CL of the Year 2026 Winners: What Five-Pitch Sites Tell Dealers

The Caravan and Motorhome Club has named its Certificated Location of the Year winners for 2026. Six five-pitch sites won. The Stables, an all-year site at Forncett St Peter in Norfolk, took the overall title.

On the surface, it’s a members’ awards story. Look closer, and it’s a clear picture of what touring customers rate in a pitch: hardstanding, power, their own washroom, quiet and somewhere to walk the dog.

That’s useful intelligence if you sell the caravans and motorhomes that pull onto them.

The Six Winners (and Where to Find Them)

Club members nominate their favourite CLs each year. The Club then picks winners for England North, England South, Wales and Scotland, plus Best Newcomer and a Sustainability Award. Each name below links to the site’s Club listing.

The Stables, Norfolk: Overall Winner and Best CL in England South

Paul and Sue Townsend run The Stables, about five miles from Wymondham. It’s open all year, with hardstanding and grass pitches, 16 amp hook-up, a water tap and grey water drain on the pitch, and an exclusive-use shower and WC.

Yew Tree Farm, Lincolnshire: Best CL in England North

Andrew Wrisdale’s Yew Tree Farm sits on a 50-acre farm near Tetney Lock, just south of Cleethorpes. Pitches are hardstanding with 16 amp hook-up and their own water supply.

There’s a heated shower and WC, drive-over waste disposal for motorhomes, and a fenced dog exercise area by the lake.

Fron Deg, Gwynedd: Best CL in Wales

Martin and Alison White’s Fron Deg is an adults-only site on the Llŷn Peninsula. It has five grass pitches with hook-up, free WiFi and an exclusive-use shower and WC.

One detail matters for anyone selling vans. The listing says Fron Deg isn’t suitable for large motorhomes or twin-axle outfits.

Firbank Park, Aberdeenshire: Best CL in Scotland

Archie and Justine Buchanan’s Firbank Park is an adults-only site inside the Cairngorms National Park. It offers hardstanding pitches on four acres, 16 amp hook-up and drive-over waste disposal for motorhomes.

The season runs from March to early January, and the listing caps outfits at 12 metres.

Five Oaks, Ceredigion: Best Newcomer

Kelly Ellis runs Five Oaks at Penrhiwllan, near Llandysul. It’s dog-friendly and open all year, with hardstanding and grass pitches, 16 amp hook-up and a communal picnic area. The Club says it’s close to a village pub and shop.

Llainfran, Ceredigion: Sustainability Award

Gary and Jane Soltys’s Llainfran sits about three miles from New Quay, with views over Cardigan Bay. The award goes to owners who make their sites more sustainable, but the release doesn’t say what Llainfran changed.

It isn’t new to the podium. Llainfran was Best CL in Wales in 2025.

Why Five-Pitch Sites Matter More Than Their Size Suggests

CLs are private sites certified by the Club under the Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960. Each can take up to five caravans or motorhomes. The Club says members can choose from over 2,000 of them.

That’s a large slice of UK touring built from very small pieces. And the bar to entry is low. The Club’s minimum list is half an acre of level land, safe access, drinking water, a chemical waste point, a rubbish bin and public liability insurance.

So what do the best ones have in common? Let’s break it down, using the Club’s own listings:

• Hardstanding: four of the six winners offer it.
• Dogs: all six welcome them.
• Adults only: two of the six (Fron Deg and Firbank Park).
• Season: two open all year, and Firbank Park runs into January.
• Geography: three of the six are in Wales.

The signal is clear. The tourers these sites attract want quiet, self-contained stays with a firm pitch, power and room for the dog. That’s a buyer profile, not just a campsite review.

What This Means for UK Caravan and Motorhome Dealers

Your customers read these lists. Some will book a winner next season. Here’s how to use that.

1. Check fit before the sale, not after the first trip. Fron Deg turns away large motorhomes and twin axles. Firbank Park stops at 12 metres. If a buyer says they love small sites, show them which models get onto them.
2. Put self-contained spec where buyers can see it. CL facilities range from a private shower block to the Club’s bare minimum. Washroom layout, water capacity, heating, battery and solar matter more on a five-pitch site than on a full-service park. Put those numbers on the listing page, not in a PDF.
3. Talk about the off-season now. Two winners open all year. Autumn is when to show buyers heating, insulation and winter touring, while they’re still planning next year.
4. Add CLs to your handover. CLs are for Club members only, and the release puts membership at £69 a year. One line in your handover pack helps a new owner find a first-night pitch that suits them.
5. Write the local story. A Lincolnshire dealer can point buyers to Yew Tree Farm. A dealer in west Wales has two winners in Ceredigion. For more on where touring demand sits, see our look at the regional hotspots reshaping touring caravan sales.

What It Means for Tourers and Site Owners

For owners, the list is a ready-made shortlist of small sites, each checked by members rather than by a marketing team. That trust is the point. It ties into the wider theme of experience-led travel that keeps coming up in this market.

For anyone hosting in Wales, there’s a new admin job. The Welsh Government says all visitor accommodation providers must join a national register, which opened on 1 October 2026 with a deadline of 31 March 2027. Councils can bring in a visitor levy from April 2027 at the earliest, set at 75p per adult per night for campsites.

Five-pitch hosts should check how that applies to them. Tourers heading to Gwynedd or Ceredigion should watch what their council decides.

Small Sites, Loyal Customers

The Club has been busy beyond its own pitches, from sponsoring national surfing championships to these awards. But the CL network is where its members’ tastes show most clearly.

Thirty pitches won this year. Quiet, hardstanding, dog-friendly, often adults-only and open longer than you’d expect.

So here’s the question for your next stock meeting. If a customer walked in tomorrow planning a week at Fron Deg or Firbank Park, would your forecourt, and your website, have the right van ready for them?