Caravans Residential

The Mobile Homes Act 2013 (the Act) provides greater protection to occupiers of residential park homes and caravans. It introduces important changes to the Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960. The changes directly affect the way we license permanent residential sites. These are known as relevant protected sites.

Amongst the changes introduced, we can now charge fees, on a cost-recovery basis, in relation to applications for:

• new licences
• transfers
• and amendments

An annual fee can also be charged for holding a site licence. Fees only apply to those sites that fall within the relevant protected site definition.

The Mobile Homes Act 2013 amended the Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960 to enable us to set and charge fees. These fees help us to reclaim the cost of administering and monitoring relevant protected sites licences and applications. Read the Mobile Homes Licensing Fees
Policy (PDF, 173KB, 9 pages) before applying.

Protected Sites and Site Rules

The fee to deposit site rules is £115.

Site rules which have been deposited with us for the public register are:

• Fernhill Park (PDF, 2 pages, 415KB)
• Medina Park -  (PDF, 1 page, 177KB)
• Riverview Court (PDF, 2 pages, 327KB)
• Riverview Park (PDF, 4 pages, 229KB)
• Waverley Caravan Park (PDF, 2 pages, 729KB)

Fit and Proper Person

The Mobile Homes (Requirement for Manager of Site to be Fit and Proper Person) (England) Regulations 2020 came into force on 1 July 2021. 

The regulations permit the land for use as a residential mobile home site only if the owner or manager is a fit and proper person. This is determined by us based on a fit and proper person test. We based the test on guidance provided by the Government: Mobile homes: a guide for local authorities on the fit and proper person test - GOV.UK

The purpose of the fit and proper person test is to improve the standards of residential mobile home site management.

The regulations apply to all relevant protected sites, as defined in section 5A(5) of the Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960. This includes both wholly residential and mixed use (holiday and residential) sites.

The only sites exempted by the regulations are:

• Occupied by members of the same family.
• Not being run as commercial (where units are sold or rented to residents) residential sites.

The person responsible for managing the site must be a fit and proper person. This person is referred to as the ‘relevant person’ in the regulations. The person who is on the register should be the person with day-to-day responsibility for the running of the site.

It is the responsibility of the site owner to make the application, even if it's the site manager who will be on the register.

If a site isn't owned by an individual, the application must be made on their behalf by a ‘relevant officer’. Who the relevant officer is will depend on the circumstances of the site’s ownership.

Apply to be added to the Fit and Proper Person Register

• Read the site owner guidance before applying.
• Download and complete the Fit and Proper Person Register application form (PDF, 6 pages, 457KB)
• The application form should be completed and returned to the Licensing Department at the address below with the fee of £275. You can pay the £275 fee by credit/ debit card. To make the payment by card call us on 01983 823159.
  
• When the form has been completed return the form to Licensing Department, County Hall, High Street, Newport, Isle of Wight, PO30 1UD.
  
• If you have any queries please email: licensing@iow.gov.uk or telephone 01983 823159

Fit and Proper Person register