The manager of a club in a County Durham town has been left disgusted after her land has been covered with mess from squatters after she faced a £2,000 bailiff bill to remove them from the site.
Jemma Manners has worked at Ferryhill Station Club on Louvaine Terrace for nearly ten years and last summer faced a crisis when a large group of squatters suddenly began to live in the club’s car park.
According to Jemma, the group made a home on the car park and caused a nuisance to club users and herself for months until they were finally removed.
However, the aftermath is now piles and piles of waste ranging from pieces of clothing to cans and filled bin bags which
Jemma SAID: “It all happened so fast at the end of August 2023. The mess that was left behind is horrendous – I cannot even describe it.”
Whilst Jemma had planned a clean-up, for which she received a large number of volunteers, it was discovered that the waste was “contaminated”.
“Last summer, I spoke to everyone I could to get them moved on because we are only just a little club and we were totally stuck," she said.
“In the end we had to put up with them for six months.”
Feeling like she was out of options, Jemma began a GoFundMe in an effort to pay £1,000 for a bailiff to remove the group from the site.
Jemma “couldn’t believe it” when their goal was reached in just 19 hours.
However, Jemma then received a £2,000 for bailiff charges and has had to re-open the fundraiser to cover costs.
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She said: “This whole experience is devastating. I have worked here for years, and I’ve been trying my hardest to keep this place going as my dad used to drink here.
“I would never give up on the place and I have no intentions of giving up now. It’s just heartbreaking.
“I’m trying my hardest – it feels like two steps forward and ten steps back.”
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