Council to press ahead with plans to buy historic former golf house for traveller site

Wakefield Council’s Cabinet are to press ahead with the scheme despite being accused of failing to consult the local community. A residents’ group also criticised the authority over the rising costs of the plan at a time when it is under chronic financial pressure.

The council wants to buy the Old Golf House, on Heath Common, so it can build an extension to the district’s biggest publicly-run traveller site. Cabinet agreed proposals to acquire the property in July this year. A scrutiny committee then took the rare step of referring the decision back to Cabinet, accusing them of ‘sneaking the decision through the back door’.

But Cabinet members approved the scheme for a second time at a meeting on October 11.

Councillor Darren Byford, cabinet member for regeneration, said: “External legal advice has been sought by our monitoring officer. Having considered that advice, she confirms that no consultation was required for the specific decision. It is not common practice to consult on property acquisitions. Doing so would prejudice our ability to operate in the property market, making us a much less attractive buyer.”

The council says it is legally obliged to accommodate travelling families. The site at Heath Common is identified in the emerging Wakefield District Local Plan 2036.

Coun Byford added: “The option to do nothing is not an option if we are to meet the needs of the community.”

Some financial details relating to the purchase of the privately-owned property have not been made available to the public.

Heath Residents’ Association sent senior councillors a letter raising concerns over the cost of the scheme ahead of the meeting.

It states: ”At present Wakefield Council is trying to stem a £85 million gap in expenditure. This is a tremendous amount of money and the present cost of the proposed new traveller site, at £5.8 million, is a large amount of money to come out of the public purse, in fact it wipes out the council tax increase from last year, and puts a further strain on what services Wakefield Council can provide for its communities.

“There are also other major expenditures in the pipeline such as the proposed purchase of the Ridings Centre and yet you are closing County Hall to save costs, it appears from a public perception perspective that your development strategy for the district is in disarray. It is incredible that public money is to be used in this way with no accountability to the taxpayers of Wakefield.”

Buying the Old Golf House would allow for a covenant prohibiting development to be lifted. Heath Common could then be extended to 61 permanent pitches, up from its current number of 38.