Travellers in Walsall being moved on after four months on same site

Walsall Housing Group has secured a possession order from a court to allow it to reclaim its car park in Blakenall.

A number of vans arrived on the site at the junction of Coalpool Lane and Whateley Avenue in October but the housing provider said it had been unable to take action sooner due to injunction applications being on hold.

However on Thursday an order was granted which required the travellers to leave the land immediately. It also bans anyone from going onto whg sites with a caravan or motorhome without written permission for the next two years.

Nearby residents have been asking questions about how long the travellers would remain at the site, Blakenall ward councillor Pete Smith said he had not had any complaints about the group until earlier this week.

Meanwhile Walsall Council is building a transit site on authority-owned land off Narrow Lane in Pleck for the gypsy Romany and traveller communities to use.

WHG director of housing Gary Brookes said: “Travellers have been on site on land at the junction of Coalpool Lane and Whateley Avenue since mid-October.

“Court papers were served on February 14. Unfortunately, we were unable to take action any earlier than this as injunction applications were on hold until a case in the Court of Appeal was decided – this case prevented all councils and housing associations from obtaining an injunction against persons unknown."

Councillor Smith said: “I can honestly say that I have received no contacts from local residents about this encampment in all the months they have been there, until last weekend.

“Then residents asked me as their councillor to find out what the latest information was.

“Whilst I understand the lifestyle of travellers, this particular residential car-park, right next to a public footpath and bus shelter on Coalpool Lane, is totally unsuitable for such an encampment.

“I hope before this group of travellers leave the site, that the owners of the land, WHG provide them with bags and containers so that they themselves can clear up any rubbish generated by the encampment in order to minimise the cost of a clear-up once they have vacated.

“It is often the mess left behind on some encampments that upsets local residents and makes any understanding between the particular travellers in question and the local community very difficult.

“Whg will now need to make some alterations to this car park in order than it can be retained as a residential car park.

"The council has recognised its obligation under the law to provide an official travellers site, with plans to set this up in the Pleck area.

“The hope is that this will reduce significantly the presence of illegal encampments on  sites such as this one.”