Fury as huge traveller site in UK countryside built in single weekend | UK | News
Shadow Housing Secretary James Cleverly (Image: Getty)
Villagers described the rapid creation of an allegedly illegal promenade as a “military operation”. Construction reportedly started just hours after the local council closed for the bank holiday weekend.
Work began on Friday near Willows Green, near Felsted in Essex, and has quickly transformed a four-acre site into what residents say is largely hard-core, now home to multiple caravans and fenced plots of land. According to local people, approximately 30 trucks arrived under darkness and carried materials such as hard materials, fences and septic tanks, and the activities continued intensively in the following days.
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Drone footage shared with the BBC shows the area is largely covered by hard ground, with static and mobile caravans positioned along subdivided plots and new perimeter fencing installed around the edges of the site.
One anonymous resident said: “The scale and speed of the development was breathtaking. It resembled a military operation with no consideration for wildlife, drainage or environmental impact.”
Another local claimed the operation appeared to be highly coordinated, suggesting those behind the work used a drone to monitor activities in the area.
Tracy Williams, 42, who has lived in the area for nearly a decade, said: “People in the village are really upset, frightened and frightened by what’s going on. It’s really frustrating and disturbing.”
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Ms Williams said the outage affected sleep and wellbeing across the village, with some claiming the area was “completely devastated” within a few days.
Braintree MP and former Home Secretary Sir James Cleverly said: “Those responsible are gaming the system and exploiting loopholes in enforcement during out-of-hours periods when councils are closed.”
Mr Cleverly argued the rapid construction benefited from limited oversight during the bank holiday period.
Uttlesford District Council confirmed it was aware of an “allegation of unauthorized development” and that officers were gathering evidence before making an enforcement decision. A council spokesman said: “The matter is being treated as a priority and all available legal options will be considered.”
Planning documents from December showed a need for around 35 traveler sites in the wider Uttlesford area; This reflects the ongoing demand for authorized sites.
Sherrie Smith, founder of Gypsy and Travelers Essex, said she met the people involved in the project, described them as landowning cousins and was trying to create long-term livelihoods for their families.
Ms Smith said: “They have apologized for the inconvenience and are trying to be respectful of neighbours.”
Ms Smith argued that planning processes often left Gypsy and Traveler communities with limited viable options and led to retroactive practices as a practical impracticality. He also stated that there was no evidence that old fences had been removed and rejected claims that the group had caused intentional damage.
Ms Smith said: “I hope residents and site users will eventually be able to live side by side in the village once the construction noise is over.”
Express.co.uk has contacted Uttlesford District Council for comment.
