A village has taken the fight against travelers settling on their green to a new level by digging it up.
The parish council of Swaffham Bulbeck, Cambridgeshire, decided to create 3ft trenches and put large tree trunks across their playing fields after a group were evicted last month.
Less than two weeks later a second load of travelers then moved in on the playing fields before once again being moved on.
As a result, residents could not use the park, football pitch and cricket fields and their presence has put people on edge.
Owner of the Black Horse Inn, Kevin George, said, ‘It stopped kids playing and people walking their dogs.
‘I know all the locals who walk their dogs, mostly women, and I noticed that when the travelers were here all of sudden all of the men were walking the dogs instead – I knew the dogs but not the owner.
‘I had so much trouble from them. They tried to come in and use my toilets but I wouldn’t entertain them.
‘I had to call the police to kick them out for starting trouble and one of them tried to start a punch-up with my missus. They’ve affected my trade.
‘I got so much grief from them that in the end I had to bolt the front door. As far as the trenches go, I’d rather see that than the gypsies, and it’s only temporary anyway. ’
While the trenches are currently a bit of an eyesore, it is hoped that the growth of wildflowers and grass in them will help to improve the view.
Mary Jacobs, 69, whose house overlooks the playing fields, said, ‘We’re the unlucky ones because we have to look at it all the time.
‘But really what were the council meant to do? It’s a sort of catch – 22 really, because without the trenches, they’ll just come back. I’ve lived for 20 years and not once have we have travelers and this kind of disruption. ’
She went to investigate after the travelers left and said, ‘When they left I went and had a look around and the state the park was in was saddening.
‘They’d put mud on the picnic tables and they’d been using the back of the pavilion and the neighbor woods as a place to defecate – it was disgusting.’
Meanwhile, on social media, the trenches have so far amassed a mixed response.
Sue Garside said: ‘It was done recently in Cambourne and the growth now looks good. Nice for insects that need longer grass areas. ’
Resident Natasha wright also commented, ‘I live here and it is an eye sore, yes, but they left a hell of a mess, used the woods as a toilet and even the green. They were aggressive in our local pub and to anyone who used the park thinking it was theirs. ’
Meanwhile Whitney Mariee Dolan commented, ‘To everyone who is positive about this, are you not concerned that it could prevent emergency services reaching a child as quickly as needed?’
Historically travelers have roamed across the East of England for centuries, but there are now only ten legal sites remaining in the Cambridgeshire county.
As a result travelers can sometimes end up on public land.
While the Cambridgeshire County Council does not have to provide sites for travelers, parish councils can take measures to stop them from gaining access into privately owned land.
Swaffham Bulbeck is not the first village that have employed these warfare tactics.
Residents in Colchester also resorted to digging trenches around a field back in 2017, in an effort to stop travelers from gaining access.
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