Warwickshire emergency Gypsy and Traveller sites considered

From the BBC

Emergency Gypsy and Traveller sites could be established in Warwickshire to crackdown on unauthorised camps.

The Conservative county council's cabinet said it was looking at creating emergency stopping places where people could remain for up to 28 days.

Some 94 temporary unauthorised camps were set up in Warwickshire in 2011.

Labour county councillor Richard Chattaway said he wanted more details on the proposed location of the sites.

The cabinet report said an alternative option of transit sites, where people could stay for three months, would cost the authority around £1.2m to build.

They would need to provide occupants with access to toilets, water and electricity, although rent would be charged.
'Jury is out'

Emergency stopping places, providing water and toilets, would each cost £30,000 to create, with weekly fees charged to anyone using them, the report added.

The cabinet said transit sites elsewhere had "resulted in very low occupancy".

It added the council's director for sustainable communities would be given "delegated powers to identify potential emergency stopping places" in a bid to prevent further unauthorised camps.

Mr Chattaway said: "I think residents will want to know how many sites are they looking at, where are they thinking of putting these emergency sites and what sort of consultation will there be?

"The principle is worth looking at but there was very little information about what advantages or disadvantages there would be to the county as a whole.

"From my point of view the jury's very much out."