Travellers staying at an unauthorised caravan camp in Pembrokeshire have spoken out about the prejudices they encounter.

The group of caravans have been parked in Minwear Woods, near Blackpool Mill, since the beginning of May.

They say arrived in the area, where they have friends, family and care-of-addresses, after they were unable to remain at their previous location, which was on the side of a mountain, due to extreme weather.

Following complaints and concerns raised by some members of the public, and comments posted on social media, the group want to reassure people they will leave the site as they found it.

One of the travellers, Jessica James, says they will take pictures to prove it.

She added her door is always open for anyone with concerns to speak to her directly.

Jessica said: “We are human beings. We are not thieves, we will not leave a mess.

“We completely understand that some travellers, a small minority, make things very difficult for the rest of us that are quite reasonable and are just trying to live our lives, we get that.

“At the same time, in the context of what’s happened around the world, ethnic minorities being discriminated against is clearly still going on. People feel that it’s okay to discriminate against us. It’s prejudice. People are frightened of what they don’t know and make broad generalisations."

Jessica said the group would normally be working at festivals and events at this time of year, but lockdown had forced them to cancel their plans. While at their current site they are making repairs to their homes before they move on when it is safe to do so.

She added that there was provision in the coronavirus rules which make exceptions for this type of situation, and there were not enough authorised facilities available for travellers in Pembrokeshire, which had led them to stay in the car park.

“No end of people have come through, parked up and did not feel threatened by us. Most people that we meet are fine and quite happy to speak to us.

“We are trying to keep ourselves out of the way and cause minimum disruption.

“If people have a problem with us, they should come and speak to us about it, we will make them a cup of tea.

“It seems that people are frustrated and angry and just need to vent, we seem to be an acceptable target.

“The door is always open. We are friendly and we do like people.”

Fellow traveller Ashley Thomas added: “Our lives are more difficult than most people. We have to deal with persecution on a regular basis. It’s always the people that do not speak to us.”

“We should be half-way across Europe by now, we don’t actually want to be here. Like everyone, we are just trying to make the best of things.”