In 2020, the government put in place new regulations for park home operators, raising the requirements of the manager of the site to be a ‘fit and proper’ person. Read our blog breaking down the new  mobile Homes (Requirement for Manager of Site to be Fit and Proper Person) (England) regulations to gain a deeper understanding of the requirements without having to digest all the information.
About the requirements:
Last year, the government put in place such provisions which will come in force on the 1st of July 2021. Following this date, park owners will be required to apply for their manager to be registered as a ‘fit and proper’ person. This will be expected to be in place by the 1st of October 2021 for park operators. Any park that fails to register their ‘fit and proper’ person could be given unlimited fine or even have their licence revoked. Therefore, it is essential that they apply as soon as possible. This applies to all residential and retirement parks where the park home or static caravan is the permanent residence of the occupier must register unless they are a ‘non-commercial family-occupied site’.
The local authorities are likely to contact you shortly, sending out the required forms as it is their legal responsibility to hold a directory of the fit and proper person listed for each park in England. It is the local authority who will be responsible for determining if a person is suitable to be the fit and proper person. The application may be:
- Accepted unconditionally
- Accepted but with a condition in place (such as reduced length of time on the register)
- Rejected (you have the right to appeal which we will cover later in the blog).
The fit and proper person will be registered for a maximum of five years when a new application must be made. A new application must be made if the ‘fit and proper’ person were to leave the post and a new manager appointed.
The considerations used to determine if somebody is fit and proper:
The considerations include:
- That they have the ability and competence to effectively manage the site in accordance with the licence.
- Long term maintenance of the site.
- That they have a suitable management structure and sufficient funding arrangements.
- Where any other local authority has rejected an application for the responsible person.
Furthermore, the relevant person must not have committed any offence involving:
- Fraud or other dishonesty
- Violence
- Arson
- Drugs
- Sexual Offences
Contravention of laws relating to:
- Housing
- Caravan sites
- Mobile homes
- Public health
- Planning
- Environmental health
- Landlord and tenant law
- Equality act 2010 in connection with any business
- Harassed anyone regarding business
Or has/is:
- Been insolvent in the past 10 years
- Been disqualified as a company director in the past 10 years
- Is a member of any redress scheme for dealing with complaints in connection with the management of the site
Additionally:
They must be eligible to work in the UK.
Decisions a local authority may make on an application:
As soon as an application is made, the local authority must decide on the application and either:
- Â Decide to grant the application unconditionally + include the relevant person on the register for 5 years
- Â Otherwise serve a preliminary decision notice on the applicant.
A preliminary decision notice must set out:
- The date the notice is served
- The decision
- The reason for it
- The date that the final decision will be made
- Information about the right to make written representations
- Where the decision is to refuse the application, the consequences of causing or permitting the land to be used as a relevant protected site in contravention of regulation
- Where the preliminary decision is to grant application subject to conditions, the consequences of failing to comply.
Keep in mind that an applicant who receives a preliminary decision notice may within the 28 days make written representations to the authority which the local authority must take into consideration prior to making their final decision.
Final decision
When issued a preliminary decision, after 28 days the local authority must make final decision and serve the notice.
The notice must set out:
- The date final decision notice was served
- The final decision
- The reason for it
- When it is to take into effect
- Information about the right to appeal and the period in which the appeal can be made.
- Where the decision is to refuse the application, the consequences of causing or permitting the land to be used as a relevant protected site in contravention of regulation
- Where the preliminary decision is to grant application subject to conditions, the consequences of failing to comply.
Overall, these regulations prohibit the use of land as a residential mobiles home site unless the local authority is satisfied that the operator is a fit and proper person to manager the site. Therefore, ensure that you register with your local authority to avoid any sanctions and ensure that you’re running your park smoothly and securely.
