MORE than £1.7m of government money is to be spent creating authorised travellers pitches in the East Dorset area.

Dorset County Council is the only one of our local councils to receive a share of the £47m worth of funding handed out by the Government.

Their allocation of £1.75m is the biggest single approved bid in the south west region and will be used to create 25 new pitches.

It’s hoped these will help reduce the number of unauthorised sites and ease tension between travellers and the settled community.

Communities minister Andrew Sturnell said: “This funding will help provide sites in a way that reflects local need in consultation with the local community.

“It will assist hundreds of traveller families find sites where they want to live and foster better relations with the existing communities and councils.”

And he added: “New authorised sites, with the support of local communities, will be treated on an equal footing as new bricks and mortar homes, with councils getting powerful financial benefits for building authorised sites where they are needed.”

A further £13m of Government money remains available to local councils and housing associations.

Those who have had bids rejected are now being invited to improve and resubmit their bids.

Proposals for possible authorised travellers’ sites across Dorset are currently the subject of public consultation.

Local residents have until February 10 to have their say on the plans, details of which are on council websites and are also available in libraries and other council buildings.