Setting up and running a caravan site

If you are successful in your application for a caravan site licence, you must display the licence in a prominent position on the site.

Caravan site licence conditions

You must comply with any conditions to your caravan site licence. These conditions will be determined by the council and could include:

• restrictions on when caravans can be placed on the site
• restrictions on the total number of caravans on the site at any one time
• controls on the types of caravans allowed on the site
• positioning of caravans, structures, vehicles or tents
• preservation and enhancement of the land, including bushes and trees
• a requirement that fire safety and firefighting systems are provided and maintained
• provision of sanitary and other facilities and their maintenance
• a requirement for work to be carried out on the land

The council may also change these conditions at any time and require you to return the licence to them to do so. If you receive such a request, you must comply within seven days.

You must also allow a council officer to enter your site to decide what conditions or required actions or work should be attached to your licence and whether you are complying with them. Your council will give you 24 hours' notice of such a visit.

Caravan site licence exemptions

There are certain circumstances when a caravan site licence is not required. This includes when the caravan site:

• is on land where your home is, and it's use as a caravan site is incidental
• is used by a person who brings their own caravan onto the site and stays no more than two nights, where theirs is the only caravan present, and where caravans are present on your land no more than 28 days in a 12-month period
• exists no more than 28 days in a 12-month period, and no more than three caravans are stationed there at any one time
• is on horticultural land, forestry or land where engineering or building operations are being carried out, and is being used for accommodation for seasonal workers
• is owned, occupied, supervised or approved by an organisation that encourage or promotes recreational activities, and who has been certified as an exempted organisation

If you are unsure whether you could be exempt from needing a caravan site licence for your site, you should contact your local council.