Travellers cut through a gate using an angle grinder to set up an illegal camp. It's the second time this month that a group has forced their way onto Weston-super-Mare seafront.
Three travellers arrived at the Beach Lawns on Friday evening (June 30) and were seen by rangers using a grinder to cut through locks on the gates. More caravans then arrived and a large group of travellers was parked illegally on the lawns on the site of the former putting green, reports Somerset Live.
This is the second time in the last few weeks travellers have gained access to the Beach Lawns, despite preventative measures being installed earlier this year. North Somerset Council spent £150,000 installing hundreds of bollards around the seafront site following years of illegal encampments.
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The first incident saw travellers damage bollards to get onto the site. CCTV footage of the incident was captured and the perpetrator was ordered to pay the £300 cost of the damage.
North Somerset Council executive member for culture and leisure Councillor Mike Solomon said: “We were informed of a group of three caravans attempting to get on to the Beach Lawns on Friday night.
“A member of the public had sent a video of one of the group using an angle grinder to cut the locks off a gate to one of our rangers. Police were on the scene and our ranger showed them the video."
The council has since carried out welfare checks on the group and now faces applying through the courts for an order to evict them.
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Mr Solomon said the council would also look at the possibility of installing additional CCTV along the Beach Lawns to ensure any acts of criminal damage to the site were captured as evidence.
North Somerset is a popular stop off for travellers during the summer months when they arrive in the district looking for work.
Currently, the council has no transient sites for travellers where they can be moved onto. However, the district does offer a number of permanent pitches for the travelling community including the Willowmead site and a newly developed site at the Old Junction Yard, both in Weston-super-Mare.
