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An aerial view of the development captured by residents opposed to it
British homeless people are set to live side by side with refugees from Ukraine at a controversial “village” made up of temporary container units.
A council has confirmed the 90 units will house “couples and families either fleeing the war in Ukraine or already on the council’s housing waiting list.”
It could house up to 360 people if there were four in each unit.
It was originally earmarked just for families who had fled from Ukraine but was found to have extra capacity for the domestic homeless.
But the site, on the former Eagleswell School site in Lantwit Major, South Wales, has caused controversy among locals who claim the Vale of Glamorgan Council has misled them and placed the structures overlooking their homes and gardens.
They could be stuck with the development for up to five years before it is relocated elsewhere.
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David Thomas said the scheme looks like a prison
A council CGI image of a completed unit
A council spokesperson said: “Originally, it was anticipated that the new temporary homes would be used exclusively for Ukrainian refugees. However, as time has passed, it now appears the site will have extra capacity.
“The provision of temporary homes at this site is in line with the Council’s commitment to assist those who have suffered forced displacement as a result of the conflict in Ukraine and also reflects an urgent need to increase the availability of homes at a time when there is a significant shortage of housing and a growing waiting list and increasing levels of homelessness.
“The use of the site will be important in easing the pressure for Council housing and will also represent a far more dignified solution than the use of substantially more expensive and cramped temporary hotel accommodation.”
The total cost of the development is £24 million, funded jointly by the Council and Welsh Government, with much of that amount recoverable as the units are reusable and have a 60-year lifespan.
The spokesperson added: “This planning approval has been conditioned so that the units will stay in place for a maximum of five years before they must be dismantled and moved to another location.
The construction work is still underway with no one yet to move in
A council artist impression of the completed site
“Within the next 12 months, a written plan to remove the units to alternative sites must be submitted to planning committee for approval.
“This work is to begin 18-months before the expiry of the five-year planning permission, with the units nearest to neighbouring residential properties being removed first to reflect the concerns of neighbouring residents.”
More than 200 neighbours objected to a retrospective planning application the council approved from itself after they were erected using permitted development rights, which residents said were then flouted.
They complained of the site being too close to homes and overlooking them.
The spokesperson added: “Representations from all interested parties were considered when this development went before the Council’s Planning Committee in July and measures have been put in place to maintain privacy.
Construction work at the controversial site
The council says it will be attractive temporary accommodation, but it is disliked by residents
“Boundary fencing and landscaping has been installed to help address these concerns, along with the use of opaque glazing to help maintain privacy.”
But, some residents hope to halt the ongoing development before anyone moves in later this year.
An action group on Facebook has more than 2,000 members, and some have raised more than £7,300 through crowdjustice.com in an attempt to take the council to court.
The crowd funder was launched by retired RAF engineer Stephen Mcgranaghan, a resident of the area for 32 years.
He said: “The council has developed this site completely ignoring their own planning rules and the concerns of the local residents.
“We have engaged the professional legal services of a barrister who is currently preparing a strong legal argument against this development.
Residents are involved in a legal challenge against the council decision
“We have also engaged the services of a building planning consultant who will be advising the barrister.
“In raising this money we hope to stop the abuse of power of the Vale of Glamorgan councils building department who are contravening all of their own building regulations.”
In respect of the legal challenge , the council spokesperson said: “This is a matter for the group responsible for that action.
“No-one has moved into the site yet.”
The council also categorically denied what it called “incorrect” reports that appeared on social media this week that the accommodation was being handed to single male asylum seekers from all countries or that the size of the development had been increased.
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