TRAVELLERS have returned to land at Gorse Covert, Warrington – only 36 days after the site was cleaned up after the last unauthorised encampment.
Local residents are furious as the site is close to many houses.
Opposition councillor Nigel Balding reported the encampment to the Cheshire and Warrington Traveller Team within hours and the wheels are in motion once again to clear the site.
On September 10, Cllr Balding was able to put forward a request for landscaping of the site on Fisherfield Drive at a meeting with Warrington Borough Council and, following this, he was optimistic that something could be done to prevent further incursions.
He said: “It’s really disheartening to see travellers back in the middle of Gorse Covert for the second time in 36 days. There hasn’t been a problem until this year and I don’t think it would take much for the council to protect this site – we just need to move more quickly to resolve this as it will save so much council time and money in the long run.”
In June this year Conservative councillors put forward a motion to the council asking for a commitment to provide a transit site for travellers within 12 months but the ruling Labour Councillors Group voted it down saying they would not be rushed.
Theoretically, discussions on choosing a site have been ongoing for many years and the cabinet has delegated the job to a task group of councillors and officers. After three years of apparent inactivity, the task group was finally asked to meet this week.
Cllr Balding said: “It is so hard to understand why the council is dragging its heels on this. It is a very high priority issue for Conservative councillors and setting a target to provide a transit site for travellers within 12 months was a motion we put to the first full council meeting after the elections in May 2021.”
