Travellers on ‘£3m’ site in posh village boast ‘you’ll have to drag us off the land’ as they lay 2,000 tons of hardcore and cops refuse to enforce injunction
THE travellers who have moved onto a site “worth £3million” in a posh village have boasted “you’ll have to drag us off” as they lay 2,000 tons of stone and dust.
It appears the group, who arrived in Little Hadham on Good Friday, plan to stay as they transform the field into a caravan park using the “hardcore” mix.
Residents of the Hertfordshire village were stunned to see mobile homes parking up on a plot of land near to an area dubbed “Millionaires Row”.
As building work began on the land – secured by the travellers after they each paid £3,000 – the council served an injunction banning any more development.
But unhappy villagers have complained the group has breached the order, with police not enforcing the injunction because they say it is a civil matter and not a criminal one.
Now the travellers have filed an official planning permission request to make the land their permanent home, after a notice seen at the site last week a “change of use” application.
One of the group, dad-of-five Tommy told the Mail on Sunday: “When we get planning permission, we are going to tarmac the whole field
“We want to get water and electricity – we want to put up lights and gates. This place will look better than the millionaires’ homes up the road. We don’t want to raise our children at the side of a road. Wherever we go, we get moved on.
“We want our children to be registered with GPs and learn how to read and write in schools. We have pregnant women who will need to give birth soon in hospital.
“It is better that we are here than in a school field or park.
“We spent our last pounds to raise the money to buy this land and we are not going to leave – we will need to be dragged off.”
‘WE ARE NOT GOING TO LEAVE’
East Hertfordshire District Council said: “The council is doing everything it can, through legal procedures, to stop unauthorised works taking place. We will continue work to get the situation resolved.”
Locals have objected to the submitted planning applications, which show a large “proposed site” featuring 10 separate plots.
Each plot has enough room for a mobile home, touring caravan and a large grass area with “hedge planting”.
The plan also includes an “internal road” which will split the plots straight down the middle – creating two rows of five.
The land – which has been a grazing field for cattle for at least 15 years – was bought just six months ago for £95,000. Locals say the land would be worth £3million if it gets developed.
Hundreds of residents have been complaining online about the site, fearing it is set to become a permanent feature.
One dad-of-two said: “I know they need somewhere to live but it’s going to be hard to swallow if they get planning permission in such a fashion.
“Everyone has one eye on the house prices now.
“Some of the villagers are too nice to say they want shot of them, but I personally would prefer that we did not become known as being home to the Hertfordshire Dale Farm.”
And Gary Woods wrote: “I would like to register my vehement objection to this planning application.
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“Should this application be allowed it will do nothing other than promote a massive security risk to the homes and businesses in the area and slash millions off local properties in the area.”
A spokeswoman for East Herts Council added: “The planning application and the injunction are separate, and while our priority is to get the injunction enforced in the High Court, we will also process the planning application in the usual way.
“There is complex case law around processing planning applications on land which is the subject of an injunction, and we have taken legal advice on the route to follow in this instance.”
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