Travellers leave town - 'forced out by unfair treatment'

TRAVELLERS have fled North East Lincolnshire – with supporters claiming they were unfairly forced to leave.

Three sets of travellers have made the borough their home over the last three months, leading to outrage from landowners and residents.

A large family of travellers left Grimsby's Gilbey Road last Wednesday and groups living on land off Hewitts Avenue, in Cleethorpes, and in Kiln Lane, Stallingborough, left over the weekend – despite pledging to continue their "game of musical fields" with North East Lincolnshire as a protest.

But Shay Clipson, a Romany gypsy who has lived in Grimsby for 12 years, says their treatment has been unfair.

"I feel like they have been forced to leave the area and have not been offered the support they should have been," she said.

"In other parts of the country there is a lot of support in place for travellers and gypsies but that's not the case in North East Lincolnshire.

"I am shocked by some of the excuses made for not providing them with a site to live on."

Shay claims all local authorities are issued with best practice guidelines for dealing with travellers by central government.

These guidelines categorise all sites that travellers could occupy illegally according to sensitivity.

For instance, a school playground or cemetery would be classed as Tier 1 and eviction would be recommended immediately.

However, guidelines state they should be able to occupy less controversial sites, such as the former playing fields off Taylors Avenue where the first set of travellers set up camp in June.

Shay added: "If there is no lawless behaviour and they are not causing a threat to national security, then they should be allowed to remain on sites like Taylors Avenue.

"I was down there talking to two of the women a couple of weeks ago and a very well-dressed elderly lady walked past us and started screaming abuse and obscenities.

"Travellers and gypsies do not want trouble, they want to be left in peace to live their lives."

Shay now says she will be pursuing an investigation into how the travellers were treated by North East Lincolnshire Council.

However, she claims launching a judicial review will be difficult because, contrary to popular belief, the majority of the travellers pay too much tax to qualify for Legal Aid and a judicial inquiry is simply unaffordable.

She added: "I feel they have been dealt with unfairly in a number of ways.

"For instance, an eviction notice was issued to a group of travellers off Taylors Avenue but no number plates were noted down so when the eviction took place, travellers who had arrived later and who the notice did not relate to, were forced to leave too.

"All they want is to be given a site where they would happily pay rent and council tax.

"Just because they have left for the moment does not mean the issue should be forgotten.

"We must make sure that travellers and gypsies are treated fairly, and lawfully, in North East Lincolnshire."

As reported, after travellers set up camp off Taylors Avenue at the beginning of June, the council quickly moved to evict them, leading to a number of court orders being served.

They later moved to Peaks Top Farm, in New Waltham, before arriving at Cleethorpes Country Park, Wilton Road Industrial Estate, then land off Weelsby Avenue and Gilbey Road.

A family of 17 who set up camp off Hewitts Avenue had stayed in the same locations as the first group, but were forced to separate because there was not enough room at Gilbey Road.

A third group arrived on land next to Pennells Garden Centre, in Cleethorpes – owned by farmer Boo Parkes – last week and then relocated to Stallingborough.