A ROW has erupted in South Bucks after a parish council introduced measures to stop travellers settling on its village green - but gave the work to the son of its own clerk.

Hedgerley Parish Council has denied any foul play over the awarding of two contracts to Ben Harris, the son of parish clerk, Penny Harris. Mr Harris was given the job of installing wooden posts on the green in Jones Way to dissuade traveller communities from pulling onto it with their caravans. The move came after up to eight caravans landed on the green on May 17, and stayed for four days.

Although residents had wanted measures to stop it happening again, tensions came to the fore at a parish meeting on Monday when they slammed the authority for awarding the work in the way it had.

Alan Pearce, 55, of Stevenson Road, said the job, which cost just under £5,000, had not gone to tender and criticised the quality of the work.

He told the Observer: “They (the posts) are not even concreted in - you can lift them out if you give them a a bit of a heave.” He added: “I can understand the council being under pressure but the process was obviously flawed and flawed in favour of the parish clerk’s son.

“We want answers by the next parish council meeting.”

The parish council said it has agreed to have an inspection into the quality of the work and the effectiveness of the posts - before coming up with an action plan to take forward.

Chairman, Neil Coxhead, said: “We recognise perhaps we could have consulted more widely but it was a fraught situation at the time.”

He said Mr Harris had been utilised because he had done work for the authority before and the need was urgent.

But he added that the parish council had taken legal advice from the National Association of Local Councils and as the work had been awarded in two parts, £2,588 for materials and £2,330 for labour, it was below the £3,500 limit required for tender.

He said Mr Harris had not had a chance to finish the job and concreting posts in was not viable.