develop for whatever use and this I believe would be nigh on impossible,”

he said.

He agreed Stourport residents existed peacefully alongside travellers but said it was important to make sure “we don’t take it too far.”

He said scrutiny’s recommendations were sensible and welcomed by cabinet.

The public will now have their say on three sites at Sandy Lane, Stourport.

Liberal councillor Fran Oborski said the owners of 1A Broach Road said they would be able to accommodate one of two more pitches on their already existing site, following minor changes.

She said the owners of 28-29 Sandy Lane had asked for traveller pitches to be considered for their land and residents should also be consulted on land opposite the Gatehouse.

The next round of consultation will be this month and into March.