Residents in the seaside town of Newhaven have been left outraged after another oversized mobile home, measuring 65 feet in length, arrived at an unauthorised travellers' camp. The local council had previously issued a temporary stop notice on the site, but locals claim it has not been enforced, allowing more travellers to move in.
Camp established in March
The encampment, located off Fairholme Road in Newhaven within the Lewes district of East Sussex, was initially set up on March 28. According to reports, the travellers cleared hedges and trees to install various structures in the paddock, including a mobile home, log cabin, touring caravan, septic tank, and gas connections. On Saturday, May 30, a second mobile home, reportedly twice the size of the first, arrived at the site.
Council response and resident frustration
Lewes District Council stated: "We are actively considering enforcement options, but are also dealing with a current application which will need to conclude before any action takes place." However, a local resident expressed feeling "ignored" after reporting the latest arrival to the council, police, and their MP. They said: "There is a stop notice on the site meaning that no work can be carried out. The new van is the third contravention of the stop notice, all reported to the council, all ignored by the planning and enforcement teams."
In early May, the council had said: "Our planning enforcement team has investigated and served a temporary stop notice on the site owner, requiring all further unauthorised development to stop." It added that other enforcement actions were under consideration.
Scale of the operation
A second Newhaven resident claimed that "30 huge trucks and a full-sized bulldozer" were used to clear the site, flattening grass, hedgerow, plants, and trees before the encampment was installed. Meanwhile, another unauthorised camp is reportedly located less than half a mile away, in woodland near the South Downs National Park.
