Travellers' camp should be in the city - Leicestershire

From the Leicester Mercury

The Travellers of Leicestershire need a permanent camp in the city – and those interviewed in our story today give a good case why. We know that there is a strong view that any camp should be built out in the county, away from the estates.

Whether this view is borne out of a desire to meet the travelling community's needs, or, more likely, a 'not in my backyard' attitude is another debate.

However, we feel that being in a city location would make more sense than putting a camp in a remote, rural area. We would like to point out that we do not feel qualified to say whether the proposed three locations are the right ones.

We hope the rules and guidelines which control planning permission will be suitable to ascertain the pros and cons of the suggested camps and allow the city council to make a decision accordingly. But we do believe that camps should be sought in the city to give Travellers the best chance of a good quality of life.

Once a camp is established, its users will require access to healthcare, education, council services, shops and leisure facilities. We do not believe that these needs would be served by having a camp established outside the city.

The mood at the recent meetings over the proposed camps was one of fear – that somehow creating a Travellers' camp in Leicester would bring untold misery. We cannot agree with this view and would like to point out there are good and bad people in all walks of life.

The challenge now is to find locations which meet the needs of the planning brief – one which suits both the travelling community and people living nearby.