Site Licences
The Caravan and Control of Development Act 1960 prohibits the use of land as a caravan site unless the occupier holds a site licence issued by us.
The term caravan includes 'mobile homes' or 'park homes' for these purposes.
You need a licence unless your circumstances are included in the exemptions below:
- a caravan sited within the curtilage of a dwelling and its use is incidental to the dwelling. This means it cannot be occupied separately
- a single caravan sited for not more than two consecutive nights for a maximum of 28 days in any 12 months
- up to three caravans on a site of not less than five acres for a maximum of 28 days in any 12 months
- sites occupied by exempted organisations such as the Caravan Club
- sites of up to 5 caravans certified by an exempt organisation and which are for members only
- sites owned or operated by us and which may be occupied by Gypsies/Travellers
- sites for temporary and special purposes such as caravan rallies, agricultural and forestry workers, building and engineering sites and travelling salesmen
- a site for tents that can only be used for a maximum of 28 days in any 12 months
Licences can be transferred to a new occupier but the law requires us to agree to the transfer.
You should send us the licence with a request for transfer and we will either approve or re-issue it.
What you need to do to get a licence
The applicant must be entitled to use the land as a caravan site.
This means that a valid planning permission must have been granted (not applied for, pending or waiting for appeal decision).
Any Caravan Site Licence application must include a site plan at scale 1:500, which shows the layout of roads, caravans and facilities.
Licences will not be issued to applicants who have had a site licence removed within three years of the current application.
How to apply for a licence
Applications for site licences must be made to the local authority where the land is situated.
Applications must detail the land the application concerns and any other information required by the local authority.
Where an application is for a permanent residential site, there is a fee for making an application - please see our Fees and Charges.
You can apply for a licence for a permanent licence online (gov.uk).
Where the application is for a holiday park, please contact the Health and Housing Team for an application form by emailing housingstandards@staffordbc.gov.uk.
If you have not heard from us by the end of the target completion period of two months, then you can act as though your application has been granted.
Conditions attached to the licence
Conditions may be attached to a licence to cover any of the following:
- restricting when caravans can be on the site for human habitation or restricting the number of caravans that can be on the site at any one time
- controlling the types of caravans on the site
- controlling the positioning of the caravans or regulating the use of other structures and vehicles including tents
- to ensure steps are taken enhance the land, including planting / replanting bushes and trees
- fire safety and fire fighting controls
- to ensure that sanitary and other facilities, services and equipment are supplied and maintained
More information about Caravan Site Licence Conditions (pdf 35kb).
We may change conditions at any time but must give licence holders the opportunity to give their views on the proposed changes.
If a licence holder disagrees with the changes they may appeal to the local Magistrates' court.
The appeal must be made within 28 days of the written notification of the changes and a notice of appeal must be served on the Council.
Rejected applications
If your application is rejected, you are advised to take up the issue with us in the first instance.
If a licence holder wishes to appeal against a condition attached to a licence they may appeal to the local Magistrates' Court.
The appeal must be made within 28 days of the licence being issued.
Transferring your site licence
You can transfer your caravan site licence to another person by making an application to us and paying a fee.
If you have any questions you can contact the Housing Standards Team on 01785 619000 or email housingstandards@staffordbc.gov.uk.
Site Rules
The following information applies to all licensed mobile homes sites except those where:
- the occupier rents their mobile home from the site owner, or
- where the mobile home is not legally allowed to be occupied all year round, such as a holiday park.
The Mobile Homes Act 2013 made changes to how site rules are made on mobile homes sites and how they are made available for people to see.
Most mobile homes sites have site rules that are prepared by the site owner for the benefit of both owners and residents.
Good site rules benefit everyone by ensuring that acceptable standards are maintained.
In the past, there have been some mobile home parks in the country where the rules were used to prevent residents from exercising their rights and the legal changes that have been made means that all sites will need new site rules.
In February 2015, all existing site rules ceased to have effect.
Site owners will need to follow a legal process of consulting their residents about the new site rules that they wish to introduce.
If residents do not agree with the proposed rules, they can appeal the decision to a tribunal who will determine whether the proposal is allowed. There are some laws that state what can and can not be included in site rules.
Once the rules have been agreed, they must be deposited with the relevant local authority and published on their website.
Please note, we don't have any enforcement powers to object to site rules and you should seek legal advice if you disagree with rules in place for your site.
Site Rules Deposited with us
Castle Grange Park, Doxey Fields, Stafford ST16 1HQ
Date deposited: 1 April 2015
Site rules for Castle Grange Park
Lodgefield Park, Baswich Lane, Stafford ST17 0YE
Date deposited: 23 March 2015
Site rules for Lodgefield Park
The Saltings, Baswich Lane, Stafford ST18 0YQ
Date deposited: 15 January 2015
Yew Tree Park, The Rowe, Stableford, Staffordshire ST5 4EN
Date deposited: 24 December 2014
Boothstone Park Homes, Yarnfield ST15 0NJ
Date deposited: 18 November 2014
Site rules for Boothstone Park Homes
Ivy Cottage Mobile Home Park, Within Lane, Hopton ST18 0AP
Date deposited: 18 November 2014
Site rules for Ivy Cottage Mobile Home Park
Brooms Park, Stafford Road, Stone ST15 0BQ
Date deposited: 26 June 2014
Site management concerns
If you are concerned with noise, smoke, nuisance or waste from a site then you should contact Regulatory Services for advice on 01785 619000 or ehtechsupport@staffordbc.gov.uk.
If you are a resident concerned that site licence conditions are not being complied with, you can contact the Health and Housing Team on 01785 619000 or email housingstandards@staffordbc.gov.uk.
Advice on buying a new caravan or complaining about a faulty one
Caravans are classed by law as belongings (like a car or trailer) rather than a dwelling/house.
Any complaints about buying a caravan to go on a pitch must go through Trading Standards (Staffordshire County Council) rather than us.
You can get advice from the Citizens Advice or, for outside the UK, the UK European Consumer Centre.