Travellers quit Sevenoaks schools site before bailiffs arrive - Kent

From This Is Kent

Travellers who forced two Sevenoaks nurseries to close after camping in their car park have quit the site just hours before bailiffs and police were due to remove them.

The last caravan left yesterday afternoon as officers acting for Sevenoaks Town Council issued eviction notices.

Bailiffs with police back-up had been due to move into the encampment in Crampton’s Road, Bat and Ball, today.

Now parents and teachers at Sevenoaks Day Nursery and Hollybush Montessori School are counting the cost of the four day saga.

The schools say their playgrounds have been ransacked and the children's toys taken since the first Travellers started to appear on Sunday.

By Tuesday, there were eight caravans on the site and tensions were running high following a flare-up between Travellers and a parent who had been trying to protect his child from a dog that was on the loose in the camp.

At that point, teachers took the decision to close both schools – leaving more than 50 under-fives without classes.

Vicky Lockyer from Sevenoaks Day Nursery, a registered charity, said: "We did try to carry on as usual, even though our children couldn't play outside.

"But after Tuesday’s incident we thought it would be safer to close. We’re now discussing when to reopen and what equipment we might need to replace."