Tattershall Drive (Image credit: Google)

Following further recent cases of travellers occupying land in the Deepings, I have again called for a Deepings wide response to the problem at last week’s Town Council meeting.

In response to the recent travellers camp on Tattershall Drive, we were told of a plan by the land owner, the District Council, to erect birdsmouth, knee-rail fencing to stop vehicles going onto the land.

At the Town Council meeting we heard details of a meeting of residents in the Tattershall Drive area that had agreed that it was preferred to have metal fencing of the same style as that now in place on John Eve Field.

Despite this option apparently being put to residents by our MP, John Hayes, there was and remains no clear plan on how funding to deliver that can be found.

Cllr Broughton asked for the Town Council to agree to offer a provisional £5,000 as a contribution by the Town Council to the additional costs associated with the metal fencing compared to what the District Council were planning to install.

Given £5,000 would only represent a small proportion of the almost £30,000 total bill, it isn’t clear that this amount would make a significant difference as to whether we could actually get the metal fencing. I think we should be cautious about offering the District Council the opportunity to pass on costs for their own responsibilities to us.

Myself and others shared our frustration of being asked to pay for fencing on land owned by the District Council. I suggested that they should take responsibility and we should find out more about their own plans to address this issue.

I also spoke of the need for a strategy, looking at all the land in the area, including in Deeping St James, with a view to cooperating with the various landowners to seek a solution to this problem. It is clear to me that some of the problems that may sometimes be encountered such as fly tipping can still affect our residents and local businesses even if travellers were to be staying on land in adjoining Deeping St James.

We should look to share our experience with Deeping St James Parish Council and other local landowners in order to help them to assess the risks to their own land.

I was also concerned that this plan did nothing to address the potential risk to other land on Tattershall Drive owned by Persimmon.

Having seen other recent cases where money has been allocated to Town Council projects but then more money for the same project is requested at later meetings, suggesting that the spending had been poorly planned, I was not prepared to support the request to set aside £5,000 of the Council’s money without more details.

I was troubled by comments from some councillors that we should go ahead as this was wanted by some of the residents that we represent. This seemed to be a suggestion that those who had concerns did not care about the residents of Market Deeping or understand the problem. I recognise that we have to serve the interests of everyone, balancing competing demands for limited financial resources.

£5,000 to help the District Council pay for fencing on their land is £5,000 less to spend on the Town Council’s own other projects.

When it came to vote on this proposal, the Council was split on the issue and it was only by the Mayor voting in favour that it was passed.

I remain of the view that we should push for the District Council to take responsibility for their own land and, in the first instance, encourage them to listen to the residents’ views of the type of fencing they would like.