Mobile Homes (Wales) Act 2013
| Jurisdiction | Wales |
| Citation | 2013 anaw 6 |
| Year | 2013 |
Mobile Homes (Wales) Act 2013
2013 6
An Act of the National Assembly for Wales to reform and restate the law relating to mobile home sites in Wales.
[4 November 2013]
Having been passed by the National Assembly for Wales and having received the assent of Her Majesty, it is enacted as follows:-
PART 1
INTRODUCTION
1 Overview of Act
(1) This Act makes provision about mobile home sites in Wales.
(2) In this Act-
(a) Part 2 makes provision for and in connection with the licensing of regulated sites etc.,
(b) Part 3 makes provision for protection from eviction from protected sites,
(c) Part 4 makes provision about the terms of agreements for stationing mobile homes on protected sites,
(d) Part 5 makes provision under which local authorities may provide sites for mobile homes and may prohibit the stationing of mobile homes on commons, and
(e) Part 6 makes supplementary and general provision.
2 Mobile home sites subject to Act
(1) In this Act "regulated site" means any land in Wales on which a mobile home is stationed for the purposes of human habitation (including any land in Wales used in conjunction with that land), other than-
(a) a site which Schedule 1 provides is not to be a regulated site, or
(b) a holiday site.
(2) In this Act "protected site" means land which is-
(a) a regulated site, or
(b) a site that would be a regulated site but for paragraph 11 of Schedule 1.
(3) In subsection (1) "holiday site" means a site in respect of which the relevant planning permission or the site licence for the site under the Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960-
(a) is expressed to be granted for holiday use only, or
(b) requires that there are times of the year when no mobile home may be stationed on the site for human habitation.
(4) For the purpose of determining whether or not a site is a holiday site, any provision of the relevant planning permission or of the site licence which permits the stationing of a mobile home on the land for human habitation all year round is to be i gnored if the mobile home is authorised to be occupied by-
(a) the person who is the owner of the site, or
(b) a person employed by that person but who does not occupy the mobile home under an agreement to which Part 4 applies.
(5) In this Act "local authority Gypsy and Traveller site" means land owned by a local authority for the stationing of mobile homes providing accommodation for Gypsies and Travellers.
3 Owners of sites
In this Act "owner", in relation to any land, means the person who, by virtue of an estate or interest in the land-
(a) is entitled to possession of the land, or
(b) would be entitled to possession of the land but for the rights of any other person under any licence or contract granted in respect of the land (including a licence or contract to station or occupy a mobile home there),
but see also sections 39(2), 42(7) and 55(2)(a).
PART 2
LICENSING OF MOBILE HOME SITES ETC.
Introduction
4 Overview of Part
(1) This Part makes provision about the licensing of regulated sites and related matters.
(2) In this Part-
(a) sections 5 to 8 make provision for site licences,
(b) sections 9 to 25 make provision about conditions of site licences,
(c) sections 26 and 27 make provision about revocation and surrender of site licences,
(d) sections 28 and 29 require site managers to be fit and proper persons,
(e) sections 30 and 31 make provision for the appointment of interim managers,
(f) sections 32 and 33 contain other enforcement provisions, and
(g) sections 34 to 39 contain miscellaneous and supplementary provisions.
Site licences
5 Prohibition on use of land as regulated site without site licence
(1) The owner of a regulated site must not cause or permit the site to be used as a regulated site unless the owner holds a licence under this Part in relation to the land (a "site licence").
(2) A person who contravenes subsection (1) commits an offence.
(3) A person who is guilty of an offence under subsection (2) is liable on summary conviction to a fine.
6 Application for site licence
(1) An application for the issue of a site licence in respect of any land is to be made by the owner of the land to the local authority in whose area the land is situated.
(2) An application under this section-
(a) must specify the land in respect of which the application is made,
(b) must identify the applicant,
(c) if the applicant is not to be the manager of the site, must identify the person who is to be the manager of the site, and
(d) must comply with such other requirements as the local authority may specify.
(3) An applicant must, either at the time of making the application or subsequently, give to the local authority such other information as the local authority may reasonably require.
(4) The application must be accompanied by a declaration by the applicant that-
(a) in a case in which the applicant is not to be the manager of the site, the person identified in accordance with subsection (2)(c), or
(b) in any other case, the applicant,
is a fit and proper person to manage the site.
(5) A local authority may require an application for a site licence to be accompanied by a fee fixed by the local authority (on which see section 36).
7 Issue of site licenc e
(1) A local authority may issue a site licence in respect of land if the applicant is, when the site licence is issued, entitled to the benefit of planning permission for the use of the land as a mobile home site otherwise than by a development order.
(2) If, on the date when the applicant gives the information required by virtue of section 6, the applicant is entitled to the benefit of such planning permission, the local authority may issue a site licence in respect of the land within 2 months of that date or, if the applicant and the local authority agree in writing that the local authority is to be allowed a longer period within which to grant a site licence, within the period agreed.
(3) If the applicant becomes entitled to the benefit of planning permission at some time after giving the information required by virtue of section 6, the local authority may issue a site licence in respect of the land within 6 weeks of the date on which the applicant becomes entitled to the benefit of planning permission or, if the applicant and the local authority agree in writing that the local authority is to be allowed a longer period within which to grant a site licence, within the period agreed.
(4) Where a local authority decides not to issue a site licence under subsection (2) or (3)-
(a) the local authority must notify the applicant of the reasons for the decision and of the applicant's right of appeal under paragraph (b),
(b) the applicant may, within the period of 28 days beginning with the day on which the decision is made, appeal to a residential property tribunal against the decision, and
(c) no compensation may be claimed for loss suffered in consequence of the decision pending the outcome of the appeal.
(5) A local authority must not at any time issue a site licence to a person whom the local authority knows has held a site licence which has been revoked under section 18 or 28 less than 3 years before that time.
(6) Where a local authority fails to determine an application for a site licence within the period within which it is required to do so, no offence under section 5 is committed in respect of the land by the person by whom the application for the site licence was made at any time after the end of that period until the application is determined.
8 Duration of site licence
(1) A site licence comes into operation at the time specified in or determined under the licence and, unless terminated by its revocation, continues in force for the period specified in or determined under the site licence.
(2) That period must end not later than 5 years after the day on which the site licence comes into operation.
Conditions of site licences
9 Power to attach conditions to site licence
(1) A site licence issued by a local authority in respect of any land may be issued subject to such conditions as the local authority may consider it necessary or desirable to impose on the owner of the land in the interests of-
(a) persons dwelling on the land in mobile homes,
(b) any other class of persons, or
(c) the public at large.
(2) The conditions subject to which a site licence may be issued include (but are not limited to) conditions-
(a) for restricting the occasions on which mobile homes are stationed on the land for the purposes of human habitation, or the total number of mobile homes which are stationed on the land for those purposes at any one time,
(b) for controlling (whether by reference to their size, the state of their repair or, subject to subsection (3), any other feature) the types of mobile home which are stationed on the land,
(c) for regulating the positions in which mobile homes are stationed on the land for the purposes of human habitation (in particular in order to minimise risk from...
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