23-05-2025
Travellers set up camp at popular family park for third time in weeks - forcing community events to be cancelled
A group of travellers have set up camp at a popular family park for the third time in just a few weeks, forcing planned community events to be cancelled.
A convoy of caravans and other vehicles arrived at Swanshurst Park on the outskirts of Moseley and Billesley, Birmingham, on Wednesday, settling on the field near the play park.
It is the third time since the beginning of April that travellers have parked up on park.
Local community organisation Friends of Swanshurst Park said members had notified the council with a view to initiating eviction proceedings.
A 'Balsam bashing' event scheduled by the group for tomorrow has also been cancelled. Balsam bashing refers to the removal of the plant Himalyan Balsam by hand to protect native species.
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 rearrange another date and post details as soon as it has been decided.'
This is the third traveller incursion in the park since April with volunteers clearing up the mess left behind.
Video footage shared online showed the first caravans and cars arriving onto the park
A Birmingham City Council spokesperson said previously: 'Birmingham City Council is committed to actively protecting its land and will take steps to recover this land where unauthorised encampments encroach upon it.
'The council has useable transit sites and plots for use by the Gypsy, Roma and Traveller community - which is in line with Government policy - and details of the Gypsy and Traveller Accommodation Assessment carried out and updated in 2019 can be found on our website.'
Video footage shared online showed the first caravans and cars arriving onto the park, filmed from the nearby children's playground.
A man who saw the group arriving, Stu Johnson, 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 added: '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.'
