CL and CS sites: how to start one, and how to take bookings

A CL (Certificated Location) is a small touring site certificated by the Caravan and Motorhome Club. A CS (Certificated Site) is the Camping and Caravanning Club’s version. Each can take up to five caravans or motorhomes at a time, for that club’s members only, without a council caravan site licence. A CS can also take up to 10 tents (more only with the Club’s written permission). A CL can’t take ground tents. You apply to one club, it visits and consults the council and neighbours, and the certificate runs for a year at a time. You set your own prices and take bookings yourself: by phone, email or online.

CL or CS: the main differences

A CL, run under the Caravan and Motorhome Club’s rules:

• up to five caravans, motorhomes or trailer tents at a time
• no ground tents
• Club members only, and you must join the Club too
• no stays longer than 28 days

A CS, run under the Camping and Caravanning Club’s rules:

• up to five caravans or motorhomes, plus up to 10 tents (more only with the Club’s written permission)
• Club members only
• no stays longer than 28 consecutive days
• six metres between units, as a fire safety measure

New CSs in Scotland can’t take tents, according to the Club’s Set up and go guide.

Both clubs’ current rules say you can’t hold a certificate from the other club on the same land. The CL guide says you can only use one exempted certificate on your land. A CS certificate says the owner must not run any other campsite on the same landholding. Some older sites do run both, but expect a new application to be refused if you already have the other club’s certificate.

Why you don’t need a site licence

Most caravan sites need a site licence from the council. The Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960 has exceptions. Schedule 1, paragraph 5 says no licence is needed where an exempted organisation has certificated land for its members’ recreation, and no more than five caravans are there at once. Each certificate lasts a year at most.

The clubs hold their exempted status from government. In England, Natural England issues these certificates. Scotland and Wales issue their own.

Tents come under a different law. Section 269 of the Public Health Act 1936 lets councils license land used for tents and other “moveable dwellings”. An organisation with a certificate of exemption under section 269(6) is treated as licensed. A CS certificate cites both Acts.

Do you need planning permission?

Usually not for the use itself. In England, the General Permitted Development Order 2015, Schedule 2, Part 5 grants planning permission for:

• Class A: using land as a caravan site in the circumstances in paragraphs 2 to 10 of Schedule 1 to the 1960 Act, which include club-certificated sites
• Class C: use of land by members of a recreational organisation, including putting up tents (not on a building or within a house’s curtilage)

Wales has a similar Part 5 in the 1995 Order. Check Scotland and Northern Ireland with the club.

Building work is different. The Caravan and Motorhome Club says structures and engineering works, such as surfacing or septic tanks, may need planning permission. Its land guide adds that in some areas the Club must apply for full planning. The Camping and Caravanning Club says toilets and showers may need planning permission.

Councils still have a say:

• Clubs issuing these certificates must have a system for consulting neighbours and the local licensing authority, says gov.uk.
• A council can apply for an order switching off the Schedule 1 exemptions for land in its area (paragraph 13).
• A council can withdraw permitted development rights with an article 4 direction.

What your land needs

Both clubs ask for at least half an acre of fairly level land with safe access. The basics are:

• a safe drinking water tap
• a chemical toilet emptying point, with a rinsing tap
• a bin for dry rubbish
• public liability insurance

Details that catch people out:

• CL entrances should be at least 3.66 metres wide, with any gate at least 15 metres back from the road.
• CS facilities must be within 100 metres of the pitches. Chemical waste goes to a sealed tank or the mains drain. Septic tanks aren’t permitted.
• Non-mains water needs a yearly test certificate.
• The Caravan and Motorhome Club prefers owners to live on or next to the site.
• Toilets, showers, hardstanding and electric hook-up (EHU) are optional.

Don’t start any works until the club has given you its decision in writing.

How to apply

Caravan and Motorhome Club:

1. Apply online. Applying is free.
2. A local CL consultant or regional adviser reviews it.
3. A volunteer consultant visits. This “may be some weeks” away.
4. The Club consults the council and neighbours.
5. You get a final decision. There’s no right of appeal.

Camping and Caravanning Club:

1. Read the Set up and go guide, then apply online. There’s nothing to pay upfront.
2. The Club runs checks and a Site Development Officer visits.
3. Neighbours and the council get 28 days to respond.
4. You get a “work to be done” letter, with six months to finish it.
5. A final visit, then your certificate.

Neither club gives an overall timescale.

What it costs

• Caravan and Motorhome Club: the Club lists “Club membership (included in £69 cost)” as a requirement. Membership costs £69 a year, plus a £10 joining fee unless you pay by Direct Debit. The pages we read show no separate certificate fee, so confirm with the Club.
• Camping and Caravanning Club: an annual certification fee of £125 plus VAT, paid before certification. It covers a listing, signage and a free digital membership.

The Caravan and Motorhome Club says you keep 100% of your income and it takes no commission. The Camping and Caravanning Club pays you commission when non-members join through your site.

Taking bookings

You take bookings yourself. The club lists your site. It doesn’t run your diary.

• Caravan and Motorhome Club: “Members will contact you directly about availability and to make bookings (you may opt to use an external online booking system).” Members are told to book “directly with the owner by phone, email or on their own website”.
• Camping and Caravanning Club: you decide whether to require advance booking. Members are told to contact the site to confirm the fee and book.

A CS certificate adds two points. You can advertise only on the Club’s website, in its SiteSeeker guide and on websites you own. Your own website must show the Club logo and the words “members only”. Owners also agree to any online booking system the Club develops in future, including part deposits.

Online booking is an option. One CL says “All bookings and payments are now online.”

Check membership on every booking:

• Caravan and Motorhome Club: only take bookings from Club members. Members are told to have their membership number ready and show their card on arrival.
• Camping and Caravanning Club: check valid membership and keep a record of names and membership numbers. Non-members can join, even on site.

Ask for the membership number when people book. Check the card when they arrive. If you take bookings online, ask for the number on the booking form. PootlrHost, for one, can ask for a Caravan and Motorhome Club or Camping and Caravanning Club number and make it a must.

Rules for running it

• Maximum stay is 28 days with both clubs.
• No storing caravans, and no permanently sited vans.
• No seasonal pitches on a CS, or anywhere on the same landholding.
• No yurts, tepees or pods on a CS without the Club’s written permission.
• Rallies: exempted clubs can hold members’ meetings of up to five days. Both clubs say rallies or other camping must be on a separate area from your CL or CS.
• On a CS, no noise or vehicle movement between 11pm and 7am.
• CS owners send the Club yearly attendance figures and proof of insurance.

On EHU, the Caravan and Motorhome Club says about 80% of CLs offer it. A 16-amp supply is most common, and each van must reach a hook-up with a cable of up to 25 metres. You can include electricity in the price or charge separately, but you must follow Ofgem guidance and must not profit from it. CS hook-ups must be tested.

What CLs and CSs charge

You set your own prices. These are examples, not averages:

• The Caravan and Motorhome Club says members can stay at CLs for “as little as just £2.50 per night”.
• The Camping and Caravanning Club says CS fees start “from just £10 per unit, per night”.
• A CS in Cambridgeshire lists members’ prices from £15.
• A CS in Cumbria lists from £20.
• One CL charges £20 a night from April to September and £25 from October to March, including electricity.

The Camping and Caravanning Club asks owners to quote a fee per unit, per night, for up to two adults and two children. Say clearly what costs extra, such as dogs or awnings.

A simple income illustration

Use: pitches × nights open × occupancy × price per night.

This is an illustration, not a forecast:

• 5 pitches × 214 nights (first night 1 April, last night 31 October) = 1,070 pitch-nights
• at 40% occupancy, that’s 428 pitch-nights
• at £20 a night, that’s £8,560 before costs

Costs include club fees, insurance, waste collection, electricity, upkeep, and any business rates and tax. The Caravan and Motorhome Club puts the cost of emptying a sealed waste tank at about £110 a time.

Insurance, rates and other checks

• Insurance: both clubs require public liability insurance. The CS certificate says the policy must show the land is used as a campsite.
• Business rates: the Valuation Office values sites for touring caravans and tents, including “grass fields which can operate without a license”. In England, small business rate relief may reduce your bill. Ask your council.
• Wales: pitches count as visitor accommodation. Because CL and CS stays are capped at 28 days, you must register with the Welsh Revenue Authority by 31 March 2027. It’s free. Councils can choose to add a visitor levy, from April 2027 at the earliest. Caravan and motorhome pitches pay the higher rate of £1.30 per person per night, children included. The lower rate of 75p, with under-18s exempt, is only for tent pitches. Cardiff is the first council to charge it, from 1 April 2027.
• Flooding: CS sites in flood zones need a flood plan.
• Tax, and health and safety: check with an accountant and the Health and Safety Executive.

Before you apply

• At least half an acre of fairly level, well-drained land
• Safe access, with good visibility both ways
• Written consent from anyone who shares your access road
• No restrictive covenant that blocks camping
• Not next to a licensed or commercial campsite
• A drinking water supply, and a plan for chemical waste
• An informal chat with your planning authority about any works
• A word with your neighbours
• A public liability insurance quote
• A choice of club: CL or CS (neither club’s current rules allow the other’s certificate on the same land)
• A plan for taking bookings and recording membership numbers

This guide isn’t legal advice. Check the current rules with the club and your council before you start.