Frustration over 'lack of repairs' to listed wall

Blackwell Parkland in Darlington has recently under gone a £760,000 restoration

Residents fear a listed wall will "fall to pieces" if work is not carried out to save it.

The Grade II-listed structure, located on the boundary of Blackwell Grange parkland in Darlington, is missing bricks which are "difficult" to replace because they are so old.

Clive Rickaby said the walls had been left in a "terrible state". He and other concerned locals were frustrated why £760,000 council funding to upgrade the park was not spent on the wall.

A Darlington Borough Council spokesperson said all of its planned work had been carried out at the park and "the missing coping stones on Blackwell Lane were not included" in the project.

Mr Rickaby urged the Labour-led council to "keep it in good condition".

"One of the top priorities for the restoration should have been the listed wall on Blackwell Lane," he said. "It's more than frustrating."

Whole bricks are missing from parts of the wall

Conservative councillor Heather Scott, a former council leader, said fixing the listed wall was "something that the local authority has to deal with".

She said it was difficult for the council to find matching bricks for the wall.

"It has been an ongoing issue for some time with the local authority," Scott said.

"It is a listed wall which means it is difficult getting the matching bricks for it."

However, she said despite the ongoing problems with the wall, the overall restoration project of the parkland had been a "huge success".

The council said all work to the parkland was carried out "in accordance with the planning permission obtained."

A spokesperson added: "The missing coping stones on Blackwell Lane were not included in the parkland works."

It said it had also carried out work to a sunken fence, known as a ha-ha, as a "gesture of goodwill".