A three-year court injunction to stop unauthorised travellers accessing Barony Park in Nantwich was just weeks away before lockdown, we can reveal.
It emerged as the first unauthorised travellers of 2020 arrived on the park overnight (May 25).
Campaign group Friends of Barony Park have fought to progress plans for improvements to the park, which would include a boundary to prevent vehicular access.
Unauthorised traveller encampments were a regular site on the park in 2019, angering many who say they were not able to use it as a result.
Today, Cllr Mick Warren, Cheshire East Council Portfolio Holder for Communities, confirmed that work had been due to start in March.
Everybody Sport and Recreation (ESAR) has an approved £2 million budget to improve the park as a whole, which in turn would provide a perimeter preventing vehicular access.
But the Government lock down meant ESAR had to close, and the work scheduled to start in March had to be put on hold.
Now it’s also revealed that a three-year court injunction to protect the park was just weeks away from being heard by the courts.
Cllr Warren told Nantwich News: “The ESAR funding is to improve the park, with the hope of holding official park runs and going for Greenspaces status.
“This was not about protecting the park from unauthorised groups per se.
“But there was a big surge in these groups last year and no doubt there was a lot of frustration among residents as a result.
“So as well as the plans for improvements we have taken steps to seek an injunction.
“It is a 3-year injunction specifically for the Barony. We have taken advice from counsel, gathered all the evidence and were just seeking a court date when the lockdown happened and courts closed.
“We are hoping it’s just a matter of weeks rather than months.”
The ESAR plan for the boundary work was put together in conjunction with Friends of Barony Park, MP Kieran Mullan and local councillors.
It includes a range of treatments including bushes, tress, seating and fencing, and aims to bring the park up to Green Spaces status.
Cllr Arthur Moran, Nantwich North & West, said Cheshire East and Cheshire Police were aware of the latest encampment.
(Images courtesy of Nantwich News readers)
And they are here again. And have been since Saturday
A very misleading headline as the article states it was weeks away from being heard in court not actually implemented.
Its an absolute disgrace that these travellers are still on our beautiful park.
They are breaking the convid-19 rules and need evicting immediately.
They have also broken the black tie raps that locked the gates and are using the closed park children’s play area. This will now need cleaning.
Will the Police and Council get their act together and remove them this evening.