PLANS for a travellers site in Little Thurrock have been booted out - despite desperate pleas by a traveller who told how he wanted to bring his family up in the “modern world”.

Dozens of residents from Malvern Road turned up at the latest planning committee meeting to oppose the application.

The West family began settling on the green belt site just over a month ago when they were issued with a stop notice by the council, ordering them to go.

Andrew West, in his 70s, who said he was “not a typical roma gipsy”, got up and pleaded with the council to accept the proposals at the meeting.

He said: “I want to bring my family up in a modern world.

“Where we used to travel alone, we now can’t catch up and I want my family to be educated. This is the only way we can do it.”

Yet residents opposed on the basis that access to the site is “inadequate”, there would be an impact on the local infrastructure and the site was on green belt land.

The application was for five caravans, five mobile homes, five day rooms and fencing.

And the council did not even bother debating the application before unanimously voting to refuse it. It is expected the family will now appeal.

Clive Milligan, who spoke on behalf of the residents, 574 of whom had signed a petition asking the council to reject the application, said: “On behalf of all residents of Malvern Road, we object to this planning application on the grounds it will cause desecration and destruction to the green belt.”

In August, the committee voted to refuse permission for a similar site on Southend Road in Corringham.