A WEYMOUTH couple have said their ‘life is on hold’ because a proposed gypsy and traveller site has left their home ‘unsellable’.

Jessica and Gren Elphinstone Davis said the uncertainty over the site at the former Army camp at Wyke Regis means no one will want to buy their house.

Dorset County Council looks set to support the inclusion of the site in a Development Plan Document (DPD) for the proposed allocation of traveller sites in the county at a meeting today.

In a letter which has been seen by the Dorset Echo, estate agent Direct Moves said three people who had viewed Mr and Mrs Elphinstone Davis’s house in Mandeville Road had been put off from making an offer because of the proposed plans, and three others had cancelled viewings.

Mrs Elphinstone Davis, 29, said she and husband Gren, 27, wanted to move to another home to start a family.

She said she would have to continue working full-time to support a family and to pay the mortgage on their current home.

“It has had a considerable impact on our lives. We get our hopes up when a viewing is booked and then it all comes crashing down when it is cancelled because they realise how close it is to this proposed site,” she said.

“It’s frustrating because it’s not something we can mend; it’s out of our control.

“It’s the not knowing that’s putting people off.”

The letter reads: ‘The potential plans for the site is stopping people like our clients from getting a buyer and moving on with their lives plus if the plans go ahead then it will dramatically decrease the value of the houses in this road and area.

“When these houses come up for sale they usually go fairly quickly because of what they offer, including the incredible views across The Fleet but with the potential plans for the site no one seems to be interested.’ Emma Hughes, owner of Direct Moves, said: “Fear of the unknown is not good for saleability. That’s the case with any development.”

The son of an elderly neighbour of the couple said his mother had been left struggling to sleep after worrying she may have the same difficulties.

The man, who wanted to remain anonymous, said: “My mother is 85 and there will come a point where she needs to sell her home to go into a smaller, ground floor flat or to fund care for herself.

“This could be going on until we are given an answer one way or another, which may not be until next spring.”

A report that will go before DCC this morning recommends it voice no objection to the inclusion of the site or to a site at the former Guard House in Piddlehinton – although it does suggest it voice a preference for the Wyke Regis site to be used as a temporary rather than a permanent facility while it would like to see the Piddlehinton site used for travelling showpeople only.

Cllr Robert Gould, left, leader of West Dorset District Council, said consultation will end on Friday.

The results, alongside those from a consultation in 2011-12 will be considered before a list of preferred sites is drawn up next autumn.

These will then be published for a further round of consultation before any decisions are made The Echo has spoken to a number of residents in Camp Road who say they are concerned.

John Davis said he has lived near to travellers’ camps before and said he would sell his house and move from the area if the site was given the go-ahead.

He added: “I’m really concerned; I think it’s absolutely disastrous. It’s an area of outstanding natural beauty and the road can’t take any more traffic. It will devalue the properties, I would never have moved here if I knew they were going to be building something in that area, with all the mess and aggravation that goes with it.”

Another resident who has lived in the road for 16 years, said: “It’s already really busy in this area so we don’t need more traffic. I think people will lose money on the value of their houses.”

Nick Chester, 76, has lived in Camp Road for 43 years and said: “It’s far too close to a residential area, which none of the other sites are, and there will be extra traffic and pressure on services.”