Clearing up after Travellers costing Croydon taxpayers £3,000 per week - London

From the Coulsdon and Purley Advertiser

CROYDON taxpayers are coughing up more than £3,000 a week to clean up after Travellers.

Clearing human excrement and fixing criminal damage caused by the most persistent offenders – confirmed to be around five or six families – has cost more than £128,000 since January, Croydon Council leader Mike Fisher has revealed.

Cllr Fisher said the authority has so far had to deal with 83 illegal encampments this year and has renewed his pledge to seek injunctions to ban Travellers from camping in parks and recreation grounds.

There are fears that costs will continue to soar if tougher measures are not implemented soon.

The amount being spent on Travellers has stunned community leaders, who say the residents they represent are angry that so much is being squandered in reactive rather than proactive action.

Purley and Woodcote Residents' Association chairman Tarsem Flora said: "I'm speechless – it's a staggering figure. I can't understand how they can be accumulating this much cost.

"It just shows how desperately we need a solution to this problem – but do we have a choice?"

Charles King, chairman of East Coulsdon Residents' Association, said: "The council needs to come up with some measures to make it more difficult rather than just reacting to it. The best way would be to stop them getting into these parks in the first place, by locking up gates."

Cllr Fisher said travellers who had camped on South Croydon Recreation Ground, off Brantwood Road, had broken down barriers to get into the park, threatened residents, and used the children's play area as a toilet.

In recent weeks, caravans have also pitched on Purley Rotary Field three times and the Lion Green Road car park in Coulsdon, where residents experienced threatening behaviour.

Cllr Fisher said: "It can't be right that people are prevented from enjoying these open spaces.

"It has cost the council £128,000 to clear up their mess but why should council taxpayers have to pay for that? We are seeking an injunction through the High Court to stop them coming back.

"We want to send a clear message that parks and open spaces are there for the people of Croydon and not to be abused by these people."

Last month, Cllr Fisher tore into travellers at a question time meeting in Purley, branding them "a risk to human health".