NEARLY £80,000 a year is being spent on keeping trespassers off the former RAF Locking camp. The cash is being spent on 24-hour security at the site which closed in 1999 and was bought in 2002 by the South West Regional Development Agency and English Part

NEARLY £80,000 a year is being spent on keeping trespassers off the former RAF Locking camp.The cash is being spent on 24-hour security at the site which closed in 1999 and was bought in 2002 by the South West Regional Development Agency and English Partnerships, which are jointly funding the security measures.One resident said: "We seem to get a lot of people over here that don't belong here."At one point we had a lot of mini-motos around and now we have scooters."At one end of the camp they seem to have a lot of problems and have the police down there at least once a week. Kids are running wild down there."Some residents are thinking about getting a petition together to stop people coming onto the camp that shouldn't be here."It is nice and safe here most of the time but a few problems spoil it."A South West RDA and English Partnerships spokesman, said: "This large, open site is close to a residential neighbourhood. "Some of the roads on site are used for access to these residential areas meaning that it is impossible to physically secure the site. "This makes it particularly vulnerable to unauthorised access and therefore it is important to maintain security on the site to prevent illegal fly tipping, occupation by travelling communities, trespassing or off road motorcycling."In addition, in order for us to successfully regenerate the site, it has to remain attractive to potential developers and occupiers and remain clear of debris, ready for development work to start. The 24 hour security is paid for jointly by the South West RDA and English Partnerships and costs £6,480 per month, which is standard for a development site of this size. The security staff also act as a point of contact for visitors.