There will be a public inquiry into whether travelling showmen should be allowed to overwinter at a site in Leybourne.

Sheldon Whittle sought permission for a showman’s site on a triangle of scrubland off Castle Way, the A228, so that his own family, his sister and his cousin’s family could stay over winter in mobile homes and store their funfair equipment there, but permission was denied by Tonbridge and Malling Council.

He appealed and a Government planning inspector will now hear the case at a two-day hearing starting on Tuesday, April 17, at 10am, at the Gibson Building, Gibson Drive, Kings Hill.