As you can imagine we have received a great many mails and communications regarding this matter, so I wanted to give you as robust a response as possible, providing a full update on where we stand and plans. I hope that this addresses all your concerns:

Work done to date:

We have liaised closely with Chichester District Council’s lead on traveller incursions over the last year – community safety manager Piers Taylor since the last incursion in 2023. This has included a site walk to evaluate risk and recommend responses, and we have taken our direction from them. Actions undertaken following the last incursion, all completed by October ’23, under Pier’s advisement, and that of West Sussex County Council advisement include:

• Works to further secure Keepers Green, putting in new posts and bunds.
• Adding more posts to Havenstoke Park, 
• Adding drop posts to Havenstoke Park to allow for access where necessary.
• Purchasing and securing the most secure locks available for drop posts.
• We have spent over £11k (to date) on improvements to park security, access, bollard fitting and repairs.

Following the works the council advisers re-inspected and stated they felt all possible actions had been taken. These measures are in addition to the robust measures put in place since the park was handed over to CCDT in 2021, including:

• A weekly check of the park and replacement of bollards when they break or get damaged.
• Recording of any maintenance matters on the facility checklists.
• Provision of an induction to contractors working on the park (mins, mowers, tree team, Wild Space users), with limited access only allowed via the South Lodge corner.  Our bookings coordinator ensures they do not gain access anywhere else and records each access, ensuring all appropriate insurance and checks are in place. 

The incursion April 2024:

• The travellers initially entered the park via the northern top corner – the bollards had been removed by the contractors appointed by Countryside partnerships/vestry and not been secured back in. We advised the developers of this daily and were told we were not able to secure these in ourselves as they needed access and they would not secure them until the works had been completed. We advised that access is via the lockable posts but sadly this was not followed.
• We have experienced unsatisfactory communications from the developers regarding the football pitch development which has made park security more challenging than usual. We replaced the bollards as they removed them, often daily, and advised them of other measures that could be taken to retain security whilst regular access was required, none of which were sadly taken
• Once the travellers had entered the park they then cut the most expensive locks money can buy from the drop posts opposite the Harold Kidd unit and threw one metal bollard in the bushes. The other bollard is missing entirely as are both locks. This is how they have been accessing the park each day. 
• There is no missing bollard at south Lodge and they did not gain access from this point. This does not have a bollard on the path as it limits disabled access and fire access onto the park however we have ordered a bollard that will be dropped at this point and that is being installed 22.4.24 

Immediate response being undertaken now April 2024

• The additional bollard at the South Lodge has been on back order for some time as it’s a specialist type to allow mowers and bin entry people on the park.  We now feel we can not wait for this specialist item as the immediate security is paramount and so an alternative, less perfect, but in-stock solution has been ordered and will be installed as soon as the travellers have left (so as not to lock them in). 
• We have re-ordered all replacement bollards to replace damaged or broken ones broken by the contractors who are installing the pitches. We have ordered the very best padlocks available and a contractor will be installing them all on Tuesday (or once they have departed, again so as not to lock them in). 
• We have ordered new bollards to restrict access to Keepers Green where the new Shed path has been installed and these have been installed on 22.4.24 – a further bollard is being installed on the path.
• We are speaking with Grange about their restricting access on land that does not belong to us at Keepers Green.
• We have considered ‘bunds’ – the mounds of earth around the perimeter but have been advised by CDC not to fund such measures as they will find their way in if they want to.  We will be asking the incursion team to revisit the site to provide any additional advice they can to avoid further incursions. 
• Due to the travellers not moving within the timescales they had initially provided we are now forced to begin actions with the bailiffs. This has been ordered on 22.4.24 and a conversation was held by the CEO and Facilities team with the travellers on the morning of 22.4 and the travellers advised they did not know when they would be leaving. As a result, the bailiffs have been instructed.
• A professional clean up team has been booked and is on standby to ensure that there is no remaining impact on the park or to the park users of this incursion.
• Costs of repairs, cleaning and bailiff actions etc are all incurred by CCDT and not passed on to residents. We have to work hard to secure grants and gain income through trading to cover such investments.

I very much hope that this addresses all your concerns and would be so grateful for your support on this matter. As you can imagine this has been a very stressful matter for the team and we, as always, are working incredibly hard to ensure the welfare of the community spaces and all who use them are kept to the highest possible standards.

Clare de Bathe
Chief Executive Officer