A PRIVATE Newport council report says a proposed residential site in Hartridge has won support of the city's Gipsy and Traveller community ahead of a debate on the issue tonight.

Newport council says a debate on the city's gipsy and traveller sites will take place in public tonight despite information on the issue being kept confidential.

Tonight's full council will vote on a revised deposit local development plan (LDP) for Newport following a number of changes including a new list of gipsy and traveller sites.

But information on a recent consultation on the sites with Gipsy families and on the likelihood that the council could face legal action has been kept in a so-called part two report, which has been obtained by the Argus.

Councillors will discuss whether to agree for the revised LDP to go to public consultation for a period of six weeks.

Tonight's meeting comes after last year's consultation into the controversial issue by a scrutiny committee of councillors, who opted for a site at Hartridge Farm Road as a preferred residential site, land at Celtic Way as a preferred transit site and the Former Ringland Allotments as a contingency is needed.

Delivering that option, according to the part two report, would cost £6.3 million, with a site manager needed at Hartridge.

The site is the only one considered that could accommodate all three families in Newport thought to be in need of a site, with 43 pitches.

A formal consultation was carried out with the three families following a request by cabinet and adult family members were shown draft site plans and given the chance to vote on whether or not they'd prefer to live on the Hartridge site.

It was unanimously identified by the 21 adult family members, the report said.

The Hartridge Farm Road site was at low risk of legal challenge, the report said, adding that work done at that committee would also make a challenge from surrounding residents unlikely to be successful.

The report added that the preferred option from scrutiny "would not give rise to any potential Human Rights and Equalities issues, as the use of the Hartridge site would avoid the need to split up families.

A council spokeswoman said the debate and decision on the LDP will take place in public, and the press and public will only be excluded if questions are raised about confidential information.