Caravans on land in Streethay
Caravans on land in Streethay

A group of travellers have moved on to land alongside a Lichfield primary school.

The vehicles appeared on green land at the new Roman Heights development today (16th September).

The land sits alongside the Streethay Primary School and next to a local park.

The arrival comes just two months after local residents clashed with a group of travellers after moving on to land at Netherstowe.

Founder of Lichfield Live and editor of the site.

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Jude Killip
3 years ago

Please think carefully about this. Travellers are a group that people find it easy to discriminate against. Human beings that most of us who are settled don’t know much about. Don’t look for scapegoats for whatever is bugging you right now.

Darryl
3 years ago

Can I come and park my car in your garden Jude?

Mrs H
3 years ago

Jude- try telling that to the Council employees who have to clean up the disgusting mess they invariably leave behind, and to Council Tax payers (yourself?) who have to fund it!

Robert Mckenna
3 years ago

Darryl you seem to miss the point. If councils provided the travellers with the proper sites which they have a legal obligation to do then the What you see as a problem wouldn’t happen

ToastyRubber
3 years ago

@ Darryl Don’t forget to leave all your rubbish in the Bush.

Scott
3 years ago

Darryl, thanks for the first belly-laugh this morning! Well said…

George Evans
3 years ago

Tell all of this to people who have lost? Dogs, cats, horses, caravans, motor homes, tools, plant, cars, shop stock, chain saws, log splitters, fuel, catalytic converters, how many more do you want?

Lee Chatterton
3 years ago

Robert McKenna they have the power to provide a camp site but they don’t have to provide one if they don’t want to, and who in their right mind would want travellers parked up around your area, with no respect for anything or anyone.

Grumpy old man
3 years ago

Time for the local farmer to do a bit of muck spreading ?

Anthony Narain
3 years ago

My question is what good does this post do. It creates more divide in our city. Yes, there are travellers and if they are there illegally then phone the police rather than posting it as news. Post like these gives people opportunities to promote hate (keyboard warriors) not all travellers are bad, thieves etc. There are probably local people in our community that is doing worst things e.g fly-tipping….. Stop labelling all people/groups the same.

Realist
3 years ago

Antony Narain, yeah good luck telling local reporters not to report what is happening locally. If journalists just rang the police and didn’t bother reporting it then websites and newspapers would be pretty empty. Anyway, nothing in the actual story labels anything or anyone as far as I see. It reports facts; travellers are on land that they shouldn’t be next to a school.

If we are talking keyboard warriors then the arrival of the traveller-apologists such as yourself might have been a good place to start. Did you see the damage caused up Netherstowe by travellers? Did you see the work and money spent cleaning up after they were there? People will be concerned and rightfully so based on previous experiences when caravans rock up.

As a local resident I want to hear about what is going on in my area, even if you and your traveller pals wouldn’t like us to know about it. Here’s a solution though given you don’t like anyone giving them grief for occupying land that isn’t theirs to occupy, let us know where you live and we’ll tell them there’s plenty of space for them to park up next time in front of your house without fear of being evicted. Fair deal?

John Allen
3 years ago

One thing that has always puzzled me is where do these people get the money to buy and run the motor homes they usually have these days? Any suggestions?

Philip wood
3 years ago

I don’t think kids should be in school, or People back in work, until the houses of parliament are filled with m.p.s again. That would indicate that they feel it is safe to be in great numbers.

Jordan Appleby
3 years ago

Anthony narain .discarding what get reported is naive .its not about sterio trying but the facts and history speak for it selfs .local news headline .’ Travelers leave occupied land in emulate condition after illegal occupation ‘..no dont think I’ve read that headline in 46 years .their whole philosophy is to make money by what ever means possible regardless of who it effects. And all this talk of their traditions and roots is crap if they wanted to live this nomadic life move to a remote island somewhere theres plenty of them but that wouldn’t happen.I’m certainly no saying there isn’t enough toerags outside the travelling community but these normally work their way into it via substance abuse or circumstance not up bringing .

May
3 years ago

I have briefly worked therapeutically with a young adult within the traveller community and have never in my life met someone more profoundly traumatised. They then went on to get human trafficked and it occasionally stops me from sleeping thinking about not just them, but everyone raised in this isolated, marginalised and all too misunderstood community. I wish I could share the pictures they drew during our short time together as it may just make you stop and think ‘what if my child, partner, parent or friend drew this’. I have also met some very gentle and kind members of the community with altruistic values and have witnessed them being stigmatised for their accent/ appearance in fear of their traveller status. Also some members that conform to the stereotype in the same way any other label in society does. They really are simply human beings following their taught culture- as most of us are.
Oh and Jordan the word you are looking for is stereotyping not sterio trying.

Mike
3 years ago

Why are they called travellers… when stay in 1 place … overnight stop then move on… that’s travelling

Minnie Johns
3 years ago

What’s a better idea? Everyone who is in support of travellers can advertise their properties & gardens for travellers to share with them; and use their gardens (if they have one) for rubbish And toilet! What? Why not??

anonymous
3 years ago

Lichfield people are going to be cautios after last time. The amount of thefts damage anti social behaviour displayed to so many people who were literally powerless to defend themselves or their property was astounding. Its the same in every walk of life there are a minority who give the majority a bad name. Its already been established that there are some members of that group at streethay were here at netherstowe previously so people in lichfield are going to be defensive

Mrs H
3 years ago

Well said Minnie! Regarding the comments made by May- ‘simple human beings following their taught culture’- words fail me. I wish she could meet my daughter’s partner who is involved in cleaning up after these ‘simple human beings’. They may have been following taught culture, pity it didn’t include toilet training!

Saffron McCabe
3 years ago

Darryl there’re proper campsites all over. Travellers just don’t want to pay to use them. My husband’s family are travellers but they don’t Do this. They bought their own land they don’t sponge off others

Jamie
3 years ago

Robert mckenna

The council can’t even do the right thing by the folk who fund it

You expect them to look after travellers who give no financial aid? They cost us money.

Give over with your all Liberal accepting attitude will you

Jamie
3 years ago

Fact is if land is open they land on it

If councils haven’t figured it out yet that shows they are even more stupid than we thought

Forever Burntwood
3 years ago

not once EVER in all the times “travellers” have “visited” this area, have i EVER seen a tidy campsite. Maybe if they didn’t act like animals they wouldn’t get treated like animals.

And John, they get all their money by avoiding paying tax …. that’s why they are “travellers”
You’ll often see them driving around in fancy soft top mercs etc while doing a reccie for a new “campsite”.

John Allen
3 years ago

But you have to have money to pay (or not) tax by definition. So, where does the money come from to buy motor homes, which don’t come cheap, nor does running them? Do they pay vehicle excise duty on them and insurance? I couldn’t afford a motor home and I have worked for 45 years. So how do these people afford to travel?

John Griffin
3 years ago

Anthony Narain makes a fair point – if illegal, report it to the authorities. Otherwise all Live does, predictably, is allow us to witness the outpouring of bile from people who hate. I can never forget the comment on here about ‘being glad Lichfield is a white town’.