MORE than 120 used needles were found by city council staff as they cleared out a churchyard.
Tents put up outside St Giles' Church in North Oxford were thought to have been used as injecting sites, because no sleeping bags were found in them.
Human faeces and used condoms were also found littering the churchyard.
People in the tents were given legal notices to leave the churchyard this morning.
City council and police officers attended later to clear the mess.
An Oxford City Council spokesman said: "The landowner requested that we took action to clear the site, and it was our public duty to do so.
"We will not accept this dangerous and reckless discarding of needles in a public space, or the unsanitary conditions."
Four of seven tents were unoccupied, while owners of the others had either left earlier or agreed to move on.
The city council's staff found 126 needles along with other drug paraphernalia.
They used special legal powers under the Environmental Protection Act to clear the churchyard.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel