Euxton travellers' eviction: Group agrees to leave illegal encampment
A group of travellers who set up camp illegally on a former pub site in Euxton have agreed to leave the site.
The travellers were served with an eviction notice at 8am today (Thursday) but had originally refused to leave.
However, after discussions with a court enforcement team which had gathered at the site they agreed to leave at approximately 9.55am.
Court enforcement specialist Gareth Hegarty said: "We have now peacefully and successfully evicted the illegal trespassers."
The drama unfolded at around noon on Wednesday when three caravans arrived at the former Railway Pub in Euxton.
Court enforcement officers visited the site on Wednesday evening serving them notice to leave.
When officers returned in the morning, the group were initially refusing to comply with the court notice.
Landowner Amanda Hilton is currently in the process of transforming the old pub in Wigan Road into a nursery for a new branch of her Nature Trail Nursery business.
She said yesterday: "There's three caravans and four cars.
"But they've already set up a 'U shape' on the site so I'm worried there might be more on the way."
Amanda contacted Chorley Council over the situation, which she said referred her to court enforcement officers.
A council spokesman said the authority was aware of the encampment and has been down to to a site visit.
They added that it was up to the owners to instruct solicitors to enforce removal because the travellers had moved onto private property rather than public land.
The building, which was a pub for 40 years, is being transformed by the Nature Trail Nursery team into another branch, with some 22 jobs created, after Chorley Council granted planning permission last year.