A new policy is being drawn up to improve how York accommodates Travellers who come to York.
City of York Council is aiming to be less confrontational and more respectful
It is looking for one or two parcels of land for Travellers to use, with portable toilets and waste facilities provided.
Then council officers officials and the Traveller party would negotiate a length of stay of up to two weeks and agree on the number of caravans allowed on site.
It comes after Ethel Ward Playing Fields in Haxby reopened to the public yesterday following Travellers pitching up there.
The Travellers have now left and a clean-up has been completed.
A council report stated the approach to dealing with unauthorised encampments and roadside stoppings aimed to be more respectful of the Traveller community’s nomadic way of life.
The proposals come as part of the council’s action plan for Travellers for the coming year which is set for a decision on Tuesday, 7 July.
It follows the approval of £5.25 million for improvements to York’s three official Traveller sites in Clifton, James Street and Outgang Lane over the next three years.
The council report stated a draft protocol had been drawn up for the proposed ‘Negotiated Stopping’ approach, with work now underway to find suitable sites.
It added work was also underway with churches to see if any land they own would be suitable through the national Sanctuary Stopping organisation.
Negotiated Stopping would see traveller parties’ stays on the sites made subject to agreements signed by them and the council.
Council enforcement officers currently serve Direction to Leave notices on unauthorised encampments when they appear in York.
Travellers are typically given 48 hours to leave and council officers can get a court order to evict them if they stay beyond the deadline.
The council’s report stated: “Negotiated Stopping intends to introduce a more respectful and less confrontational approach.
“As part of this work the council is currently seeking one or two parcels of land, to which traveller groups could be directed.”
Extra pitches
The wider council action plan for travellers proposed for the coming year includes £220,000-worth of improvements to Outgang Lane.
The Clifton site is also set to be expanded by six pitches as part of work set to go on until 2029.
An estimated £1.5m retrofit programme of the utility buildings on all three sites is planned over the next two years.
Extra pitches across York are also set to be required and will be subject to a call for sites exercise.
Plans for the coming year include efforts to tackle hate crime targeting travellers and a mapping exercise with a particular focus on collecting better data on the Roma community.
Monitoring and improving the health of those in the community would also take place along with work to boost access to education for traveller children.
There are also plans to try and increase trust between the community and the council and North Yorkshire Police.
Responsibilities over waste management, animals and scrap metal dealing for those living at traveller sites would also be highlighted.
The council’s report stated: “Traveller communities remain some of the most marginalised and disadvantaged ethnic minority groups nationally.
“These communities face significant inequalities across a range of indicators, including access to suitable accommodation, healthcare, education, employment, financial services, and policing, justice, and probation.”
