New traveller site proposed by Greenwich Council in Abbey Wood
Greenwich Council are planning to open a new gypsy and traveller camp in Abbey Wood.
The proposal was featured in a draft Local Plan released some months ago and a story I intended to cover.
However in the recent past a number of local residents have requested it be covered.
According to Greenwich’s plan it would be on a triangular area of land off Church Manorway near Sewell Road, which is currently classified as industrial land but hasn’t been used for that purpose.
A TV transmission mast is located on site. Ofcom state it’s in Woolwich. It isn’t. Never has been since installation in 1974. Various bodies always get town names wrong is this area. See also BT calling the Abbey Wood telephone exchange the Thamesmead exchange though it’s hardly on the border. As for the TV mast it acts as a relay for Crystal Palace’s mahoosive mast.
The proposed Abbey Wood site also perhaps a pill box too if memory serves from playing on the land as a child. There’s a couple around the Ridgeway.
Greenwich’s draft Local Plan states:
“The site will be allocated for use as a Gypsy and Traveller site, with provision for approximately 18 pitches. Each pitch will be designed to accommodate up to two caravans.
The existing Thislebrooke site is also to stay located off Harrow Manorway.
I’m an old liberal but can traveller sites at least not look like the aftermath of a bomb site? The amount of shit left at the existing site is a joke. Not just in the site but all over the place around Throwley Close and Harrow Manorway. Why is it always such a mess? No civic values? Don’t the residents take any pride in where they live? If the new site is like that it’s a no from me. We all know the authorities won’t enforce anything and run scared.
Oh god no. The site near the station is an absolute dump as rubbish is left all around it and the council and police ignore it. Not another place they can ruin. No one would care if they acted alrite but the existing site wrecks the area so another well u must b kidding. We don’t need it.
My parents lived on the Abbey Wood Estate many years ago when travellers used to camp on the Bank. There was always trouble. Washing disappeared off peoples’ washing lines, milk taken from doorsteps and my dad never forgave two nasty, vicious little travellers who lifted their dog into my dad’s front garden and watched the dog tear dad’s cat to pieces. Dad suffered a mild stroke just after that happened. So if you live on the estate get a petition going and KEEP THEM OUT!!!!
I am so sorry to hear that Margo. That is absolutely awful. They should have been strung up. Nasty wicked B,s.
We do not travellers sites in tne Borough of Greenwich at Abbey Wood or anywhere else for that matter.
WTF are Greenwich Council thinking off.
Complete and utter madness.
I had some good friends from the site as a kid but the adults there never gave a damn except one nice feller. Sadly the ear eexeception. At school we used to have classes about the site explaining their history and to respect them but then you’d leave school and they’d hang up and beat certain people up. A lesson of state sanctioned education versus the reality of daily life. I’m sorry to say that camp has been a blight ever since I was an adult and that’s from the 70s. I always liked a few friends from there but the adults would withdraw kids from the wider community and then revel in treating the area terribly. We’d raise it with the council but they always made excuses to ignore the travellers wrecking the area. I think we could all get on so much better if the council took a more forward role but they never want to offend the travellers so some of them (not all!!!) run amok and ruin the area for everyone. That standoff nature also hurts the travellers who are nice people and there’s many of them locally.
As for a new camp I’d say no. Not given the experience of the other one for many years. No faith whatsoever Greenwich or the police will enforce laws so it’ll become a eyesore
Why Abbey Wood, one site is more than enough. As people have pointed out it brings no positives to the local area
I oppose this as enough green spaces for wildlife destroyed . Locate on unused industrial spaces
I am so sorry to hear that Margo. That is absolutely awful. They should have been strung up. Nasty wicked B,s.
We do not travellers sites in tne Borough of Greenwich at Abbey Wood or anywhere else for that matter.
WTF are Greenwich Council thinking off.
Complete and utter madness.
I would say no to any mote traveller sites in the Borough Of Greenwich. To.be honest the existing Abbey Wood traveller site should be closed
The only advice I could give today is that if you are voting in the local council elections today use your vote wisely..
I feel for the people of Abbey Wood. Tnis is one area of the Borough Greenwich Council does not care about.
Why a second site? It’s typical of the way the Council treats the east of the borough. Can you imagine if they were to propose one in Blackheath or Greenwich. We’d never hear the end of it.
100%, very much a two tier borough…
I’m a live and let live sort but the existing site is such a mess that is like a magnet for antisocial behaviour and dumping which authorities somehow manage to always ignore. So another site… Nope as what faith it’ll be any better? The council and police will ignore what happens there as they do at the other one and locals will have to suffer the repercussions.
Theres tons of unused space in greenwich park….
Does this gypsy camp necessarily have to be built on a bit of old waste land?
Is it too late to put some plans in for a traveller site inside the former Three shop on Eltham High Street?
I bet people don’t want travellers on that site since the majority of people voted for Reform UK. Well I don’t blame them for voting for Reform.
I agree. However, Labour Councillors on Greenwich Council will get the site approved
They do not listen to or care about local residents. Many of them born bred and lived in the Borough all their lives get no help at all from Gteenwich Council when it comes to.housing etc. Then they wonder why people have started to abandoned Labour in droves and have started voting for The Green Party and Reform UK instead to bring real change to the Borough.
When people say no they mean no. No more traveller sites in the Borough of Greenwich. Instead build more affordable homes for local Borough residents..
What also concerns me is that if this travellerz site is given the go ahead. Are we are likely to see a large increase in fly tipping across the Borough?
I am.not saying fly tipping is solely down to.travellers going around in old trucks collecting rubbish. It is a much bigger problem than that. I just think it is something the Council and Local residents need to be aware of..
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I agree with you Graham. We need to stamp out fly tipping across the Borough. The council.needs to supply better bulk waste collections for larger items and bulk rubbish collections.
Illeagal fly tippers and other peiple dumping rubbish on the streets need much tougher fines..
I think the good people of Abbey Wood have already suffered enough from the existing traveller site and do not need any more in the area or Botough.
This is terrible.
Putting the site right next to st pauls academy!
The existing travellers site is a mess. Greenwich cannot get away with this stupidity.
The existing site should be closed and moved away from the station cause the residents cant clean up after themselves. Flytipping happens there very regularly too – an abandoned caravan once a year gets placed outside.
There is also a guy who comes out almost everyday on his off road motorbike and rides around the parks. This will only get worse with a second site.
Let alone the puppy farms, the drug stings that have happened in the existing site. Google the police stings over the last decade and the dogs drowned in the lake.
As well as the muggings and phone snatches just outside.
Not all travellers I must say are like that but this site seems to have some bad apples.