Travellers 'hook up their illegal camp to electricity grid' and water network in Home Counties village before homeowners suffer massive power cut

By RORY TINGLE, HOME AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT and ISAAC CROWSON Published: 01:27, 27 July 2026 | Updated: 01:27, 27 July 2026 A group of travellers allegedly hooked up their illegal site to the energy and water grid days before homeowners suffered a power cut.  The village of Tilsworth in Bedfordshire is now said to have 'more travellers than locals' after a large caravan park was built without permission over one weekend.  Workers descended on the field on Friday, June 12 – shortly before council staff went home – and covered it with hardcore to create an unauthorised extension to an existing legal site.  The following Tuesday, Central Bedfordshire Council secured a temporary stop notice requiring all construction work to cease.  In public communications, officials have repeatedly claimed the stop notice has been complied with – despite villagers insisting work has been ongoing.  Today, the villagers' suspicions appear to have been confirmed after the local energy network operator revealed it was investigating a suspected illegal connection at the site on June 19 – three days after the stop notice was issued.  Cases of illegal electricity extraction are usually investigated by energy suppliers. However, it is a serious criminal offence that is punishable by up to five years' imprisonment.   Carrying on construction work after being issued with a stop notice is also a criminal offence, which carries an unlimited fine.  Workers descended on the field in Tilsworth, Bedfordshire last month before building an unauthorised encampment (bottom) next to an existing legal site (top)  The unauthorised development began on Friday, June 12, shortly before staff at Central Bedfordshire Council went home for the weekend Tilsworth experienced a power cut on June 24, five days after the unauthorised connection.  A spokesman for UK Power Networks said: 'We were advised on June 19 of a possible unauthorised electricity connection at a site in Dunstable Road, Tilsworth,' a spokesman said.  'While our network is currently operating normally, our engineers are working closely with police regarding this and an adjacent site and have been liaising to coordinate visit dates.' While villagers claimed the travellers were responsible for the power cut, UK Power Networks said the issue 'was caused by a fault on the overhead network and is not believed to be linked to the site'.  During the power outage, locals received a text which said: 'We are aware of an unexpected power cut in LU7.  'We didn't know this was going to happen, so providing prior notice wasn't possible but we are working to get the lights back on as quickly as we can.' As of July 3, the traveller site is now subject to an injunction banning any further development. But neighbours remain unhappy and insist work has continued in recent weeks.   One said: 'It's a disgrace. The council issued the stop notice but the work has continued since then. 'They do whatever they want and get away with it. They managed to connect to the power network and this took out the village for about an hour. It's a scandal.' An aerial view of the two sites and some of the surrounding houses  Travellers took a weekend to transform the green field into an ugly encampment  The homeowner said many people working from home were affected that day. He added: 'You just cannot be allowed to do that. Imagine if one of us did?  'There's no doubt it would be treated as a criminal matter and we'd be facing consequences. But they do as they please.' Villagers previously complained that their lives have been made 'hell' by noisy construction work, a large fire and 'threats' against anyone trying to intervene.  There are 19 motorhomes and caravans on the new encampment alongside 70 on the existing site. The village itself has around 140 homes, according to locals, prompting some to claim they are now outnumbered.  One villager said: 'Last night, they were riding bikes on the site until very late. They create such a lot of noise. It's terrible.' Councillors are currently reviewing a retrospective planning application for the site – raising the prospect it could win official approval. The Conservatives have called for ministers to ban any traveller site from being given retrospective planning approval after being built without permission. The nearby village of Tilsworth, which was mentioned in the Domesday Book  A council spokesman said: 'The Council is aware of reports of an unauthorised connection to the electricity infrastructure, and we've notified UK Power Networks as the relevant utility provider. 'Any investigation into the cause of the outage is a matter for UK Power Networks. 'We understand the unauthorised caravan site has caused concerns for residents in Tilsworth.  'Officers have responded quickly and treated this as a priority. The Council must follow the correct legal process and ensure any formal action is supported by evidence.  'A Temporary Stop Notice was served on Tuesday, June 16, requiring all further construction work to cease. The Council obtained a High Court injunction on July 3 for this site.' Water supplier Affinity Water did not respond to requests for comment.