AN encampment of Travellers left a ‘disgraceful’ trail of destruction and festering waste at a key community green space in Winsford.

The Verdin Fields – which regularly host community and family events – were in ruins on Wednesday afternoon, after a party of 19 caravans and associated vehicles broke through a lock and bollards onto the site.

The Guardian was contacted by readers reporting human waste was among the litter strewn across the site.

Thanks to the hard work of town council employees, the area is now as good as new, but the authority has been left counting the cost of the clean-up operation.

Winsford Town Council clerk, Alan Warburton, said: “We had to hire a full size skip because there was so much rubbish.

“The clean-up took our three groundsmen over three hours and it was a very unpleasant task.

“The total cost to the town council of the clean-up and replacement locks for the barrier and bollards was in the order of £400.

“Replacement locks have now been fitted to the barrier and the two bollards to prevent access.”

Winsford Town Council, which leases the land from Cheshire West and Chester Council, are going to discuss further preventative measures with borough officials.

Clr Stephen Burns added: “These particular Travellers give Travellers a bad reputation because of the disgraceful mess they leave behind.

“It is no wonder people get so agitated when the Travellers using the Verdin fields leave it like a pigsty.

“Surely any decent person would have put any litter in bin bags and ensured they left the area as they found it.

“Winsford has been more than accommodating to Travellers and we do not deserve the total disrespect shown by this particular group.”

Police and specialist liaison officers from CWAC visited the site on Monday, June 21, to carry out welfare checks.

At 4pm on Tuesday, June 24, CWAC issued a Section 61 notice under the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994.

The Travellers subsequently obeyed the order, which gave them until 10am on Wednesday June 25, to leave the site.