A teacher, a critical care nurse and other key workers have been told to leave a holiday park in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic.

The secondary school teacher, who has asked not be named, and her husband, along with other families, were told to get off Warden Springs caravan park on the Isle of Sheppey by this Sunday despite Swale council insisting sites can stay open during the Covid tier 4 restrictions.

But the park has insisted it is shutting and refuses to let them stay.

In an email to holiday home owners it said it was closing for essential maintenance from January 3 to March 1 with utilities switched off at periods within these dates.

It reminded the family that under contractual agreements homes cannot be used all year round and that if rules were ignored it would be a breach of the pitch licence agreement.

The teacher said she had been planning to begin a new job in Yorkshire in January but the start date had been postponed because of the pandemic.

She said she and her husband had already given up their rented home in Thanet and had been planning to stay in their privately owned holiday caravan until the move.

She said: "We contacted the council who confirmed the parks did not have to close this year because of the coronavirus and advised us to talk to the owner. We wrote a letter explaining this and asking to stay. But we have been told we must go on Saturday, January 2, or we will be in breach of our contract.

"The council can't help us with emergency accommodation because we have dogs.

"We asked to have a virtual meeting with one of the park's directors Kevin Spreyer but he did not answer. Now Sheppey is in tier 4 and we cannot go anywhere. But she says she will cut off our power and water for two months for maintenance.

"There are a number of other people in our situation on the park including a critical care nurse. No one has anywhere to go. There is one elderly gentleman and his wife, who is ill, who are petrified and so scared after they received a letter last week telling them they had to get out."

Swale council decided on December 16 that holiday parks on Sheppey could stay open all year to ensure no one was made homeless. The parks normally have to close during January and February. On the same day as the council's announcement, park management confirmed in a Facebook post that it was closing on January 3 "for maintenance".

Residents usually make alternative arrangements for two months, either living with relatives or going on holiday. But the tier 4 regulations for Kent, which were announced by the government on December 19, mean that is now impossible for most.

The teacher added: "I want to know if they can legally terminate our contract in the pandemic, even though we are all paid up? I am a key worker. My husband is retired and nearly 67. This is all very scary as next Monday I may have to go to school again."

Cathy Ellis of the Isle of Sheppey Caravan Owners Facebook page said: "We have a dire situation at Warden Springs. Ten caravans with key workers, teachers and a critical care nurse are being evicted. Some owners are also sick and vulnerable."

The park is owned by Spreyer Holiday Parks run by three Spreyer brothers. They have another two sites in Norfolk. On December 20 the management wrote to holiday home owners telling them that, as a result of the Tier 4 restrictions, it was "with great disappointment" no one could spend Christmas at the park in Thorn Hill Road, Warden Point.

It added: "This is such a disappointing and stressful time for us all. We look forward to seeing you all in the new year to which we hope it is a much healthier, enjoyable season for us all."

The government says people staying on holiday parks who do not have an alternative address should not be made homeless. The park did not respond to requests for a comment.

But a rival holiday park owner has since come to the rescue of the teacher. When Henry Cooper, who owns Elmhurst caravan park at Eastchurch, heard of her plight he arranged for her to stay in a spare lodge.

He said: "I can’t understand how it’s left to people like me to help these poor people yet again instead of our authorities."

The teacher said: "Henry is the kindest man on Sheppey."

She added that since the story first appeared in the Sheerness Times Guardian this week, others threatened with eviction had also found alternative accommodation.

A Swale council spokesman said: “As with the lockdown earlier in the year, the government has said that holiday and caravan parks must be closed for leisure purposes but there are exceptions. This includes those who are unable to return to their main residence, are self-isolating as required by law, or would otherwise be made homeless as a result of the closure.

“We have contacted the park owner to explain this and we are working to support the families affected.”

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