TRAVELLERS who settled in Greenstead have left the site after being served with a direction to leave notice by Colchester Council.

Six caravans arrived in Magnolia Field on Monday and there were two Toyota pick-up trucks parked alongside them on Tuesday.

It is understood the travellers left on Wednesday morning.

When the Gazette asked one of the travellers on Tuesday where they were planning on going next, they said: “We’ll go to the next town or village.

“We are used to travelling around – we don’t like to stay in the same place.”

The same day Colchester Council said in a statement it wanted a peaceful resolution and aimed to move the travellers on “as swiftly as possible”.

Greenstead councillor Tim Young said he had not received any complaints about noise or litter from residents.

Monday’s arrival came shortly after an annual unauthorised encampment conference was held at the Police Fire and Crime Commissioner’s office in Kelvedon, with the meeting taking place last week.

A spokesman for Essex Police said the force’s rural engagement team had reduced the number of unauthorised encampments from 226 during the ten-month period from January to October 2018 down to 69 during the ten-month period from January to October 2023.