Blakedown residents left in the dark by tree saga (From Kidderminster Shuttle)

Blakedown residents left in the dark by tree saga

7:20am Thursday 27th September 2012 in News

A GROUP of Blakedown residents have spent a year petitioning for Wyre Forest Community Housing (WFCH) to either cut back or chop down the trees overshadowing their homes.

The fir trees are stopping natural light from getting into the bungalows on Sculthorpe Road by early evening as well as over-hanging their gardens by up to 10 feet.

WFCH has made a number of attempts to cut back the trees but cited birds’ nests, safety issues and permission to access the land the trees are on as reasons why the work cannot be completed.

Contractor Oakleaf Grounds Services has agreed to carry out some remedial work from ground level today but as the trees are on an embankment, the ground will need to be firmer after recent rain before special equipment can be used to completely solve the problem.

Spokesman for the residents, Raymond Connor, said: “My garden slopes down by 12 feet, the trees are 50 to 60 foot tall and over-hang about eight to 10 feet into my garden.

“They make the house dark by 6pm in the summer.

“They have given us five or six dates when work would take place over the year but would then fob us off.”

The residents organised a petition about a year ago to present to Wyre Forest Community Housing and have asked Blakedown and Chaddesley councillor Pauline Hayward for help six times.

Conservative councillor Mrs Hayward said: “It’s an ongoing saga. I’m just as frustrated as Mr Connor.

“Wyre Forest Community Housing have had difficulties but it’s a thorn in everybody’s side and I can’t believe it’s been going on so long.”

A spokesman for WFCH said: “We appreciate the residents’ frustration at the delay in completing the work but must consider the safety of the teams and take steps to minimise risk to all concerned.

“The excessive rainfall over the past few months has made the ground unstable and unsafe to work on using such equipment.

“Work cannot proceed until the ground is dry and able to take the weight of the access platform.

“The residents of Sculthorpe Road have been kept informed throughout.”