RESIDENTS of a posh countryside hamlet have been left frustrated after travellers moved onto the estate and allegedly tapped into the water supply.
Locals in the quiet village of Maidenhatch, Berkshire, say travellers have made their lives unbearable with the police offering little help.
Fires that release noxious smoke into the nearby town are regularly burned at the traveller site and dozens of abandoned vehicles have been left to rot in the fields, residents claim.
Initially, locals of the private estate say they were approached by the travellers to purchase the plots of land.
When caravans were moved onto the site after the sale, locals say they were asked if they could provide access to the village’s water and electric supply.
When they were told no, residents allege, the travellers simply took access to the facilities regardless, allegedly tapping into the water mains with small plastic piping.
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Shortly after moving onto the land some four months ago the travellers reportedly laid down hard materials across a field just outside of the community.
The fields they had purchased were allegedly bulldozed to make way for caravans and a layer of hard surfacing was then laid down to accommodate the mobile homes.
Despite stop notices being issued by the local authority, work has reportedly continued in the two fields which have now appear to have been left entirely bare of grass.
Recently, the local private water supply, which residents pay for, has reportedly been tapped into and diverted by the travellers to supply their caravans.
Residents claim they have called the police several times but nothing has been done to stop the illegal development work at the site.
Homeowners now say they have been left feeling “threatened” by the travellers’ behaviour after their concerns were ignored completely.
Locals also alleged that one of the fields, adjacent to their multi-million pound homes, has been turned into a scrapyard for abandoned motors.
Council regulations, locals say, prohibit the use of the land for building or dumping cars.
Now, residents say, the travellers are burning waste on the land, creating an unbearable smell.
Plastic, wood and other waste is reportedly burned on a regular basis with rancid smoke allegedly drifting into the countryside village.
The people of Maidenhatch have tried to reach out to the police and the local authority, but their complaints have fallen on deaf ears, they say.
They locals added that “the mess and the smell is unbearable.”
Concerns have reportedly been raised around whether the travellers will leave the site are and locals fear the land may now be held to ransom.
West Berkshire Council has issued a “temporary stop notice” to the travellers, demanding that they cease any development of the land.
The letter, which has been pinned to the entrance of the fields, warns that stationing caravans on the land for residential purposes is prohibited.
It also details planning breaches comprising “the depositing of hard materials to create a hard surface” and facilitating a “material change of use of the land.”
The travellers have ignored the letter, locals say, and continue to develop the site regardless.
Now, one of the fields is filled with old motors and vans, skips used to burn waste and a slew of other dumped pieces of machinery.
One frustrated local said: “Life has been hell on earth since they moved in.
“You feel trapped in your home, you’re concerned what their next move is going to be.”
The Sun has contacted West Berkshire Council and Thames Valley Police for comment.