A MOBILE home park operator has been fined more than £100,000 for unlawful development in the Green Belt.

Wyldecrest Parks, which runs 58 mobile home parks across the UK, placed a park home and built a concrete base on a pitch near Abingdon even though it did not have planning permission from Vale of White Horse District Council.

The land at Bayworth Mobile Home Park should have only been used as a car park, however, the London-based company sold a mobile home there to a retired couple back in April 2015, who moved out three years later.

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The company claimed that the couple’s residence prevented them from complying with Vale's enforcement notices and continued to profit from site fees from this unlawful home.

During the two-day trial at Oxford Magistrates’ Court on May 6 and 7, district judge Rana determined that this was a deliberate breach by Wyldecrest Parks who had tested the patience of the local authority, had laid the blame at others, and had failed to work with the council.

Emily Smith, councillor for Botley and Sunningwell ward, said that the case involved a lot of hard work by council officers, and even more 'heartache' for the people involved.

The court heard that the company's actions had been a breach of planning law, which caused harm to the Green Belt.

Even more, Wyldecrest Parks had also failed to respond to letters from the council or warnings regarding prosecution; they profited from site fees from this unlawful mobile home; and they wrongly put the blame on others for the situation.

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They were fined £100,000 and ordered to pay more than £11,000 costs after being found guilty of breaching two planning enforcement notices.

Suzanne Malcolm, acting deputy chief executive at Vale of White Horse District Council, commented on the successful prosecution: "It is very important that site owners comply with planning permission and only locate mobile homes on land where they have been granted permission.

"Carrying out unlawful work can risk damaging the local area and puts occupiers at a significant risk of losing their home.

"I am very pleased that the district judge agreed that that this had been a serious breach and therefore issued a substantial fine and costs."