Tempers rise over lack of action against riverside homeless encampment

People living in Tanners Court say the problems stem from a group of rough sleepers who have set up camp on the bank of the River Wensum, opposite their homes.

Bonfires happen 'every morning and night' (Image: Submitted)

They claim constant bonfires, littering, drinking and urinating have been going on for months at all times of the day and night.

Officers from City Hall visited the cul-de-sac earlier this week to investigate the problems, but locals say nothing has been resolved.

The tents on the opposite side of the bank at Tanners Court (Image: Submitted)

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One neighbour, who did not wish to be named, said: "Someone from the City Council Homeless and Rough Sleeper Department came out to investigate.

“She understands it is a pain but said she can’t do anything about the various campers as they don’t want to move on or engage with them or local homeless charities. It’s just not good enough.

“The council and Train Wood, the charity responsible for maintaining the area, are failing to look after this important wildlife site.

Tanners Court flats (Image: Submitted)

“I have also written to the Environment Agency and Natural England, as they are the ones who gave this area this status in the first place.”

A council spokesman said,  “We are aware of the situation at Tanners Court, and we realise this is causing concern to some residents.

"We continue to work closely with the police, Norfolk County Council, our rough sleeper partners and Train Wood to find a solution to this and other areas across the city.”


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