TRAVELLERS who set up camp in a West Swindon car park left the site littered with faeces and piles of rubbish after they were moved on.

Angry local people said caravans covered the path by Rivermead Drive for several days as garbage mounted up, frustrating the residents and businesses in the area behind the former Renault building.

It echoed incidents earlier in the year when travellers pitched up at Wootton Bassett Road recreation ground, Lydiard Park and Shaw Forest and left large amounts of waste.

A woman who works in the nearby Basepoint Business Park and wished to remain anonymous, because she feared there would be repercussions from the travellers, said: “It makes you uneasy when you see them appear.

“They would be far more welcome to stay if they didn’t make such a Hell of a mess, people wouldn’t mind as much and it wouldn’t be as much of a problem, but they don’t do themselves any favours.

“The caravans were there for weeks, even before Christmas, and they’ve set up there a few times before over the years, it’s like they do the rounds.When you drive out of the estate you can see all the rubbish from the road, I think it might put people off coming here.”

A concerned resident who also did not want to be identified said: “It’s not the best thing in the world to be near businesses and empty buildings. I’m concerned about their security.

“I’m worried about how they get rid of their rubbish and their excrement, chucking bags in hedges. It’s a health and safety risk.I know they have to live somewhere, but they haven’t done this with the consent of the landowner or the council.”

The police were called to the scene yesterday afternoon but the group had gone before officers arrived. Swindon Borough Council moved the travellers and cleared up the mess. A spokesman said: “We worked with the police to move the travellers on without the need for enforcement action.”