THE owner of land near Sidmouth s The Bowd has been given until Tuesday to remove mobile homes from the site- by the authority which has earmarked it as a possible home for gypsies and travellers.

THE owner of land near Sidmouth's The Bowd has been given until Tuesday to remove mobile homes from the site- by the authority which has earmarked it as a possible home for gypsies and travellers

East Devon District Council (EDDC) has identified the land, off the A3052, as a possible pitch but has told its owner Jimmy Small he must remove current dwellings from the area in the next week as it is "not currently authorised for gypsies and travellers".

The council has also told Mr Small that a bid by him to increase the number of residential caravan he has at land near Coombe Goyle, Tipton St John is "unlikely" to gain planning permission.

However, in a letter to Mr Small, a senior EDDC planning officer suggests he can accommodate one more "caravan" at the Tipton site bringing the total there to four.

The Herald reported earlier this year how The Bowd land, on the "gateway to Sidmouth", was the only one of four sights in East Devon earmarked for gypsies and travellers by EDDC which it had left to pursue after landowners in Tipton, Honiton and Exmouth rejected its advances.

When quizzed over the current status of the bid, an EDDC spokesman said: "The council is currently searching for possible sites.