We write with concern over the prospective site options for Gypsy & Traveller sites in the Bishops Tachbrook area.

We attended the recent consultation meeting held in Bishops Tachbrook to be advised of the sites currently being considered for the Gypsy community to settle.

The booklet handed out to the residents and other interested parties, was indeed a beautifully illustrated booklet, but sadly, was nothing more to us than a piece of marketing. The parking of caravan in a secluded country park, with hills in the background, beautiful grand house in the foreground, this looked like a quiet holiday destination.

How long would it be before the site was littered with debris, faeces, used sanitary products, barking dogs, trucks, vans and lorries, to name a few.

As we understand it, the gypsy community are not in favour of internal toilet facilities but by tradition choose to deficate outside the caravan. One concerned person told me last week, that they could not walk in their usual route any longer because of the sights that greet them from the gypsies who had recently vacated the area they had illegally parked.

* Who will be paying for the mass clean up of these areas when the gypsies decide to vacate?
* How will the paying of Council Tax be monitored?
* What security measures will be in place for the local community, who feel insecure as a result of these sites?
* From other sites, in other local council areas, what has been the affect of the gypsies, i.e. cleanliness of the site and surrounding areas, contribution to the running of the site, security etc?
* Has there been an increase of crime rates in other occupied areas, and if so, how has this been addressed?
* How many people, not caravans, are the council proposing to allocate to each plot?
* How will this be monitored and policed to avoid overcrowding?
* How will the traveller sites affect local house prices in the Bishops Tachbrook area?
* How have house prices been affected in other areas to date where gypsies/travellers live?
* Has potential increases in house insurance been taken into consideration?
* Why should residents have to pay for these increased costs when they are not in favour of the sites
* What will the visual impact be on the village of Bishops Tachbrook?
* How will the Gypsy & Traveller sites affect the local services?
* What about the impact on the infrastructure locally?
* Schooling - what about the availability of school places and standard of education for the gypsy community?
* Gypsies and travellers do not tend to stay in one place and put down roots for lengthy periods of time, and this can be disruptive for the local community, who do pay their taxes, take pride in where they reside, and work hard to pay for what they have

These are just a few concerns that we have and concerns that we feel will have a potential impact on the community

Please give these the consideration they deserve as our lives and those of our families are directly affected by the location of these sites