Unadopted road residents in Essex say 'nobody listens to us'

Windermere Avenue and its footpath have been heavily damaged by construction traffic, residents claim

Residents living on an unadopted road in Essex say they have nobody to turn to amid a battle with developers.

People in Windermere Avenue, Hullbridge, claim construction traffic has damaged the road, private vehicles and property.

Locals also allege they have been ridiculed and abused by construction staff when they tried to complain.

Salboy Build Partner, which is funding the project, says residents' concerns will be investigated.

Eleven houses and six apartments being built in a field adjacent to Windermere Avenue are expected to be up for sale later in 2024.

But Windermere Avenue, along with adjoining West Avenue, is an unadopted road, meaning it is the responsibility of residents to maintain. It is one of about 40,000 unadopted roads across England and Wales, covering about 4,000 miles (6,437 km).

Joan Welsford, 82, alleges the wing mirror of her car was knocked off by a passing truck.

Joan Welsford says the state of Windermere Avenue "has gone beyond a joke"

"In 57 years, I've never known the road as bad as this - it's been devastated," she told the BBC.

Colin Bilby, 73, installed a post to mark the edge of the two-metre pathway on Windermere Avenue. Less than a fortnight later, he claims it was flattened by a lorry.

"If the builders had shown a little bit of consideration, this horrendous situation would have been a lot less traumatic," he said.

Colin Bilby installed a post in the ground to mark the pavement edge, but it was flattened just days later

Adam Twyman, 50, has lived on West Avenue for 20 years. He told the BBC that little effort had been made by constructors to clean the wheels of lorries as they leave the site.

"There's not a lot of respect from the site staff unfortunately," Mr Twyman said, adding that he felt "disappointed and disrespected".

Resident Mike Rennie says he has written more than 100 emails to Rochford District Council and repeatedly spoken to the constructors.

"It's disastrous what they've done," Mr Rennie told the BBC.

"They've had no respect at all for the people of Windermere Avenue."

One resident's car was allegedly dented and scratched by a construction lorry as it turned a corner

Salboy Build Partner, which is a funding partner for the project, says it "will work with the local development team and third-party contractors to investigate and review the concerns raised by the local community".

"While some level of disruption can be expected with any construction, we always encourage our partners to do so considerately and professionally," the spokesperson added.

A spokesperson for Rochford District Council said private roads were "the responsibility of those persons who own or have the right over the land", adding the authority was "not responsible for maintenance which includes damage to the verges caused by road users".

"The developer in this instance has committed through a legal agreement to resurface the unmade section of Windermere Avenue up to the site access," the spokesperson said.