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A TRAVELLER’S caravan at the centre of a row in Worplesdon moved on to its third location in two weeks on Tuesday evening.

The caravan settled on a grass verge on Frog Grove Lane in Wood Street Village, having previously been spotted in two places in Worplesdon.

However, the new site is seen as equally inappropriate and the county councillor representing the village is continuing to demand a solution from Guildford Borough Council.

Councillor Nigel Sutcliffe said the caravan had circulated around a number of temporary locations in the area, and he had received several phone calls from frustrated residents who were unhappy at the situation.

Having been sat on a grass verge next to the main Fairlands roundabout in Worplesdon for months, the family moved voluntarily to another patch opposite the Worplesdon Place Hotel on September 17.

“I think it’s fair to say that the residents of Worplesdon were really fed up with the inconvenience of this caravan moving around Worplesdon for the last few months," he said. “The Borough Council simply must find a solution because otherwise the residents will continue to be inconvenienced. It costs a lot of money for the council officers who have to move them on each time.”

The issue was raised at a Worplesdon Parish Council meeting on July 28, where Councillor Sutcliffe urged action to be taken to find a permanent site for the travellers as soon as possible.

A report from him stated: “The borough council has responsibility for housing, or finding an appropriate site, for this family and has been urged, many times, by all concerned, to find a suitable permanent site.”

Surrey County Council granted temporary permission for the local traveller family, who are currently homeless, to stay on the grass verge on July 14.

Guildford Borough Council has come under criticism from campaigners frustrated at its lack of strategy over traveller sites, with David Bilbe, a Normandy campaigner, admitting in July that he was concerned that traveller site applications would encroach on the green belt.

Worplesdon Parish Council chairman confirmed that members had been in contact with the county council whenever eviction notices had to be issued.

With traveller sites concentrated in Ash, Normandy and Worplesdon, Councillor Sutcliffe added that Guildford Borough Council’s failure to identify any new sites for the last 20 years had led to overcrowding and increased sites in inappropriate places.

Borough council and county council are set to meet next week to discuss the issue.

A spokesman from Guildford Borough Council said: “We have been working with Surrey County Council to find a solution.

“We have also had a meeting with Worplesdon Parish Council to explain the difficulties surrounding this specific issue.

“Alternative temporary accommodation has been offered to the family, which has been declined. We continue to try to find a solution.”