Gate installed after travellers set up 17 illegal camps in a year

gate

Cheshire East Council has installed a gate on Earl Road, Handforth to deter illegal encampments and fly tipping which has cost taxpayers over £4000 in the past two years.

Travellers visited the site and set up home illegally on seventeen occasions in 2014 costing taxpayers over £3000 to remove them. The court costs in 2014 were £1,717 whilst the clean up bill totalled £1,377.

This compares with six illegal encampments at Earl Road in 2013 which cost £552 in court fees and £486 to clean up the site.

Councillor Les Gilbert, Cheshire East's Cabinet member for localism and enforcement, said: "We have taken this proactive measure to save Council Tax payers from further expense.

"Over the past two years, the use of this site for illegal encampments has cost the residents of Cheshire East more than £4,000 and the bill has increased year-on-year.

"Rather than wait for the next visit and potentially see the costs of court action and clean-up rise still further, we have taken positive steps to prevent this anti-social behaviour from continuing to be a drain on our resources."

Tags:
Earl Road, Travellers
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Comments

Here's what readers have had to say so far. Why not add your thoughts below.

Pete Taylor
Wednesday 14th January 2015 at 12:30 pm
I happened to drive past this morning; a good initiative but... as the visitors have several times dragged that tree-trunk out of the way before using their 4x4s, it would still be possible to do it again and drive around the gates, as the grass bank is not too steep.

Sturdy steel posts and fence needed to complete the job, methinks.
Michael Maddox
Wednesday 14th January 2015 at 12:47 pm
What I can't understand is why it's taken so long to put an obstacle in that hopefully will do the trick.
If it happens again in the area, as I'm sure it will, I just hope the Authorities concerned will react promptly with a permanent solution!
Buster Wild
Wednesday 14th January 2015 at 2:13 pm
Has the council ever heard of angle-grinders, these gates will make great scrap metal. Let's see how long it is before they go missing.
Nick Jones
Wednesday 14th January 2015 at 5:04 pm
Cllr Gilbert,... This alleged "proactive measure to save Council Tax payers from further expense" is simply....... Too little, Too late..... Is this really the best solution CEC could come up with ?
As commented above there's not much of an obstacle for resistance here.
Lets wait and watch ! Who on earth sanctioned this bright idea ?

The cost to the council would reduce significantly if you prosecuted those causing damage, parking offences, fly tipping. ‘AT THE TIME’ of offending instead of sitting on hands.

If you really believe this is the best solution perhaps you could also "gate off" areas of Wilmslow and Alderley Edge to stop parking there as well ?
Common sense would appear not so common here,Try harder next time !
Chris Jones
Wednesday 14th January 2015 at 5:45 pm
I think the £4000 cost is a touch on the conservative side, add on the cost of the police traveller liaison officer who did nothing, the council traveller liaison officer who did nothing, and policing paid for in taxes but not done. Oh and the cost of supplying and fitting a gate.
As silly as this seems, when the travellers all get back from there winter sun in the Canaries they are just going to park up round the corner.
Chris Wigley
Wednesday 14th January 2015 at 9:14 pm
I wonder how much the scrap value of the gates will be when they mysteriously disappear. Wouldn't a ditch have been a better and cheaper solution?
Jon Williams
Wednesday 14th January 2015 at 9:25 pm
It would be better to build the camp for them in that area as they must like it and it would be handy for the shops !
Dave Cash
Wednesday 14th January 2015 at 11:05 pm
Where is the monitored CCTV overlooking the gates to prevent criminal damage and driving on pavement etc?
Jon Williams
Thursday 15th January 2015 at 9:23 am
"Where is the monitored CCTV overlooking the gates to prevent criminal damage and driving on pavement etc? "

Got nicked for scrap !
Mark Goldsmith
Thursday 15th January 2015 at 12:34 pm
Unfortunately, our public services love tackling problems, but rarely the cause.

This is like installing a burglar alarm in the hope another house gets burgled instead. Of course you know who the burglars are and keep catching them in the act, but every time you do they are let off scot-free.

Cheshire Police and Cheshire East continually turned a blind eye to the fly tipping and damage caused. John Dwyer, our PCC also proved useless and his pre-election promise to tackle low level crime proved to be hollow.

This gate means more expense for Cheshire rate payers and does absolutely nothing to solve the root cause.

The travellers will still come back. They will just set up an illegal encampment in another part of Wilmslow or Handforth instead.
Simon Worthington
Friday 16th January 2015 at 10:08 am
I do hope the council obtained the correct planning permission needed to obstruct the public highway.
Chris Jones
Friday 16th January 2015 at 4:03 pm
Simon,
It's not a highway, or so the police said when the travellers were on it. You really couldn't make it up could you.
Oliver Romain
Saturday 17th January 2015 at 7:42 am
Travellers live unconventional lives,but have been part of our society for thousands of years. There is clearly a need and a legal obligation for an official traveller site in Cheshire East so why hasn't a site yet been provided?
Jon Williams
Saturday 17th January 2015 at 9:29 am
One is being built very soon on the Cheshire East/Stockport border