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This past 2 years I have tried growing plants, sweetpeas etc, up trellises that I have positioned around my garden.  They are nailed to the fence with the bottom pulled an inch or so away from the fence to allow the plant to take hold to be able to climb.  Nothing has grown more than 2-3 feet maximum.

Do I need to reposition the trellis or does the gap between the trellis and fence need to be greater?  and how much of an area at the base of the trellis do I need to keep clear?

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It's the other way round usually.  You put the trellis where you need it to be and then plant what you want to grow up it.  Maybe your soil preparation hasn't been good enough to provide all the nutrients the plants need to do well or maybe it's just due to a cool, wet spring and summer with low light levels.

You do always need a gap between trellis panels and their support so that air can circulate and thus reduce the likelihood of diseases like mildew.  You do also need to keep tieing in your plants to support them and keep most of the growth on the visible side of the trellis.  Training roses, clematis, honeysuckle, sweet peasn jasmine etc as horizontally as possible will encourage the formation of flowering shoots, as will a high potash/potassium fertiliser such as rose or clematis or tomato food.