Council says travellers have replaced caravans (From Bucks Free Press)

Council says travellers at Hemley Hill have replaced caravans

5:59pm Tuesday 28th September 2010 in Politics By Lawrence Dunhill

Council says travellers have replaced caravans

THE number of caravans at a travellers' site near Princes Risborough has not breached a High Court Injunction, council investigators have found.

There were reports over the weekend that a number of new caravans had moved on to the camp in Upper Icknield Way, Hemley Hill.

Wycombe District Council has a 'status quo injunction' on the site, which bans further development since nine families carried out an “unauthorised construction” during the Easter holidays last year.

Planning enforcement officers visited the site yesterday and found the number of caravans on the site did not exceed the 12 which were there at the time the injunction was served.

Twelve caravans were counted at the weekend, though the officers found that some had been replaced. The council said it is now investigating the reasons for these replacements.

The injunction prohibits “all further development including laying of hardcore and swapping of caravans or replacement of the caravans with mobile homes”.

Traveller Patrick Hanrahan, 60, told the Bucks Free Press yesterday that two caravans had come on to the camp over the weekend, but said they would not be staying.

The news comes as the travellers and local residents await the result of July's Planning Inquiry, which considered the council's refusal of planning permission for nine gypsy and traveller pitches at the site.

Last week the decision over planning permission and the serving of an enforcement notice on the site was called in by Eric Pickles - the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government.

The reason given by the Secretary of State is that “the appeals involve proposals for significant development in the Green Belt”.

A decision is expected by December 7.