MOVING travellers on from illegal encampments this year has cost taxpayers more than £40,000 in clean-up and legal costs.

Various groups pitched up at a number of sites across the borough — the majority arriving over the summer months. Sites include Fern Street and Darley Park in Farnworth, High View Playing Fields in Sharples and Hulton Lane Playing Fields, in Daubhill.

Residents have complained of being deprived of access to leisure facilities, noise nuisance, littering, and damage to pitches by unauthorised vehicles.

But in order to evict groups, council chiefs must first serve them with a direction to move on and then apply for a court order if this is not complied with.

A Freedom of Information request made by The Bolton News has revealed the total legal cost of the 14 evictions between January 1 and September 19 this year totalled £4,655.32. The clean-up costs since June total £36,576.45.

That bill is broken down as follows: Fern Street, £7,533.68, Doe Hey, £5,634.68 and £1,063.38, High View, £4,648.68, Hulton Lane, £4,233.23, Barlow Park, £6,448.00, Darley Park, £2,796.62, Hulton Lane, £3,603.38 and £614.80.

Fears for future of Hulton Lane Playing Fields after travellers pitch up on site again

Residents in Cllr Jean Gillies’ Farnworth ward saw travellers set up camp illegally several times over at a number of sites over the summer. She said a change in the law was needed to prevent local authorities from incurring such costs. She said: “Personally I would rather get something put in place where we shouldn’t have to apply for a summons to go through the legal process.

“In an ideal world it should be that we can operate that legal process without having to get a court order. But that would be something for MPs to lobby parliament to get that law changed.

“But travellers have legal rights, too, and before we do anything checks have to be made on the children, their education and that they are being well looked after.”

Councillor Hillary Fairclough represents Sharples residents who clashed with travellers who pitched up at High View Playing Fields in June.

She said: “It’s the clean-up costs that are the bigger amount when you look at a site left by travellers, it’s horrendous.

“And they have to bring innot just one unfortunate man, but a whole team of people and then have to secure the site. In the one at Sharples we had to have a digger to put things in the way to stop them coming back immediately and then new gates put on.”

Cllr Gillies agreed with Cllr Fairclough that the money would be better spent elsewhere. She said: “Clean-up work can be quite expensive and remedial work done after it. Boulders, fencing and barriers, that all costs money.

But she believes the money spent on securing sites over the summer will pay off in the long term.

She said: “I think, prevention-wise, we have done what we can in a cost-effective way, and I don’t think we have any further camps arriving.”

Fencing to be built in bid to stop travellers accessing Hulton Lane Playing Fields

A Bolton Council spokesman said: “We always aim to move on travellers as soon as possible from their encampments and will serve directions on the group. If they do not move within 24 hours, we will then apply to court for a summons. The legal costs vary depending on the individual circumstances of the encampment.”

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