Van dwellers to be moved on from city street

An encampment of van dwellers on a city street are to be moved on after complaints from residents about fires, fly-tipping and anti-social behaviour.

People living close to Goodneston Road in Fishponds, Bristol, claim drug-dealing and criminal damage is commonplace and human waste has been left in the road.

Bristol City Council has now deemed the site, which has around 20 vans, to be "seriously impacting the local community and environment" and said it would begin enforcement action from 19 January.

One van dweller said he was "nervous" about the council's plan, fearing it will cost him his job in the city, and one resident added "moving people on without solutions doesn't really help".

Dan Lanyon, who works as a chef, moved to the area a couple of months ago.

He said: "It seemed pretty good for me. There's quite often humanitarian people coming through to ask if anybody needs any help - sorting out or help with finances and stuff like that, but I never take it. I don't need it.

"I haven't seen anyone from the council. We get police come down every now and again to ask if we've seen anything or looking for people, but never anything about the caravans."

Lanyon said he may need to move back to his parents' home elsewhere in the UK, which will inevitably cost him his job.

"I'm sure a lot of people will have different places they can go to park up or whatever, but I don't," he added.

A council spokesman said during the initial enforcement phase "we will conduct welfare assessments and issue letters to all vehicles, advising them they have seven days to leave the area".

Labour councillors Ellie King and Kelvin Blake, who have campaigned for van dwellers to be moved on, welcomed the council's decision.

In a letter to residents they said they hoped "the area will feel cleaner, safer and more accessible soon".

But not all residents thinks forcing van dwellers elsewhere is the right course of action.

One local, Rachel, said: "I don't have any objections to people living in vans. People need to live somewhere."

Another resident, Gary, said while he understood the mess and rubbish caused by van dwellers was frustrating, "moving people on without solutions doesn't really help".

"I think there needs to be more effort put in to providing reasonable, cheap social housing with secure tenancies for people," he said.

"People parking up on the streets isn't great and I do understand people want (the encampment) moved on but there's a risk of just moving it onto someone else's street."

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