ACTION is being taken in a bid to evict a group of travellers from a site at Walton.

A small number of vehicles turned up on the land behind the town’s Columbine Centre yesterday.

The site is just yards from where travellers encamped for a number of days over the Easter break before moving on.

The site is used an overspill car park for the Columbine Centre and could be needed over the bank holiday weekend.

Tendring Council staff have visited the travellers, who said they intend to stay in the area for about a week and they will move to a nearby caravan park once space becomes available.

The Essex Countrywide Traveller Unit has been informed and they will be visiting the site.

Council spokesman Nigel Brown said a direction to leave will be issued giving the group 24 hours to vacate the publicly-owned land.

A court order will be obtained if they fail to leave.

Mr Brown said: “It would then be necessary to make an appointment with the courts but it could be several days before a hearing takes place.

“Whatever the situation, Tendring Council needs to follow the correct legal procedures if we are to remove the group from the site as quickly as possible.”

At Easter 11 vehicles set up camp on Walton’s Bath House Meadow, in front of the Columbine Centre. That number later grew to 16.

They remained there for about six days but moved on before court action was required.