running a camp site

[donkey too]

Personally if I had the land, I would say bugger the camp site and start a caravan, camper, boat etc., storage park.
The one where I store my trading trailer is situated in a large wood on an old airfield site and stores 1600 units. The minimum payment for 12 months is 75 UKP per year and that is for a small caravan/ trailer in the open. Prices do go up to 2 and a half time more than that for some of the larger units and for indoor (an old aircraft hanger) and undercover (dutch barn type thing).
That is good money in my mind.

 

[Deleted member 967]

Baloothebear
UK

Tigatigatiger
Sounds good - never tried one of those pitches. Site would cost a fortune I imagine. Can't see we can go there. It is all just a thought. Retirment age creeping up but no chance of retiring, no pensions ooops

AL8
It would be a good start !

CL site at Sedgefield in County Durham has individual hard standing pitches divided by a wide grass area, each with its own water tap. waste water drain, satelite hook-up point and EHU. Electricity is on a pre pay meter at 14p Kwh cards available at £3 £5 or £10.

This CL was charging £10 per night last time I visited in September. Site also has MH dump point.

A Full club site would charge £25 or £30 for the same level of serviced site.

 

[Deleted member 967]

I ran a caravan storage site on 2.8 acres and had 220 vans in storage for 10 years. Problems despite security fencing were theft. Some of this was organised theft from my site and two others. The vans were taken to a Gypsy site in Carlisle where they were collected by a legitimate haulage company and taken to Stranraer for export to Ireland. The ferry company accepted then as green caravan or blue & white caravan and the person booking then in accepted a cross as a signature.

A further spate that put me out of business was a local Garage. They drove a transporter through the fence and loaded a van with wheel clamps, steady locks, and alarm. The van next to this one was the same model a year older with no security. They were definitely sealing to order. They were eventually caught the day I closed. They were found in the compound loading a van onto a transporter and they had five other vans on cars ready to go.

They were obviously watching me as I lived on site but from time to time had to pop out. It was always at these times that I was done.

I have been the exemption certificate for a club that has all of the exemptions. There are actually 15 clubs now that can issue CL type exemptions to site owners.
Information here: http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/Images/combined-guide_tcm6-9572.pdf

The 28 day rule applies to one caravan for no more than 2 nights on unlicensed land. It has been quoted even by DEFRA in other circumstances but if you read the act it only applies to that one section. The 28 days use of a CL or Holiday site is an agreement between DEFRA (Natural England) and the Big clubs and The Association of Caravan and Camping Exempted Organisations which represents about 50% of exempted clubs.

As has been stated before a properly constituted club can get exemptions without going through ACCEO. I have done it for my own club and a National Organisation. I got both organisations para 4, 5 and 6 plus camping.

If you go on line and look for "Caravan Sites Model Standards" you will see the requirements that are required for a licenced caravan site.
An example here: http://www.suffolkcoastal.gov.uk/NR...9DB4017B/0/EMASMODELSTANDARDSTOURINGSITES.pdf

There are also different standards for Residential sites.

 

[Firefox]

Here's a starter for the CL:
days of the year X cost per night X projected occupancy X 5 pitches = gross CL income per annum
IMHO, that would be:
365 X £10 X 40% X 5 = £10,950pa

What you think?

The % occupancy depends so very much on location. I'd think 40% over the whole year would be for a very good location.

For a more average place 20-30% may be closer to the mark.

I've been to a fair few out of the way CL's and even in summer, one or two units can be the norm.

By the time you've got your hook ups installed and saftey checked, advertised, and gone through all the hassle of telephone bookings and non shows I doubt there's much money in this. But I guess it would suit a person without full time employment who has ample time to answer the phone and collect the £5's and £10's here and there.

 

[Bambi 2]

running a camp site

For me the best bit about running our campsite near the pembrokeshire coast was selling it! we took on a campsite with takings of £2000 per year, we worked and worked at it, we managed to get storage permission and then the business took off, when we sold it the takings were a thousand pounds a week, but the running of the place put a strain on our marriage we worked 7 days a week and we had very little rest, some of the public were awful and made life very stressful. would I do it again?
NO THANKS!!!!! Bambi 2