TRAVELLERS who set up an illegal camp in Three Legged Cross recreation ground have moved on.

Residents near the site said the group had been there for 11 days, leaving local youngsters unable to use the skate park and grassed area.

There were eight caravans and associated cars and vans on the recreation ground, which is accessed via a track off Verwood Road.

One local resident, who did not wish to be named, said: “The site is usually well-used by local children but they have not been playing there since the travellers arrived.

“They have been pretty quiet but it’s still a nuisance that they’re there.

“No one has spoken to us about it or told us when they will be leaving.”

She said travellers were last on the site about four years ago.

East Dorset district councillor Peter Richardson, of the Three Cross and Potterne ward, said: “They were not camping where they were meant to be – that land belongs to the town council.

“The legal process was taken in hand thanks to the town clerk.”

Councils are increasingly using new powers to move on travellers, which require them to move on within a specified amount of time.