Testun llawn:
I have a few objections to traveller sites but understand that they are needed. I am not anti-traveller. Most peoples opinions are based on the travellers themselves not the sites. I feel my following questions are necessary and I would like to them to be considered and answered.
1) My main concern is who is allowed to use these sites? I own a campervan - can I use them? Are all the new EU travellers allowed to use them? The Romanian and Bulgarian travellers who are allowed to enter the UK soon have a fearsome reputation, as portrayed in news from the UK, Europe and the rest of the world. Are all people who travel here considered travellers? Will the number of sites continue to rise as our neighbours from Europe continue to enter? More and more UK/Irish born travellers are seeking permanent residences. Who are we catering for? Are these sites needed?
2) Why are the majority of the sites the south side of Warwick? I have looked at the map of considered sites and 14 of the 20 are clustered around Warwick. Warwickshire is a large county and I am unsure why the new sites are not evenly spread.
3) Who will clean up these sites once the travellers have moved on? Who will clean the communal sanitary facilities that are to be based on each site? Will each site be given waste and recycling bins for refuse collection? How will fly tipping/dumping be managed around the sites? Is this being taken into account in next years budget?
4) Will there be local police teams set up to manage typical public complaints and concerns - such as anti-social behaviour, petty crime, dog baiting, joy-riding, unlicensed drivers, doorstep selling etc.
4) Will local schools (specifically primary as few traveller children go to secondary school) be expected to take traveller children as they move around sites? I live near Wolverton School, Budbrooke, Ferncumbe CofE and Claverdon Primary School. These schools are already at maximum capacity with long waiting lists. Will children of local families who are on the waiting lists be ignored as Traveller children are put first? Everyone deserves an education but this concerns me greatly.
The suggested sites which are near motorways, or on the edges of towns should be considered over the rural village sites. They may also be more convenient and comfortable for the travellers themselves. Towns can absorb a greater number of people and have always been a melting pot for all ethnicities and races. Town services can cope with a fluctuating population of people far better than a rural village as there is more to go around. We are already struggling with stretched rural community services for doctors, nurses, schools, transport and emergency services. Traveller sites near or around villages will stretch some of these beyond breaking point. Affordable housing is needed in rural areas to stop depopulation, not traveller sites.