WE NEED sites to park up in Southampton.

Travellers' groups gave evidence to city bosses last night as part of the council's long-running inquiry into problems faced by both travellers and city residents.

City chiefs were told that a large permanent site - as well as a network of transit sites - was the only way to tackle groups camping illegally in Southampton.

The inquiry was sparked following a barrage of complaints from city residents last year after travellers set up camps illegally in sites at Southamp-ton Common and St Marks School in Shirley.

City bosses were faced with massive clean-up and legal bills of more than £50,000 following the illegal occupations.

The council is also looking at the possibility of setting up a permanent transit site in Stoneham for travellers to camp on in future.

During last night's hearing, members of the gypsy and travellers' scrutiny panel heard of a catalogue of problems faced by travellers.

They included the difficulties travellers faced in getting health care and education for children because there were not enough permanent spaces for caravans in the city.

Emma Nuttall from the group Friends and Families of Travellers told members that there was a "serious lack" of places for travellers to set up camp in Southampton and Hampshire.

She added that 77 per cent of caravans in Hampshire were not able to find permanent places to park.

She said: "The problem is that since 1994, the statutory duty on local authorities to provide sites was repealed. Government thinking was that travellers would buy their own land. That has not happened.

"When they try and buy a bit of land, they are thwarted by the planning system."

She said that travellers faced "huge discrimination" from the settled community.

Former traveller Len Smith told panel members that many sites which were once used by travellers visiting the city had now been built over.

He said: "Until 24 years ago, I used to travel round Totton and Southampton and stopped in many places, most of which are now built on. These were all traditional stopping places where we bothered nobody."

Meanwhile, council chiefs are continuing with their efforts to evict a group of travellers who set up camp in a car park in Woolston last week.

The group of 12 vans has since moved on to a fresh site on the Archery recreation ground in Archery Road - just a few hundreds yards away from where they first parked up.