From the Daily Echo
A DORSET author hopes that his newly-published book highlighting the positive contribution made by Gypsies and Travellers will counter many of the negative perceptions of the travelling community.
Ray Wills, a poet and writer with family Gypsy roots, has spent two years editing ‘Gypsy Storytellers’.
It is a compilation of poems, stories, photographs and anecdotes from Gypsies and Travellers.
He began the project in 2011 in response to the eviction of Travellers from the Dale Farm site in Essex.
Mr Wills, 68, said: “Different people all around the world were shocked by the way Gypsies were evicted from the site.
“I was contacted by Geoffrey Neville, the son of the famous Melbourne Cup jockey Raymond Neville, who wanted to do something to raise some funds for the families of Dale Farm and other Gypsy families who were going through very hard times.
“Nomadic people pass their stories down from generation to generation and we also wanted to pass these stories on and show people that the Gypsy and Traveller community are not just takers in society, they have contributed.
“Many of them joined the forces and got killed in the war. A lot are horse breeders and a lot are show people. A lot of Gypsies have contributed, they have paid their taxes”
The very first poem in the book was submitted by singer and actor David Essex, who paid tribute to his grandfather Tom, a “travelling tinker.”
Mr Wills said he hoped the book would help improve relations between the settled and non-settled community: “A small number of people come down here every year and cause trouble” he said.
“That’s a very small minority of the Gypsy community. If Dorset provided small transit sites that would go a long way to resolve the problem.
“The aim of the book was to show that within the Gypsy community there are creative people, artists, photographers, poets and writers. We have had contributions from all over the world.”
All profits from the book will go to the Gypsy Council. It can be ordered online from www.francisboutle.co.uk
Monday, 2 September 2013
Travellers’ site application opposed - Cambridgeshire
From the Peterborough Telegraph
Monday, noon: Concern has been voiced at an application to build a Travellers’ site on land in Farcet.
Farcet Parish Council called a public meeting over the plans at Farcet Village Hall, in Main Street, on Friday evening (August 31).
The application, submitted to Huntingdonshire District Council, is for two Gypsy and Traveller sites with two caravans, an additional family room caravan and a facilities block for two extended families on land adjacent to the Conquest House care home, in Straight Drove.
Dozens of residents attended the meeting, raising concerns over the impact the site would have on the village’s infrastructure, in particular, its roads and school.
As a result, the council agreed to formally oppose the application.
Monday, noon: Concern has been voiced at an application to build a Travellers’ site on land in Farcet.
Farcet Parish Council called a public meeting over the plans at Farcet Village Hall, in Main Street, on Friday evening (August 31).
The application, submitted to Huntingdonshire District Council, is for two Gypsy and Traveller sites with two caravans, an additional family room caravan and a facilities block for two extended families on land adjacent to the Conquest House care home, in Straight Drove.
Dozens of residents attended the meeting, raising concerns over the impact the site would have on the village’s infrastructure, in particular, its roads and school.
As a result, the council agreed to formally oppose the application.
Survey: Aylesbury Vale needs 47 more Gypsy and Traveller pitches - Buckinghamshire
From the Bucks Herald
Gypsies and Travellers will need 47 extra pitches across Aylesbury Vale in the next 10 years, a new report suggests.
A survey revealed there are currently 100 pitches in the district, but 17 of these are unauthorised.
The assessment involved a number of face-to-face interviews with residents on existing Traveller sites in the county, as well as telephone surveys with the settled and travelling community.
It revealed there are 286 pitches across Bucks, 31 of which are unauthorised. The county as a whole needs 108 more pitches by 2023, the report says.
Government guidance issued in March 2012 aims to ensure members of the Gypsy, Traveller and travelling showpeople communities have access to ‘decent and appropriate accommodation options’. For many of these, this means designated sites rather than ‘bricks and mortar’ accommodation.
Each district council will use the results of the study to help them consider how to meet demand.
Aylesbury Vale District Council said in a statement: “By planning positively in this way, the district councils will have greater control over where Traveller sites are situated and this will mean they are better placed to take action against unauthorised encampments and developments in the future.”
Gypsies and Travellers will need 47 extra pitches across Aylesbury Vale in the next 10 years, a new report suggests.
A survey revealed there are currently 100 pitches in the district, but 17 of these are unauthorised.
The assessment involved a number of face-to-face interviews with residents on existing Traveller sites in the county, as well as telephone surveys with the settled and travelling community.
It revealed there are 286 pitches across Bucks, 31 of which are unauthorised. The county as a whole needs 108 more pitches by 2023, the report says.
Government guidance issued in March 2012 aims to ensure members of the Gypsy, Traveller and travelling showpeople communities have access to ‘decent and appropriate accommodation options’. For many of these, this means designated sites rather than ‘bricks and mortar’ accommodation.
Each district council will use the results of the study to help them consider how to meet demand.
Aylesbury Vale District Council said in a statement: “By planning positively in this way, the district councils will have greater control over where Traveller sites are situated and this will mean they are better placed to take action against unauthorised encampments and developments in the future.”
D-day for Gypsy site proposal on Leeds Wakefield border - Yorkshire
From the Yorkshire Evening Post
Controversial plans to create a permanent Traveller camp on the Leeds-Wakefield border will go before a planning inspector this month.
Applicant Tom Spaven’s plan for a 10-pitch site on grazing land next to the M62 at Castle Gate, Stanley, was turned down by Wakefield Council’s planning and highways committee in February.
Residents and politicians sent in more than 1,200 objections to Wakefield Council’s planning department after more than 200 residents gathered at a joint community meeting to oppose the idea in March last year.
Despite the public outcry from residents living in the nearby villages of Carlton, Lofthouse, Ouzlewell Green and Stanley, planners initially recommended that the plans be approved to help meet the need for 16 more Traveller pitches in Wakefield.
But the plans were then rejected, an appeal was lodged and now a final decision will be made at The Old Restaurant at Wakefield Town Hall, in Wood Street, on September 25 at 10am.
Vikki Stansfield, secretary of the Stanley Residents Group, told the YEP: “Nothing’s changed, we are still as a group against it – it’s still an inappropriate development on green belt land and we will be there representing the opposition.
“It’s not a case of us opposing it because it’s a Gypsy site, it’s because it is development.”
Ms Stansfield, who lives just 15 yards from the proposed camp, said ongoing work to the M62 means the camp would be just a matter of yards from the outside lane of the motorway.
Objectors have also raised concerns that the site could lead to an increased risk of crime, though the site’s owners moved to state a warden would be on site at all times, maintaining the area and liaising with the council and police, while tenants would be asked to leave if three complaints were made about them, and traffic and parking limitations would be imposed.
Coun Stewart Golton (Lib Dem, Rothwell) said: “The provision of Traveller sites should be a consideration for local authorities and should not be decided by private individuals just because they own a bit of land.”
In 2009 there was an estimated shortfall of 86 Traveller pitches in West Yorkshire.
Coun Jack Dunn (Lab, Ardsley and Robin Hood) said: “If this appeal was granted it would be an affront to the community.”
The landowner did not wish to comment on the appeal.
Visit planning.wakefield.gov.uk/online-applications and search 12/00208/FUL to view the plans.
Controversial plans to create a permanent Traveller camp on the Leeds-Wakefield border will go before a planning inspector this month.
Applicant Tom Spaven’s plan for a 10-pitch site on grazing land next to the M62 at Castle Gate, Stanley, was turned down by Wakefield Council’s planning and highways committee in February.
Residents and politicians sent in more than 1,200 objections to Wakefield Council’s planning department after more than 200 residents gathered at a joint community meeting to oppose the idea in March last year.
Despite the public outcry from residents living in the nearby villages of Carlton, Lofthouse, Ouzlewell Green and Stanley, planners initially recommended that the plans be approved to help meet the need for 16 more Traveller pitches in Wakefield.
But the plans were then rejected, an appeal was lodged and now a final decision will be made at The Old Restaurant at Wakefield Town Hall, in Wood Street, on September 25 at 10am.
Vikki Stansfield, secretary of the Stanley Residents Group, told the YEP: “Nothing’s changed, we are still as a group against it – it’s still an inappropriate development on green belt land and we will be there representing the opposition.
“It’s not a case of us opposing it because it’s a Gypsy site, it’s because it is development.”
Ms Stansfield, who lives just 15 yards from the proposed camp, said ongoing work to the M62 means the camp would be just a matter of yards from the outside lane of the motorway.
Objectors have also raised concerns that the site could lead to an increased risk of crime, though the site’s owners moved to state a warden would be on site at all times, maintaining the area and liaising with the council and police, while tenants would be asked to leave if three complaints were made about them, and traffic and parking limitations would be imposed.
Coun Stewart Golton (Lib Dem, Rothwell) said: “The provision of Traveller sites should be a consideration for local authorities and should not be decided by private individuals just because they own a bit of land.”
In 2009 there was an estimated shortfall of 86 Traveller pitches in West Yorkshire.
Coun Jack Dunn (Lab, Ardsley and Robin Hood) said: “If this appeal was granted it would be an affront to the community.”
The landowner did not wish to comment on the appeal.
Visit planning.wakefield.gov.uk/online-applications and search 12/00208/FUL to view the plans.
Bucks Needs 108 New Gypsy And Traveller Sites - Buckinghamshire
From Mix96
Buckinghamshire needs 108 extra pitches for Travellers over the next 10 years.
The four district councils in the county have had a new report done, which shows there's currently 286 pitches for gypsys and Travellers but 31 of those are unauthorised.
Government guidance issued in March 2012 aims to ensure that members of the Gypsy, Traveller and Travelling Showpeople communities have access to decent and appropriate accommodation options. For a number of Gypsies, Travellers and Travelling Showpeople, appropriate housing means designated sites rather than 'bricks and mortar' accommodation.
The study assessed the level of need for Traveller accommodation over the next 10 years and suggests the number of pitches or plots required to meet that need.
The assessment, which was carried out between January and March this year, involved a number of face-to-face interviews with residents on existing Traveller sites in the county, as well as telephone surveys with representatives of both the settled and travelling community.
Each authority will now use the results of the study in helping them to consider how best to meet the needs which the survey has identified at a local level.
The report suggests Aylesbury Vale would supply nearly half of all the new pitches needed- 47 out of 108
Buckinghamshire needs 108 extra pitches for Travellers over the next 10 years.
The four district councils in the county have had a new report done, which shows there's currently 286 pitches for gypsys and Travellers but 31 of those are unauthorised.
Government guidance issued in March 2012 aims to ensure that members of the Gypsy, Traveller and Travelling Showpeople communities have access to decent and appropriate accommodation options. For a number of Gypsies, Travellers and Travelling Showpeople, appropriate housing means designated sites rather than 'bricks and mortar' accommodation.
The study assessed the level of need for Traveller accommodation over the next 10 years and suggests the number of pitches or plots required to meet that need.
The assessment, which was carried out between January and March this year, involved a number of face-to-face interviews with residents on existing Traveller sites in the county, as well as telephone surveys with representatives of both the settled and travelling community.
Each authority will now use the results of the study in helping them to consider how best to meet the needs which the survey has identified at a local level.
The report suggests Aylesbury Vale would supply nearly half of all the new pitches needed- 47 out of 108
Travellers Service update - Friday 30 August 2013 - Sussex
From Brighton and Hove City Council
Unauthorised encampment of Travellers and Gypsies on land at Surrenden Field - We will be visiting this site with the police this morning to carry out a community impact assessment to determine the most appropriate course of action.
Unauthorised encampment of Travellers and Gypsies on land in Wild Park - We have visited this site with the police. We are now seeking possession of this land. We will be applying to the County Court for a Possession Order which will enable us to arrange for an eviction to be carried out as soon as practicable, should the families fail to leave the site voluntarily. Read our statement.
Unauthorised encampment of lived-in vehicles on land adjacent Racehill allotments - We have visited this site with the police. We are negotiating a leaving date with the occupants of this encampment, so as to avoid a costly formal eviction.
Brighton & Hove Traveller Strategy
Our Traveller Strategy sets out how the council balances the needs of traveller communities with those of the city’s settled communities.
The Horsdean Traveller Site is one of the few transit sites for Travellers in the country. The council takes action against unauthorised sites in line with our Traveller strategy.
We have identified a need for residential accommodation for Gypsies and Travellers in the city and, in line with our policy for managing unauthorised encampments, we want to build a permanent Gypsy and Traveller site with good facilities.
Survey points to Horsdean as appropriate location for permanent Traveller site
A location for a permanent Traveller site in Brighton & Hove has been proposed following an extensive selection process. A survey was carried out at 50 locations under terms jointly agreed by officers from Brighton & Hove City Council and the South Downs National Park Authority. On 15 March cabinet agreed the council should submit a planning application for a permanent Traveller site at Horsdean.
A £1.7m government grant to develop a permanent Traveller site is expected to cover the cost of the development, which would have pitches to house 16 families. Travellers living on the site will pay rent and council tax.
As part of the new Traveller Commissioning Strategy 2012 residents and Travellers were extensively consulted. The council will balance its responsibility to local residents who want to enjoy the city’s parks and spaces with the needs of the Traveller community. Amongst some of the proposals are a new Brighton & Hove Traveller forum to bring together Travellers and service providers, a dedicated site manager at the Horsdean site and continuing protection of sensitive sites.
Read our press release, questions and answers and the report approved by cabinet to find out more.
Previous proposal for Gypsy and Traveller site in Sheepcote Valley
Land at Sheepcote Valley, off Wilson Avenue, was identified as our preferred location for a permanent Gypsy and Traveller site in August 2008. However, the site was found to be unsuitable. Rigorous testing by inspectors found that the former landfill site was not suitable because of the level of contamination and the related clean up costs.
As a result, we are no longer proposing a permanent Gypsy and Traveller site at Sheepcote Valley.
Traveller Liaison service
Since 2001, Brighton & Hove City Council and the police have been working in partnership to manage unauthorised Traveller encampments within the city, and minimise conflict and nuisance.
Find out more about how the Traveller Liaison Team work to manage unauthorised encampments within the city.
Traveller Liaison services include:
liaison with the settled community
provision of advice and support to landowners and the public
management of the Horsdean Traveller Site
support in helping Travellers access services such as health and education
The Traveller Liaison Service has teachers and home or school support staff who can help with attendance issues and supporting Gypsy or Traveller children whilst they are in schools.
To contact the Traveller Liaison Team, please phone (01273) 292044 or email travellers@brighton-hove.gov.uk.
Unauthorised encampment of Travellers and Gypsies on land at Surrenden Field - We will be visiting this site with the police this morning to carry out a community impact assessment to determine the most appropriate course of action.
Unauthorised encampment of Travellers and Gypsies on land in Wild Park - We have visited this site with the police. We are now seeking possession of this land. We will be applying to the County Court for a Possession Order which will enable us to arrange for an eviction to be carried out as soon as practicable, should the families fail to leave the site voluntarily. Read our statement.
Unauthorised encampment of lived-in vehicles on land adjacent Racehill allotments - We have visited this site with the police. We are negotiating a leaving date with the occupants of this encampment, so as to avoid a costly formal eviction.
Brighton & Hove Traveller Strategy
Our Traveller Strategy sets out how the council balances the needs of traveller communities with those of the city’s settled communities.
The Horsdean Traveller Site is one of the few transit sites for Travellers in the country. The council takes action against unauthorised sites in line with our Traveller strategy.
We have identified a need for residential accommodation for Gypsies and Travellers in the city and, in line with our policy for managing unauthorised encampments, we want to build a permanent Gypsy and Traveller site with good facilities.
Survey points to Horsdean as appropriate location for permanent Traveller site
A location for a permanent Traveller site in Brighton & Hove has been proposed following an extensive selection process. A survey was carried out at 50 locations under terms jointly agreed by officers from Brighton & Hove City Council and the South Downs National Park Authority. On 15 March cabinet agreed the council should submit a planning application for a permanent Traveller site at Horsdean.
A £1.7m government grant to develop a permanent Traveller site is expected to cover the cost of the development, which would have pitches to house 16 families. Travellers living on the site will pay rent and council tax.
As part of the new Traveller Commissioning Strategy 2012 residents and Travellers were extensively consulted. The council will balance its responsibility to local residents who want to enjoy the city’s parks and spaces with the needs of the Traveller community. Amongst some of the proposals are a new Brighton & Hove Traveller forum to bring together Travellers and service providers, a dedicated site manager at the Horsdean site and continuing protection of sensitive sites.
Read our press release, questions and answers and the report approved by cabinet to find out more.
Previous proposal for Gypsy and Traveller site in Sheepcote Valley
Land at Sheepcote Valley, off Wilson Avenue, was identified as our preferred location for a permanent Gypsy and Traveller site in August 2008. However, the site was found to be unsuitable. Rigorous testing by inspectors found that the former landfill site was not suitable because of the level of contamination and the related clean up costs.
As a result, we are no longer proposing a permanent Gypsy and Traveller site at Sheepcote Valley.
Traveller Liaison service
Since 2001, Brighton & Hove City Council and the police have been working in partnership to manage unauthorised Traveller encampments within the city, and minimise conflict and nuisance.
Find out more about how the Traveller Liaison Team work to manage unauthorised encampments within the city.
Traveller Liaison services include:
liaison with the settled community
provision of advice and support to landowners and the public
management of the Horsdean Traveller Site
support in helping Travellers access services such as health and education
The Traveller Liaison Service has teachers and home or school support staff who can help with attendance issues and supporting Gypsy or Traveller children whilst they are in schools.
To contact the Traveller Liaison Team, please phone (01273) 292044 or email travellers@brighton-hove.gov.uk.
Travellers cost Kirklees Council £150k in a year - Yorkshire
From the Huddersfield Daily Examiner
Travellers cost Kirklees Council £150,000 in just 12 months, it has been revealed.
Now a councillor is calling on the authority to do more to tighten up security at vulnerable sites.
The figure, revealed at an area committee meeting, includes eviction and legal fees, clean-up costs and site security works.
Lindley Liberal Democrat Clr Cahal Burke, backed by his party, has submitted a motion calling on Kirklees Council to do more to prevent illegal occupation of council sites.
Clr Burke said: “This summer we’ve had camps at sites across Lindley and other parts of the borough which have caused upset and distress for many people, as well as costing the council a great deal of money it cannot afford.
“As a Liberal I am totally in favour of people living their lives as they choose as long as they obey the law and their actions don’t impact negatively on anyone else.
“But this is not the case in terms of the Travellers who have arrived in Kirklees this last few months.
“Apart from the cost of the eviction, the public are being asked to pay for criminal damage, clearance of waste and fly-tipping and security improvements to stop re-entry.
“These actions are not acceptable from anyone, regardless of lifestyle choice, so it is reasonable for the council to do all it can to prevent it happening again as it would with any other situation.”
The motion calls on the council to recognise Travellers’ rights but asks the authority to spend some of the £150,000 to improve security of council sites.
Clr Burke added: “What we’re suggesting is that the council looks to invest some of that money proactively to tighten up security at vulnerable sites so Travellers can’t get on to the land in the first place allowing the council to make savings on legal and clearance costs in the future.”
There are no recognised Traveller sites in the borough, and plans by Wakefield Council to build a Traveller site in Owl Lane on the Dewsbury-Ossett border, were abandoned in 2010 following controversy.
So far this year Travellers have moved onto Reinwood Recreation Ground twice, the YMCA playing fields at Salendine Nook and at Heatherleigh Recreation Ground on Lindley Moor Road.
The Spen Valley has had camps appear at Moorend Rec, Mill Bridge Recreation, Crown Street Car Park, Miry Lane Recreation and Dale Lane Park.
The Spen Area Committee has allocated £15,000 to improve security such sites.
The motion is due to be discussed at a full meeting of Kirklees Council on September 11.
Travellers cost Kirklees Council £150,000 in just 12 months, it has been revealed.
Now a councillor is calling on the authority to do more to tighten up security at vulnerable sites.
The figure, revealed at an area committee meeting, includes eviction and legal fees, clean-up costs and site security works.
Lindley Liberal Democrat Clr Cahal Burke, backed by his party, has submitted a motion calling on Kirklees Council to do more to prevent illegal occupation of council sites.
Clr Burke said: “This summer we’ve had camps at sites across Lindley and other parts of the borough which have caused upset and distress for many people, as well as costing the council a great deal of money it cannot afford.
“As a Liberal I am totally in favour of people living their lives as they choose as long as they obey the law and their actions don’t impact negatively on anyone else.
“But this is not the case in terms of the Travellers who have arrived in Kirklees this last few months.
“Apart from the cost of the eviction, the public are being asked to pay for criminal damage, clearance of waste and fly-tipping and security improvements to stop re-entry.
“These actions are not acceptable from anyone, regardless of lifestyle choice, so it is reasonable for the council to do all it can to prevent it happening again as it would with any other situation.”
The motion calls on the council to recognise Travellers’ rights but asks the authority to spend some of the £150,000 to improve security of council sites.
Clr Burke added: “What we’re suggesting is that the council looks to invest some of that money proactively to tighten up security at vulnerable sites so Travellers can’t get on to the land in the first place allowing the council to make savings on legal and clearance costs in the future.”
There are no recognised Traveller sites in the borough, and plans by Wakefield Council to build a Traveller site in Owl Lane on the Dewsbury-Ossett border, were abandoned in 2010 following controversy.
So far this year Travellers have moved onto Reinwood Recreation Ground twice, the YMCA playing fields at Salendine Nook and at Heatherleigh Recreation Ground on Lindley Moor Road.
The Spen Valley has had camps appear at Moorend Rec, Mill Bridge Recreation, Crown Street Car Park, Miry Lane Recreation and Dale Lane Park.
The Spen Area Committee has allocated £15,000 to improve security such sites.
The motion is due to be discussed at a full meeting of Kirklees Council on September 11.
Anger as evicted Travellers set up new camp nearby - Wrexham
From News North Wales
RESIDENTS are outraged a group of Travellers that was moved on from Llay has set up camp on their doorstep.
On Friday the Leader reported that after 11 days in Alyn Waters Country Park the Travellers left but a number of them simply drove the short distance to Wrexham Industrial Estate and set up a new camp near the community centre in Pentre Maelor.
Wrexham Council has pledged it will act to have the Travellers removed as soon as it can.
A council spokesman said: “We are aware a number of those who were at Alyn Waters have moved to this new site. We will be taking action to remove them as soon as possible."
On Twitter, Insp Nick Evans wrote: “A few of the caravans have moved to Abenbury. Police and the council are aware.”
Cllr Ray Squire, chairman of Abenbury Community Council, said Travellers are regularly turning up in the area.
“We are becoming a dumping ground. They have been coming around here regularly for the last couple of years.”
Cllr Squire said he feared groups which regularly used the community centre would be put off from attending while the latest camp was in place.
“Effectively we are being excluded from our own facilities. People have been contacting me and they are angry, coming to the end of their tether.”
Cllr Squire said the community centre is regularly used for education purposes and he was concerned whether there would be any disruption to teaching schedules.
Wrexham Council has said it is too early to put a figure on the amount of the damage caused while the Travellers were at Alyn Waters.
Cllr Malcolm Taylor said: “Everyone here is so pleased the Travellers have left Alyn Waters.
“The council did exactly the right thing in going through all the legal procedures to remove the camp. I do understand some people were frustrated, but to do otherwise would have given the Travellers a reason to appeal and they might have stayed there for months.”
The Travellers were parked by football pitches used by Llay United Youth FC. Club representatives have been busy making alternative arrangements for venues to hold training sessions and matches.
Talking about the state of the pitches now the camp has gone, secretary David Adams said: “I have had an initial look. The decision on using the ground is down to the council.
“But from what I have seen so far, I think with some hard work it could be possible for us to be back there in the next couple of weeks.
“We could do with a bit of rain now to help the grass. There are some skid marks, about 3ft long and 4 inches deep.”
RESIDENTS are outraged a group of Travellers that was moved on from Llay has set up camp on their doorstep.
On Friday the Leader reported that after 11 days in Alyn Waters Country Park the Travellers left but a number of them simply drove the short distance to Wrexham Industrial Estate and set up a new camp near the community centre in Pentre Maelor.
Wrexham Council has pledged it will act to have the Travellers removed as soon as it can.
A council spokesman said: “We are aware a number of those who were at Alyn Waters have moved to this new site. We will be taking action to remove them as soon as possible."
On Twitter, Insp Nick Evans wrote: “A few of the caravans have moved to Abenbury. Police and the council are aware.”
Cllr Ray Squire, chairman of Abenbury Community Council, said Travellers are regularly turning up in the area.
“We are becoming a dumping ground. They have been coming around here regularly for the last couple of years.”
Cllr Squire said he feared groups which regularly used the community centre would be put off from attending while the latest camp was in place.
“Effectively we are being excluded from our own facilities. People have been contacting me and they are angry, coming to the end of their tether.”
Cllr Squire said the community centre is regularly used for education purposes and he was concerned whether there would be any disruption to teaching schedules.
Wrexham Council has said it is too early to put a figure on the amount of the damage caused while the Travellers were at Alyn Waters.
Cllr Malcolm Taylor said: “Everyone here is so pleased the Travellers have left Alyn Waters.
“The council did exactly the right thing in going through all the legal procedures to remove the camp. I do understand some people were frustrated, but to do otherwise would have given the Travellers a reason to appeal and they might have stayed there for months.”
The Travellers were parked by football pitches used by Llay United Youth FC. Club representatives have been busy making alternative arrangements for venues to hold training sessions and matches.
Talking about the state of the pitches now the camp has gone, secretary David Adams said: “I have had an initial look. The decision on using the ground is down to the council.
“But from what I have seen so far, I think with some hard work it could be possible for us to be back there in the next couple of weeks.
“We could do with a bit of rain now to help the grass. There are some skid marks, about 3ft long and 4 inches deep.”
Villagers organise to oppose unwanted planning developments in Bovingdon - Hertfordshire
From the Watford Observer
Villagers have united to fight unwanted planning developments in Bovingdon.
Prospals to build a Gypsy caravan site, plans to demolish a hotel, and the "supercar driving experiences" at Bovingdon Airfield have prompted the Bovingdon Action Group to launch a new website in an attempt to "save Bovingdon Green Belt".
An application was submitted in July for change of use of the Green Belt site adjacent to the Bobsleigh Hotel to be used as a residential caravan site for eight Gypsy families, each with up to two caravans.
The action group said on the website: "We recognise that Gypsies need residential pitches but the Green Belt is not an acceptable option or a solution."
Bovingdon Action Group is a collection of volunteers from the local community who aim to make sure the views of residents are heard by Dacorum Borough Council.
Similarly, the organisation has raised concerns about the MacDonald Hotel Group seeking permission to demolish the existing two-storey 47 bedroom hotel and replace it with a five-storey 100 plus bedroom hotel.
The proposal, if approved, will more than double the size of the existing hotel, relocating two of the existing mobile homes onto Green Belt land in the process.
A retrospective application, submitted in February, for various companies to offer "driving experiences" at Bovingdon Airfield is the final concern raised by the new website. The application intends to cover the motor sport activities that have been taking place on the airfield for many months.
The website has been launched in an attempt to encourage more villagers to voice their opinions about the applications and support the move to save Bovingdon Green Belt.
Villagers have united to fight unwanted planning developments in Bovingdon.
Prospals to build a Gypsy caravan site, plans to demolish a hotel, and the "supercar driving experiences" at Bovingdon Airfield have prompted the Bovingdon Action Group to launch a new website in an attempt to "save Bovingdon Green Belt".
An application was submitted in July for change of use of the Green Belt site adjacent to the Bobsleigh Hotel to be used as a residential caravan site for eight Gypsy families, each with up to two caravans.
The action group said on the website: "We recognise that Gypsies need residential pitches but the Green Belt is not an acceptable option or a solution."
Bovingdon Action Group is a collection of volunteers from the local community who aim to make sure the views of residents are heard by Dacorum Borough Council.
Similarly, the organisation has raised concerns about the MacDonald Hotel Group seeking permission to demolish the existing two-storey 47 bedroom hotel and replace it with a five-storey 100 plus bedroom hotel.
The proposal, if approved, will more than double the size of the existing hotel, relocating two of the existing mobile homes onto Green Belt land in the process.
A retrospective application, submitted in February, for various companies to offer "driving experiences" at Bovingdon Airfield is the final concern raised by the new website. The application intends to cover the motor sport activities that have been taking place on the airfield for many months.
The website has been launched in an attempt to encourage more villagers to voice their opinions about the applications and support the move to save Bovingdon Green Belt.
Travellers pitch up once again - Staffordshire
From the Uttoxeter Advertiser
TRAVELLERS are back in the Uttoxeter area just weeks after two camps were dispersed by police.
After itinerants finally left town earlier this month, around a dozen caravans set up on the cricket pitch in Sudbury on Tuesday.
They have been issued notice by bailiffs enlisted by the National Trust, which owns the land in question, and must leave by 11am today.
Police are ‘monitoring the situation’ and have visited the site ‘several times’ since the caravans arrived.
However, they are unable to say whether the Gypsies are the same ones who ‘invaded’ Uttoxeter’s Dovefields Industrial Estate and leisure centre in July.
Villager Geoff Hodson told the Post and Times there had been ‘no trouble at all’ since the Travellers arrived.
He said: “It started with four caravans earlier in the week, then five, and on Wednesday they all started coming in their droves.
“Obviously Gypsies have a reputation and a lot of people in the village are quite wary about them being here but we’ve had absolutely no trouble from them so far.
“You get to know if anything happens very quickly living in this village and I’ve not been told of any problems.
“This is the first year the pitch hasn’t been used for cricket so it’s not been cut and has become overgrown, which I think is a bit of an invitation for the Travellers.
“Everyone would be pleased to see them removed as this is an idyllic village and we could really do without this.
“In the past trouble has followed when Travellers have moved so, as soon as they do, everyone’s automatically worried.”
Jenny Layfield, general manager at the National Trust’s Sudbury Hall and Museum of Childhood, said: “A group of Travellers are currently parked on National Trust land, leased to Sudbury Parish Council, at the front of Sudbury Hall and used as a cricket pitch.
“We are in contact with the group and have been liaising with them since they arrived. Bailiffs have served notice on the group requiring them to vacate the site by 11am on Friday 30th August.
“We have been working closely with local police who will be monitoring the situation to ensure that the Travellers do vacate by the notice deadline.”
A Derbyshire Police spokesman said: “We received a call on Tuesday morning reporting that Travellers had moved onto land at Sudbury Hall.
“Officers have visited the site several times over since this report was made and liaised with the Travellers and staff at the hall. We will continue to monitor the situation.”
Itinerants disrupted businesses when they set up camp at Dovefields Industrial Estate in July.
Business owners described their behaviour as ‘intimidating’, particularly citing Gypsy children being instructed to defecate on the car park.
Last week, the Advertiser reported how MP Andrew Griffiths backed the rejection of an application for a legitimate Travellers’ camp in Draycott-in-the-Clay.
TRAVELLERS are back in the Uttoxeter area just weeks after two camps were dispersed by police.
After itinerants finally left town earlier this month, around a dozen caravans set up on the cricket pitch in Sudbury on Tuesday.
They have been issued notice by bailiffs enlisted by the National Trust, which owns the land in question, and must leave by 11am today.
Police are ‘monitoring the situation’ and have visited the site ‘several times’ since the caravans arrived.
However, they are unable to say whether the Gypsies are the same ones who ‘invaded’ Uttoxeter’s Dovefields Industrial Estate and leisure centre in July.
Villager Geoff Hodson told the Post and Times there had been ‘no trouble at all’ since the Travellers arrived.
He said: “It started with four caravans earlier in the week, then five, and on Wednesday they all started coming in their droves.
“Obviously Gypsies have a reputation and a lot of people in the village are quite wary about them being here but we’ve had absolutely no trouble from them so far.
“You get to know if anything happens very quickly living in this village and I’ve not been told of any problems.
“This is the first year the pitch hasn’t been used for cricket so it’s not been cut and has become overgrown, which I think is a bit of an invitation for the Travellers.
“Everyone would be pleased to see them removed as this is an idyllic village and we could really do without this.
“In the past trouble has followed when Travellers have moved so, as soon as they do, everyone’s automatically worried.”
Jenny Layfield, general manager at the National Trust’s Sudbury Hall and Museum of Childhood, said: “A group of Travellers are currently parked on National Trust land, leased to Sudbury Parish Council, at the front of Sudbury Hall and used as a cricket pitch.
“We are in contact with the group and have been liaising with them since they arrived. Bailiffs have served notice on the group requiring them to vacate the site by 11am on Friday 30th August.
“We have been working closely with local police who will be monitoring the situation to ensure that the Travellers do vacate by the notice deadline.”
A Derbyshire Police spokesman said: “We received a call on Tuesday morning reporting that Travellers had moved onto land at Sudbury Hall.
“Officers have visited the site several times over since this report was made and liaised with the Travellers and staff at the hall. We will continue to monitor the situation.”
Itinerants disrupted businesses when they set up camp at Dovefields Industrial Estate in July.
Business owners described their behaviour as ‘intimidating’, particularly citing Gypsy children being instructed to defecate on the car park.
Last week, the Advertiser reported how MP Andrew Griffiths backed the rejection of an application for a legitimate Travellers’ camp in Draycott-in-the-Clay.
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