Policy background Unauthorised encampments
There are a number of powers available to the police and local authorities to tackle unauthorised encampments. Sections 61 to 62E of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 ("the 1994 Act") confer powers on the police to direct trespassers to leave land and to remove any vehicles or other property they have with them on the land. Sections 77 to 79 of the 1994 Act confer similar powers on local authorities in respect of unauthorised encampments. 1 The vast majority of travelling communities reside in caravans on authorised sites. Out of the 24,203 caravans recorded in England in July 2021, only 707 (3%) ￼ were on unauthorised sites. Despite this relatively low proportion, there have been long-standing concerns about the disproportionate impact some unauthorised encampments can have. They can infringe upon the settled communities’ rights through temporary loss of local amenities and can cause distress to local communities and local businesses.
	Recognising these concerns, from 5 April to 15 June 2018, the Government ran a consultation on the effectiveness of enforcement against unauthorised encampments. The consultation sought views on the scale of the problem, whether existing powers could be used more effectively and if any additional powers were required. Alongside the Government response to the consultation published on 6 February 2019, the then Home Secretary announced the Government would look to amend sections 61 and 62A of the 1994 Act to enable unauthorised encampments to be tackled more effectively. He also confirmed that Home Office officials would review how the Government could criminalise the act of trespassing when setting up an unauthorised encampment in England and Wales.
	Following this a second consultation was launched on 5 November 2019 and ran until 4 March 2020. This consultation asked how to strengthen the police’s powers to tackle unauthorised encampments. It included proposals to amend the 1994 Act and proposals for the introduction of a new criminal offence of trespass. The Government published its response to this consultation on 8 March 2021, setting out proposals to create a new offence and strengthen the powers in the 1994 Act; Part 4 gives effect to these proposals.