Memorandum by the Showmen's Guild of Great
Britain, Western Section (TF 22)
1. The continued value of historic travelling
fairs
The value of our historic fairs is immeasurable,
they have been a part of the fabric of tradition of our communities
for a 1,000 years.
This country respects and promotes the traditions
and values of our many ethnic minorities, but often forgetsor
sweeps asidethe traditions of our indigenous population
which should be retained for future generations.
It could be argued that the Fairs of 1,000 years
ago bear little resemblance to those of today, but the tradition
is still there. You only have to look at the many traditional
"Opening" ceremonies that precede the fairsin
the Western Section, Barnstaple springs immediately to mind. It
is an historic ceremony relived each year and much treasured.
Without travelling funfairs visiting our towns
and cities this country would be the poorer, they add fun and
colour and variety to our way of life.
2. The provision of sites for travelling
fairs
The provision of sites is, of course, of prime
importance. Without suitable and prime sites for the fairs, there
would be no fairground industry.
We are losing prime funfair sites all the time
through re-development of City Centres and exorbitant rents being
demanded by the local authorities, examples of some of the prime
fairs that have been lost in recent years in the Western Section
area are:
Crewkerne Fair; Dowton Street Fair; The Horse
Fair, Bristol; Glastonbury Sheep Fairwhich has been moved
out of town; Warminster; Trurowhich again has been moved
to an out of town park with no parking facilities; Andover Street
Fair; Weyhill; Honiton Penny Fair; Goram, Bristol; Woodbury Hill
Fair.
Fairs are also lost by pressure being exerted
on local Councils, often by new citizens moving into town and
hoping to rid themselves of any disturbance and local businessmen
who resent any disruption in their tradingthough it is
at most only for a few days a year. This refers to prime town
centre sites which are of great importance to our Industry. There
was a strong move last year by some shop keepers to remove Salisbury
Fair from the Market Square, fortunately there was strong support
for the Fair from the local Council and residents alike to retain
the fair in its traditional setting as a move to outside of town
would have made the Fair unviablethis is just one example.
Local businessmen do have the opportunity to
put pressure on Councils all year round, whereas our members can
only do our best to counter these actions when they are known
to us and that information is not always received until it is
too late.
Where towns have been encouraged and persuaded
to re-open the streets for fairswhere the traffic layout
allowsit has often been of benefit and a boost to the town
as a whole, good examples of this are the Cardiff fairand
no better example than the highly successful Millenium Fair in
"The Mall" The Showmen's Guild would love to see the
return of many more street and town centre fairs.
Other Fairs have been lost through local parks
being banned to our members for a variety of reasons and often
at the insistence of the local police. If a pub or club has trouble
occasionally it does not mean that they are closed down, but it
is all too easy to finish a fair, excessive rentals can also be
a reason for closure of fairs in parks. Some prime sites have
been lost at Bristol Downs, Portsmouth and Southampton.
3. The particular needs of travelling showpeople
in carrying out their trade
The needs of travelling Showmen are simple and
seem obvious to them but often need pointing out to the layman,
they need:
(a) Sites on which to open and operate
(b) Space to accommodate their living wagons
whilst operating their equipmentthis must be within a reasonable
distance as our members have young children to care for and often
grandparents too and it is also necessary for the security of
their equipment.
(c) Water and Electricity and Waste points
laid on so that living wagons can be supplied with the necessities
of life.
(d) Educational facilitieswhilst these
are in place to a limited degree, the grant has been cut which
will make a difficult task more difficult.
4. The effectiveness of existing planning
guidance on the provision of quarters for travelling showpeople.
The present guidance on the provision of quarters
for travelling showpeople is not effective enough. Some areas
of the country do not have as big a problem as others, the situation
does not seem to be as bad in the north. However, in the South
of the country our members are finding it more and more difficult
to obtain consent for their sites.
There are two cases in particular, one is Mr
and Mrs Burton at Shedfield, Hants and the other is Mr and Mrs
Lock at Norton, Glos. Both of these members have what would be
considered by most peopleideal locations for Showmen's
quarters, but both families are being hounded off their land by
their local Councils and are facing evictionto where!!
5. Whether any action is necessary to ensure
that appropriate regard is had to the needs of travelling showpeople
within the planning system
Action is necessary to expand the present 22/91
Government Circular as it is often ignored by Councils and as
it is open ended, it is often used against Showmen instead of
for them. It is often ignored by Councils and the Councils are
ignoring the need to make provision in their local plans for the
needs of travelling showpeople.
Also the needs of travelling showmen are changing.
There is a need for a change from "Winter Quarters"
to "Showmen's Depots". Because of the reduction in Fairs
and cancellation of fairs through bad weather conditions etc,
and the inappropriateness of parking on lay-bys in this highly
mobile age, to await the next fair, there is a need for Showmen
to be able to return to their depots during the Summer for odd
days and possibly weeks. There is a need also for the elderly
to be able to remain on site all year round, they need to remain
in a known environment and amongst their families where they are
well looked after, they do not need to be re-housed!
6. Any other matters
Transport: Because of our specialised vehicles
and equipment we do need special consideration and relaxation
within the Transport regulations.
February 2000
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