Park Homes

There are about 100,000 park homes in England and Wales. Most are owner-occupied, but located on a plot which is rented or leased from a park operator on a park home estate. The unique tenure is governed by the Mobile Homes Act 1983. A minority of homes are rented along with the plot.

The development of park home estates and their physical standards are controlled through planning permission granted for use of land as a 'caravan site' (the legal term), and the site licensing system under the Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960 (CSCDA).

Under the CSCDA all 'caravan sites', including park home estates, must have a site licence issued by the local authority. A local authority has no discretion over whether to issue a site licence on a park with planning permission, but does have discretion over what, if any, conditions to apply, bearing in mind Model Standards issued from time to time by the Secretary of State (last issued in 1989). Authorities must consult park operators when setting or amending conditions, but there is no requirement to consult residents. There is no duty on authorities to inspect and monitor parks. Authorities have powers to prosecute failure to comply with licence conditions and can carry out works in default, but have no duty to do so. The CSCDA sets a framework within which there is considerable scope for authorities to exercise discretion and to take a more or less active role. At present, there is little guidance available to local authorities on how they should exercise their site licensing powers.

What is the legal definition of a mobile home?

What are the rules about conditions on mobile home sites?

Must site owners display their site licence?

Yes. A copy of the site licence must, by law, be displayed where residents can see it.

For more information use this link for the Mobile Homes Act 1983 (PDF 90.3Kb) or contact the Private Sector Housing team on 0300 300 8000.