Travellers who set up camp illegally will be moved on immediately after powers were extended for three years.

Hertsmere Borough Council were granted a temporary three month injunction towards the end of last year, which allowed them to remove anyone who pitched up in its 108 parks, car parks, and green spaces.

It came following an “unprecedented” number of encampments in the borough which saw sites in Borehamwood, Bushey, Elstree, and Potters Bar repeatedly camped on.

Before the injunction, the council had to seek a removal order from the magistrates court – a process which could take around a week to complete.

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Now, following am injunction granted by the High Court of Justice on Thursday, council officers are able to move on travellers as soon as they are notified of their arrival, once the necessary welfare checks are done.

Since May, the council says there have been at least 16 unauthorised traveller encampments and some involved groups of between 40 and 70 people.

Ripon Park in Borehamwood was most affected, and after outcry from residents, the council agreed to install bollards to prevent vehicles from getting into the park. Some of the bollards have already been installed.

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Wooden posts are being installed around Ripon Park in Borehamwood

More than £40,000 was spent on traveller-related matters this year – although the council says a large chunk of it was installing bollards in King George Recreation Ground in Bushey.

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Ripon Park

Human and animal excrement, and waste, was also found once travellers left, and the injunction also bans the the disposal of waste on the council’s 108 sites.

Cllr Seamus Quilty, responsible for the environment at Hertsmere Borough Council, said: “The traveller encampments have presented the council, our partners and local communities with significant challenges, which we have been working hard to tackle.

“The extension of this injunction will continue to enable us to respond more effectively and prevent these encampments in the first place because anyone who deliberately breaches the injunction will face potential arrest, committal to prison and an unlimited fine.

"I would like to thank all the council officers involved for the hard work and diligence required to bring our case to the High Court."