Richmond Council said they have commenced legal proceedings against a group of travellers that moved onto Kew Green recently.

On Thursday (August 5), the council said they had "commenced the legal process that will require them to leave" after the group moved into the area on Wednesday (August 4).

Around 21 caravans and associated vehicles reportedly make up the travelling contingent.

A council spokesperson said that the group were "not willing to leave or cooperate with a welfare assessment", prompting their legal action.

A statement about the situation published on the council website Thursday read:

"Following reports that an unauthorised group of travellers arrived on Kew Green last night (4 August), the Council has commenced the legal process that will require them to leave... It is expected that the process will take a number of days. This is necessary due to a High Court order earlier this year that denied the Council’s request to extend the previous expedited injunction process, in common with numerous other local authorities. Therefore, the Council now has to go via the courts each time."

Councillor Julia Neden-Watts, Chair of the Environment, Sustainability, Culture and Sports Committee, added:

"As soon as the travellers leave, we will inspect the area and ensure that any damage is repaired, and waste removed. Our Park Guard officers, along with the Police, will be monitoring the site closely until the group depart."

Travelling communities are facing stigma in the UK after decades of racism and what some reports have labelled de-facto persecution in the UK under successive governments.

US journal Foreign Policy stated in 2019 that "prejudice against those labeled as Gypsies, Roma, and Travellers is one of the most widespread forms of racism in the UK, one stoked over the last decades not only by the Conservative Party but also by its main media supporters."

Home Secretary Priti Patel was accused of "inciting racial hatred" last year after she labelled travellers "criminal and violent".