Residents against travellers site to hold litter pick
Residents against a proposed £1 million travellers site will hold a litter pick this weekend, with backing from their MP.
A piece of tree-covered land in Gorsebrook Road, Whitmore Reans, in Wolverhampton, has been earmarked for the development – to the frustration of people living there.
Now campaigners will pick up their tools in a bid to spruce up the area and show they are willing to care for it and it can be looked after.
Resident Gemma Taylor, who lives in nearby Glentworth Gardens, said: “We want to show them we want to look after that place – and we’ve got permission to tidy it up.
Interactive map shows site of the land:
“People do care and we want to clean it up and use it for the community.
“We’re going to make it a fun day.
“We’ve opened it to everyone and we want to get in there and show the kids what’s down there.”
Councillor Sohail Khan, Eleanor Smith MP and Conservative parliamentary candidate Stuart Anderson will all get their hands dirty for the pick.
The event will also see the planting at the centre of the site of a tree donated to Ms Smith by Extinction Rebellion.
Ms Smith posted on her parliamentary Facebook page: “Looking forward to working with the community and taking part in a litter-pick this coming Sunday at 1pm – this is all about campaigning to preserve the green space off Gorsebrook Road and get it officially turned into a nature reserve.
“I think this is the perfect place to plant the tree given to me by Extinction Rebellion and help rejuvenate the site.
"We’ll plant the tree on Sunday too – the Dunstall area has limited green space as it is and we should work to keep and enhance what is there.
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“The council has proposed turning this space into a transit site for the traveller community.
"This is intended to retain a court injunction giving the police greater powers to move travellers on – but the plans for the site include removing trees and making the site so unwelcoming and difficult to use it is purely there to tick a box.
"The traveller community have not been consulted, and the site will not allow them to move freely as they wish.”
Anyone can get involved with the litter pick, which will take place from the entrance to the site – near the sign for the Dunstall Hill industrial estate – on Sunday from 1pm. Litter pickers and bags will be provided.
More on the event can be found at the campaign group’s Facebook page Nature Reserve VS Transit Site (Dunstall).
