City council deals with 67 unauthorised traveller camps in six months

LEEDS CITY council has dealt with 67 unauthorised traveller encampments in a six-month period and has invoked its legal power on 21 occasions in that time to move on convoys, new figures published by the authority reveal.

From June 2017 to November 2017, the council was notified of 55 encampments on land it owns, and another 12 on private land.

One particular group of travellers from the Blackpool area were moved on 19 occasions. Powers under Section 61 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act (trespassing) have been used 11 times, with existing orders on land used on ten occasions.

The numbers, presented to a cross-party scrutiny panel at Leeds Civic Hall yesterday, also reveal there were two new encampments in December.

Last year, Leeds planning chiefs approved a long-term temporary travellers site in Kidacre Street, Hunslet, near Leeds city centre. The permission for eight pitches is valid for ten years. A report to yesterday’s meeting said that some of the traveller families referred to would be moving to that site once it is completed.

The report also noted that the newest group of travellers have encamped seven times, and one of these sites was under an “agreed negotiated period” of 27 days at Bath Road, Holbeck.

The authority has recently introduced a “negotiated stopping sites” scheme – thought to be the first of it kind in the country – creating nine temporary caravan sites on a rolling basis on vacant pockets of land awaiting redevelopment. Families would be allowed to stay on the sites for up to 28 days with no fear of being evicted, but would have to sign a “good behaviour contract” with the council.