Fury in UK’s traveller hotspot as council spends £3,700 removing camp | UK | News
People living in the UK’s traveler hotspot have spoken out, with one saying their fight against illegal camping will never end. The council was even forced to spend thousands of pounds removing an unauthorized site over a two-day period last year.
Traveler families have been spotted in car parks and fields across Buckinghamshire for years and residents have had enough. In the last two years the county has recorded the biggest increase in caravan numbers across England. A park in Rye has been taken over by travelers several times, with Buckinghamshire Council spending £3,700 to remove one group in 2025.
As reported by Daily MailAmy, who has lived in High Wycombe all her life, said: “It seems like they always come back. They go to lots of places in Buckinghamshire. They’ll park wherever they go – car parks, fields, whatever.”
Other locals expressed frustration at paying high council tax rates for money that would have been spent getting rid of illegal camps. Some travelers were also seen stealing and engaging in antisocial behavior in city centres.
Some public areas are reportedly left “in tip-top shape” as travelers leave. Speaking of a site on the outskirts of High Wycombe, one local said: “They left everything from lumps of metal to broken chairs.”
Across the county, reported fly tipping incidents on public lands increased from 3,293 in 2022/23 to 4,272 in 2023/24.
Travelers are reportedly arriving on Friday evenings or before Bank Holiday weekends. This makes it difficult for councils to take legal action before the start of the next working week.
A rest stop near the village of Stoke Hammond is nicknamed “Gypsy Lane” by locals. Figures show Buckinghamshire Council spent £556 to remove a camp in the area in 2025, with the process taking three weeks.
Steve Turner said they “emerged quickly” and one or two individuals quickly turned into a group of “20 to 30 people”. He said they drove away and returned after being evacuated.
Some locals in Marlow had to take matters into their own hands. Martin Moore placed barriers around his land to prevent travelers from accessing it.
Buckinghamshire Council said: “We take the concerns raised by residents seriously and take appropriate action in line with our legal responsibilities and the circumstances of each case.”
A spokesman for Thames Valley Police said the force was “committed to tackling theft and retail crime across the Thames Valley”. They added that “retail crime will not be tolerated.”
