TRAVELLER ENCAMPMENT UPDATE

On Sunday evening at around 6.30pm I witnessed a group of travellers gaining entry to Alderley Edge Park from Ryleys Lane Car Park. Entry was gained by the travellers tying a tow rope around two of the bollards at the entrance to the park and attaching the other end of the rope to a transit van, which was then placed in reverse and used to haul the bollards from the ground.

Today, welfare assessments have been carried out by Cheshire West & Chester Gypsy & Traveller Team (this is a shared service between Cheshire West & Chester Council and Cheshire East Council). Following this, along with Parish Cllr Mike Dudley-Jones, I have been to speak to the some of the "elders" of the group with a view to achieving a negotiated departure date.

We have agreed to provide two portable toilets which will be placed in the park near to the bandstand, this in the interests of public health and to try and minimise the amount of human waste that is left behind when the travellers move on. We have also agreed to provide bin liners and a small skip, in order to try and contain litter and reduce the scale of the ultimate clean-up operation.

Once the travellers have moved on, we will of course review security arrangements around the entrances to the park; however, it is important to recognise that it is impossible to provide complete protection or to guarantee that ingress will not occur again in future. In the meantime, Cheshire East Council will continue its efforts, through the planning process, to identify a dedicated gypsy & traveller transit site for the borough.

Dedicated transit sites provides the police with additional powers to move encampments on quickly. Officers from Cheshire Police are continuing to monitor the situation.