Abandoned vehicles were left at the side of the road after travellers were evicted from a beauty spot.

Residents were left angry after caravans and a stripped out 4x4 vehicle were left along the side of Wilson Avenue in Brighton.

The large group of travellers have been evicted from Sheepcote Valley by Brighton and Hove City Council.

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Resident Arthur Bird, from Swanborough Drive, said: “There were up to a dozen caravans abandoned although some of them were removed by the council.

“They had also replaced the bund wall which had been dug out so the travellers could get on the field.

“People see the travellers as romantic nomads but what they don’t see is all the rubbish and excreta that is left behind and which has to be cleaned up.

“The Friends of Sheepcote Valley have worked very hard to turn this into a pleasant area but every time the travellers come it gets ruined.”

A Brighton and Hove City Council spokesman said: “A group of vehicles occupying land at the top of Sheepcote Valley adjacent to the racecourse and to the east of Wilson Avenue was evicted following appropriate welfare checks and due legal process.

“We anticipate that most of the vehicles will be collected by this morning.

“We can’t comment at this stage on whether action will be taken against the group for what they have left behind.”

It is thought the same group of travellers moved to land north of 19 Acres in Dyke Road, Brighton The spokesman said council officers will be visiting the new site to carry out a “community impact assessment to determine the most appropriate course of action”.

The traveller liaison team is also negotiating a leaving date with occupants of an encampment on land next to Lynchet Close in Hollingbury to save the costs of a formal eviction.