Travellers have set up camp at a park for the fifth time this year, leaving residents frustrated with the repeated unauthorised encampments.
Caravans and vehicles arrived at Swanshurst Park in the Billesley area of Birmingham on Tuesday, just 24 hours after volunteers had finished clearing rubbish left by a previous group.
The popular family park on the outskirts of Moseley and Billesley has seen multiple encampments since April, with different groups of travellers settling on the field near the children's play area.
Local authorities have been notified of this latest arrival, marking another chapter in what has become a recurring issue for the community throughout 2025, reports MailOnline.
Some of the rubbish allegedley dumped by the travellers
FRIENDS OF SWANSHURST PARK
Some of the travellers arriving at the site
FRIENDS OF SWANSHURST PARK
The repeated encampments have disrupted planned community activities, with the Friends of Swanshurst Park forced to cancel events due to safety concerns.
The group posted on Facebook: "We are cancelling our balsam bashing session this Saturday as the Travellers are very close to the area we would be working. We will re-arrange another date and post details as soon as it has been decided."
The environmental conservation event, which involves removing invasive Himalayan Balsam plants by hand to protect native species, was one of several community activities affected by the unauthorised camps.
Local volunteers have repeatedly been left to clear rubbish following each departure, with residents describing the clean-up efforts as primarily falling to community members with some council assistance.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
Piles of rubbish were dumped on the family park
FRIENDS OF SWANSHURST PARK
Some of the rubbish cleaned up by volunteers
FRIENDS OF SWANSHURST PARK
Birmingham City Council has stated it is "committed to actively protecting its land and will take steps to recover this land where unauthorised encampments encroach upon it."
The council emphasised that it provides "useable transit sites and plots for use by the Gypsy, Roma and Traveller community - which is in line with Government policy."
Details of the authority's Gypsy and Traveller Accommodation Assessment, last updated in 2019, are available on the council website.
Local community organisations have notified the council about the latest encampment with a view to initiating eviction proceedings, following the same process used during previous incidents at the park this year.
Residents have expressed mounting frustration over the lack of effective preventative measures at the park.
Stu Johnson, who witnessed the latest group arriving, said: "I saw them arriving while I was on the bus earlier - going onto the pavement by the entrance to the car park, driving along the pavement then onto the grass once they've passed the trees. Needs to be more logs or railings I'm afraid."
Mary Hart noted the scale of the ongoing issue: "There have been three lots of travellers this year on Swanshurst. Each time a different group.
"Last time there were two groups at the same time. The clean-up is mostly done by volunteers with help from the council."
Most Read
