Two unauthorised traveller groups who took over sports pitch forced to pack up and leave after council order

An illegal traveller site set up in an Essex sports park has been forced to move on after council enforcement, having been told to leave a field three miles away just days before.

Members of the Loveridge family established an unauthorised encampment at Colchester Sports Park after being moved on from the nearby Hilly Fields Nature Reserve.

Colchester Council issued a court summons to the group on Tuesday, with the group vacating the site before the hearing could take place on Thursday.

A council spokesman confirmed: "The unauthorised encampments at Colchester Sports Park have now moved on."

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The authority's neighbourhood services team is now clearing large amounts of rubbish and waste abandoned at the site.

Essex locals are familiar with the Loveridge family, who typically spend winters travelling through Surrey before moving to Essex during the summer months, according to the Colchester Gazette.

They had previously informed the newspaper that their lifestyle is becoming "harder and harder", which they attributed to a lack of dedicated travelling sites across the county.

When the summons was served on Tuesday, the original group had grown in size, with a second party of travellers also arriving on the land.

The newcomer group also received a direction to leave notice, and both parties vacated together.

A member of the family told reporters they intend to continue travelling around Essex over the summer, but pointed to strict and fast acting enforcement by Colchester Council.

He said they always ensure they leave areas as they found them.

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“We don’t leave rubbish and we don’t fly-tip – some travellers do, but there are good and bad people in every culture, everywhere you go.”

Those who refuse to vacate land after receiving an order to leave face the risk of penalties, including imprisonment for up to three months and fines reaching £2,500.

Colchester has been a popular spot for travelling communities, with the Hilly Fields Nature Reserve experiencing frequent visitors over the last 10 years.

One pensioner had her false teeth knocked out after attempting to stop a group of travellers entering the site nine years ago in June 2017.

Sarah Freeman, 73, who is also blind in one eye, held on to a gate to block access when she saw seven caravans trying to get through.

A video shared at the time showed her being dragged to the ground during the stand-off that lasted half an hour, before the police arrived.

"I just wrapped myself around the concealed padlock and they claimed 'we have every right to be here'", said Ms Freeman, who had been walking her two dogs when the incident occurred.

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