Chancery Lane Car Park, Retford - Update

Following a successful possession hearing at Mansfield County Court on Monday 6^th June, Bassetlaw District Council served notice on the persons occupying Chancery Lane Car Park in Retford. The possession order was complied with and the car park has now been vacated, secured and fully cleaned up. (Wednesday 8^th June). The act of trespass is a civil matter and we have to follow a set legal process in order to regain possession of land. In this instance we commenced proceedings on the 20^th May, by serving notice on the first day of the illegal encampment. We are disappointed at the time this has taken to progress through the legal process. We appreciate that this has been a very frustrating time for residents and local businesses and we are taking steps to secure the site against further unauthorised encampment.

What happens next?
Chancery Lane Car Park will remain closed whilst works are undertaken to permanently secure the site, with new bollards and height barriers. By re-opening the Car Park before these works have been carried out leaves us at risk of further acts of trespass and unauthorised encampments. We expect Contractors to be on site in the coming days with the works to be completed within the next two weeks.

Why hasn’t Chancery Lane Car Park had barriers installed before now?
Historically, unlike other sites across the district, we have not had any unauthorised encampments on this car park and it had been considered too small to accommodate caravans and associated vehicles.

Why weren’t the Caravans/Vehicles ticketed?
This was an act of trespass. By issuing parking tickets the implication is that by purchasing a parking ticket, it would be acceptable to park up the caravans and associated vehicles in the Car Park. We would not then be able to take legal action to regain possession of the land.

How much did it cost to clean up the Car Park?
Our street cleaning crew have swept the car park and collected approximately a quarter of a tonne of rubbish as well as disinfecting the area. This has cost around £250.