Showmen's future still unclear

By Suzy Talbot

Despite a High Court case the future of travelling showmen in Holmer Green has been left uncertain.
Chiltern District Council was successful in its bid to secure an injunction against the showmen, requiring them to remove their caravans, vehicles and equipment of the site at Earl Howe Road.
But on Thursday, June 28 the judge delayed putting the injunction into effect until a decision has been made on a current planning appeal made by the group.

The site has been occupied by the showmen without planning permission since October 2004.
Chiltern District Council immediately served planning enforcement and stop notices in respect of unauthorised development in a Green Belt Site.
Councillor Nick Rose, Cabinet Member for planning, sustainable development and transport said: "This is an excellent result for us. The showmen have had nearly three years to find a suitable alternative location with the necessary permission and have failed to do so. We owe it to the nearby residents to continue to use the law to remove them from this farm land where they have camped for so long without approval. We've been extremely patient but the time has now come for them to move on to a more suitable location."
But the showmen say they would be happy to move on if there was somewhere else they could go.
At the moment they argue that there is nowhere else in the Chilterns for them to stay and they want to remain in the area that they have always lived in and where they run their fairs.
Mark Roberts said: "There are a lot of kids down here and OAPs.
"The kids are now settled in their schools, some have got secondary school places and we want them to have an education that we didn't get.
"We want them to have the chance to be part of a community."
"It is not a problem with moving off it is a problem of where to go because we do not want to be pulling up in laybys.
"It's costing both sides a lot of