A councillor has called for playing fields to be made “more secure” after travellers set up camp for the third time in a year.

Asif Khan, a Labour representative for Leggatts Ward, in North Watford, was alarmed to discover seven caravans had driven onto the Leggatts Playing Fields - where the Everett Rovers football team practice – on Sunday evening.

Despite landowners Taylor Wimpey installing a metal knee rail fence around the site last year, cllr Khan noticed the locks on various drop-down barriers on the field had been cut, which allowed vehicles to drive through.

He is now calling on the housebuilding company to ensure travellers do not keep encroaching there.

Cllr Khan said: “It’s unacceptable. It needs to be more secure, as this has happened three times in a year.

“People who live nearby are at the end of their tether.”

A Taylor Wimpey spokesperson responded that the locks on the drop down barriers on the fence will be replaced and action will be taken “as soon as possible” to ensure the travellers leave the site.

They said: “We are aware that a group of travellers have unlawfully accessed and are currently occupying land off North Western Avenue in Watford. As landowners, we are taking action to ensure the travellers are moved on as soon as possible.

“We installed a metal knee rail fence around the full perimeter of the site last year in order to prevent unlawful access.

“However, we had to retain drop-down barriers to allow for maintenance and it seems that, on this occasion, the locks on these have been cut to force entry. These locks will be replaced.”

Cllr Karen Collett, who represents community at Watford Borough Council, added: “When travellers visit our borough, if they are trespassing on our land, we work with our partners and act quickly and legally to ensure that our land is repossessed and the travellers are moved on. We also act quickly to clean up any litter or fly-tipping that may have been left on the site.

“Travellers are entitled to move through the borough freely. It is only when they camp on land owned privately or by the local authority that they are trespassing, which is a civil offence. The landowners then have the right to repossess their land.

“Where there is a repeated issue we put in place appropriate measures such as fencing to act as a deterrent, whilst striving to maintain attractive and accessible parks and open spaces for our residents and for partners to manage their maintenance and upkeep.”