Councils secure unauthorised encampment injunction but judge issues warning on site provision
Basingstoke & Deane Borough Council and Hampshire County Council have secured an injunction to prevent persons unknown from setting up unauthorised encampments in parts of the area, but the borough council has been warned by a judge to improve Gypsy and Traveller provision and consider providing a transit site.
The injunction was granted a year ago and was due to expire. It is no longer in force against previously named individuals and was sought only against persons unknown.
It was originally granted after a high volume of unauthorised encampments with 158 recorded between April 2016 and June 201, when an interim injunction was secured.
From February to December 2024, there were 17 unauthorised encampments within the borough, but only one in the injunction area, which lasted less than one day.
Kirsty Brimelow KC sitting as a deputy judge in the High Court, said in her judgment: “I find on the evidence and information provided to the court that the multifactorial test in Vastint and the guidelines in Wolverhampton are satisfied.”
Ms Brimelow said it was “clearly evidenced that the injunctive relief has been an effective way of dealing with the formation of unauthorised encampments in the injunction area…I consider that there is a strong possibility (applying Vastint) that unless restrained by an injunction, persons unknown will breach the claimant's rights.
“The resulting harm from the breach could be of a type that could not be adequately compensated for by damages.”
But she went on to cite a nomadic lifestyle as “part of the tradition and culture of Gypsy and Traveller communities” as recognised by the European Court of Human Rights in a number of judgments,
Ms Brimelow said: “Meeting the accommodation needs of Gypsies and Travellers, which includes transit stopping, is important to protecting their way of life. In practical terms, it is necessary to help improve the life chances of their families.’
She said the two councils should “reflect further on their reasons for not pursuing byelaws.
“This type of injunction must remain as exceptional and it will be in place, in near identical terms, for a second year. It should never be a solution looking for a problem.
“If there is a further application to renew, it should not be listed as a review and should be considered again with real care and scrutiny. The onus is on the claimants to ensure that this information is communication to the court.”
The judge said any application to renew “must not dilute into a routine, or a "tick box" exercise…”
She suggested Basingstoke and Deane was “not meeting the needs of the Gypsy and Traveller community.
“The decision not to create a transit site is justified on a hypothetical basis that it might not be in as convenient a place as would be served by informal and formalised stopping processes. However, a transit site would satisfy anxiety of Gypsies and Travellers that they might be moved from whenever they stop in the borough. The court expects that a transit site is reconsidered by the claimants and consultation is carried out with the Traveller and Gypsy community.”
Mark Smulian