Travellers leave school playing fields - Lancashire

From the Lancashire Evening Post

A group of Travellers set up camp on school playing fields on their way to a wedding.

The Travellers arrived on land next to Archbishop Temple School in St Vincent’s Road, Fulwood, Preston, on Saturday afternoon.

Police said they attended the makeshift campsite at around 5.30pm that day to speak to representatives from the group. They left the fields last night.

When the Evening Post visited the scene yesterday afternoon there were around 12 caravans parked on the field.

There were a similar number of cars and two horses grazing on a football pitch behind Corpus Christi Roman Catholic Sports College.

Inspector Darrin Butterworth, from Lancashire Police, said yesterday afternoon: “There is a travelling community wedding that is occurring in Lancaster today.They will be coming to Preston later this afternoon.We’ve got resources in place to deal with the number of Travellers expected for a wedding and that is why there has been a build up of caravans in the area.”

A resident living in Forest Way opposite the playing fields, who did not wish to be named, said he had called the police on Saturday.

Preston Council leader Peter Rankin said he believed a lot of Travellers were visiting the north west because of Appleby Horse Fair in Cumbria, which finished last week.

Preston Central North County Coun Frank de Molfetta said the school had been made aware of the situation by police and had an understanding they would leave before school resumed.