Victory for a furious farmer who trapped travellers in his field with barrier of tractors
BLOCKING people in is not the most obvious way of getting them to leave.
But it worked for one farmer, who forced a group of travellers off his land by surrounding them with tractors.
Chris Awdry took direct action when a group of six caravans arrived in his field on Wednesday afternoon.
The 53-year-old initially turned to police for help – but they said it was a civil matter and declined to get involved.
So he instructed his workers to drive tractors, trucks and diggers around the edge of the 1.5-acre site to block in the travellers as police stood by.
And less than three hours after their arrival, the group decided to depart.
Yesterday Mr Awdry, who rents the land in Trowbridge, Wiltshire, said: ‘They went in and they were ruining the land and we wanted them out. The owner of the land didn’t want them there and we did what we could to protect the land.
‘I had asked them nicely to leave but they said they wouldn’t and that I would have to get a court order to move them on.’
He added: ‘I contacted the police and they said it was a civil matter. We then decided to barricade them in until they went, with the police in attendance the whole time to keep the peace.’ Once officers saw what was unfolding, they advised the travellers of section 61 of the Public Order Act.
The law can be invoked when they are satisfied two or more people are trespassing on land and the owner has taken reasonable steps to make them leave. Mr Awdry added: ‘I was glad we managed to sort it quickly and peacefully.
‘Luckily, it happened on a day when we were not so busy harvesting, so we were able to act straight away, although even if it had been a busy day we would have still dealt with it.’ A farmhand said motorists beeped their horns in support as they saw the caravans leaving.
One of the travellers said they had only stopped off for food and to allow their children to rest.
Inspector Alan Lumley added: ‘They were peacefully dispersed without the necessity of us using police powers. The local land controller has been spoken to and no offences have been disclosed.’
He added: ‘ We always try and resolve such matters peacefully, although we do have powers to remove them if needed to.’
It is not the first time people power has been used to move on travellers. In June around 50 villagers took part in a four-hour protest to prevent a group from settling on their green.
After 11 caravans arrived in the picturesque village of Nepcote, West Sussex, the residents surrounded the land and blocked off the entrance with their cars.
Although some of the travellers got through, the villagers managed to prevent the majority from parking up. And after several hours, the campaign was victorious, with police serving an eviction notice forcing the group to move on.
However during the tense standoff, some homeowners were warned by the police they could be charged with false imprisonment for blocking the travellers.
One eyewitness said at the time: ‘The villagers took it upon themselves to fight and not let anyone go in. They blocked the only entrance. It was a great result.’