Thanet council will issue notice to leave to Travellers who have today (June 14) set up at Dane Valley Green in Margate.
Some six caravans arrived at the site this afternoon. It was reported to the authority by ward councillor Gary Hillman.
A Section 77 Notice to leave has also been given to Travellers currently using land at Ramsgate Port. Kent County Council is yet to confirm whether notice has been served on a group settled by the Manston airport site.
Council officers will carry out welfare checks prior to issuing the notice to quit.
It is an offence for somebody subject to such a notice to fail to leave as soon as reasonably practicable or to re-enter the site within three months of the date on which the notice was given.
If the group do not comply with the Section 77 Notice, Thanet council will need to apply to the court for an Order of Removal.
A Thanet council spokesman said: “We are aware of the illegal traveller encampment that has just arrived at Dane Valley Green. Officers from Thanet District Council will visit the site in order to undertake the necessary welfare assessments and following that, as appropriate, the required notices will be issued.”
Dane Valley Green was used by Travellers in April and on several occasions last year. Last June ward councillors Gary Hillman and Gary Taylor appealed to Thanet council for a ditch to be cut along the perimeter and the soil used to make mound, sewn with wild flowers, as a preventative measure.
The pair have since been told this work would cost some £25,000.
Providing Traveller sites – the law
The Housing Act 2004 and Planning Circular 01/2006, Planning for Gypsy and Traveller Caravan Sites, has put in place a framework which means every local authority has to identify land for the sites that are needed in its area. The Secretary of State has powers that can ensure that those sites are identified, and the Local Government Association (LGA) says local authorities should be proactive in doing so.
The LGA adds: “The provision of these sites removes a major cause of friction between the two communities – unauthorised sites and illegal camping.”
The nearest authorised sites to Thanet are at Aylesham and Canterbury.
So it would be cheaper in the long run to dig the trench or provide a camp site on the outskirts of Thanet. Why doesn’t the authority do this instead of waste money on court orders every few months at each place they set up?
Can somebody please interview the council over this and try and get some positive action.
There is a campsite on the outskirts of Thanet. It’s called Aylesham.
They should be served with a court order banning them from the area.
They should establish an official camp nearer to Thanet there is obviously a demand for it and this is no way to treat anyone.