Borough council uses ASB and planning laws to secure traveller injunction

Blackpool Council has secured a High Court injunction – pursuant to Section 1 of the Anti-Social Behaviour Crime and Policing Act 2014 and Section 187B of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 – stopping 13 named travellers from setting up unauthorised encampments in the borough.

The council said it was believed to be the first time in the country that a local authority had used the 2014 Act along with Section 187B of the TCPA to secure an injunction against illegal travellers.

The injunction, which was granted by Mrs Justice Cox in the Royal Courts of Justice last week, also covers persons unknown entering or remaining without planning consent on seven specified parcels of land.

Blackpool applied for the injunction in the wake of 11 instances over the summer where large groups of travellers took up unauthorised encampments across the town.

“The encampments saw up to 240 people and 80 caravans establish themselves on public and private land across Blackpool without consent or planning permission, also bringing with them accompanying vehicles, trailers and animals,” the local authority said.

“During their time on the sites, the travellers were responsible for a number of incidents which put Blackpool residents in harm’s way, including delaying an air ambulance from landing by 20 minutes while medics were attempting to help a man who had suffered a heart attack.”

The council claimed that there had been other incidents or anti-social behaviour during the summer.

Blackpool added that when it had used its legal powers to remove the travellers following an application to Magistrates Court, “some of the groups simply set up another unauthorised encampment in a different area, and in some cases back on the original site which they had already been removed from”.

The injunction forbids the named travellers from setting up any unauthorised encampment within the borough.

Breaching the injunction could lead to imprisonment, a fine or the seizure of assets.

Cllr Gillian Campbell, Deputy Leader of Blackpool Council, said: “This injunction should send a message out to anybody who is thinking of setting up an unauthorised encampment in Blackpool.

“Throughout the summer, we ended up removing this particular group of travellers from a number of areas only for them to move to another site. It was extremely frustrating for us but it was also very worrying for the residents who were being harassed by their anti-social behaviour.

“In one particular case, the actions of another group of unknown travellers could have killed somebody.

Cllr Campbell added: “I would like to hope that this injunction brings an end to their visits and sends a very strong message out that we will absolutely not stand for people illegally setting up camps and endangering Blackpool residents. It’s simply not on.”