'We had a dream of a beautiful house but for six years we've been looking at this horrible fence'

Residents' fury over 'incomplete' estate

Furious residents on a 250-home estate in Standish where some were sold for more than £300,000 have hit out at developers over what they claim is a failure to complete the build.

They point to pothole-strewn access roads on the Churchfields and Fairways estate, off Rectory Lane, that have never been tarmacked. Weeds grow through the surface, and they say raised manholes present hazards to drivers.

Residents add that a 'dangerous' absence of road markings on the estate's internal roads also makes it unclear which traffic has to give way at various junctions.

Meanwhile, Wigan council is currently engaged in legal discussions with the lead developer, Morris Homes, over work on a play area, 20 allotments and a safe off-road pathway to nearby St Wilfrid’s CofE Primary School, which does not appear to have been started.

The creation of the community facilities by the developer was a condition of their planning consent for the homes, but in February this year the council issued an enforcement notice saying it would take legal action if work did not start within 12 weeks.

That deadline expired on May 19 with no visible sign of work being carried out. But a spokesperson for Morris Homes said: “We have commenced vegetation clearance works with a view to completion of the allotments, fencing, play area and open space works taking place over the summer.”

A Wigan council spokesperson said the authority was aware that the works to provide allotments, a footpath link and landscaped areas of land adjacent to Standish Leisure Centre had not been completed ‘within the timeframe required by planning conditions’.

They went on: “These are important facilities for the community in this part of Standish. The council began enforcement action in February this year when it served a Breach of Condition Notice, and we are currently confirming our next steps to ensure that the work is carried out without further delay.”

Matt Stephenson, from Greenside Close, said: “I have been chasing this land to be completed from day one of us moving into our family home on May 30 2019. We have lived here six years now."

He added: “When we bought the house, we were shown plans of a lovely landscaped area with allotments and kids’ play areas. The plot we chose looked out onto this land, and it was a dream for our two children to be able to run out the front of the house and play on the land while still in sight. At the time, our children were seven and nearly one year old.

“The seven-year-old is now 14 and has outgrown any benefit he may have had from the land.

“We had a dream of the beautiful house we paid £300,000 for with lovely views and facilities. We have been looking at horrible fencing for six years and chased several different companies and councillors to be passed from one person to another. It's been very stressful.”

His comments were echoed by fellow resident Kathryn Mann. She said: “The roads are in an absolute state. Bits of tarmac that have been put down for driveways have come away and pavements are unfinished.

“There are some parts of the estate without a dip in the kerb to cross the road, making it virtually impossible with my newborn in the pram and a three-year-old.

“We were promised a park when we first moved in in 2021, which was perfect as I was pregnant with my first son. He’s now nearly four and hasn’t had a park or green spaces to go to.

"I’m hoping our newborn will be able to use the park when it is eventually started/finished?! The land next to the leisure centre looks awful. The metal fences have been up for years, and we’re unable to use that bit of land to go for a walk.

People living on the estate have been paying about £160 a year since the houses were built over the last few years for property management.

It is administered by Gateway Property Management, on behalf of Rectory Lane (Standish) Management Company Limited.

Marc Thompson, of Vardon Drive, said that other than lawn mowing around the various green areas of the estate there was ‘little evidence of the maintenance we’re paying for’.

“There is no tarmac, there are raised manholes and potholes and there are weeds growing at the side of kerbstones,” he said.

"When you drive around the estate, you wouldn't know where you have to give way to other traffic because there are no road markings, which is very dangerous.

“I paid more than £300,000 for my house, and there are many other residents in the same boat, but there is no sign of the estate being finished off the way that we were told it would be when we moved here.”

The Churchfields and Fairways Estate build was a joint venture between Morris Homes and Persimmon. The planning conditions imposed for the creation of the play area, allotments and pathway to St Wilfrid’s were for Morris Homes only as the lead developer.

A spokesperson for both Morris Homes and Persimmon said: “The majority of open public spaces on the development have been transferred to a management company, who now have responsibility for ongoing maintenance and setting the relevant fees. One last area will shortly transfer.

“Residents will then be invited to nominate representatives to join the management company and can vote to appoint their own agent to maintain the development should they wish to do so.

“We are working closely with Wigan council and United Utilities to complete the remainder of the site, including the new road surfacing, as quickly as possible.”

A spokesperson for Gateway told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): "Gateway, on behalf of Rectory Lane (Standish) Management Company Limited, has been managing the public open space areas of the Rectory Lane development since the completion of its first phase in August 2022.

"Upon handover of the management of these areas to Gateway, residents were issued with welcome packs that included a copy of the development’s plan which highlighted the areas that fall under Gateway’s management.

"As the plan states, the roads, kerbs and road signage are not the responsibility of our client. Eventually, these areas will be adopted by the local authority.

"Each homeowner on the development contributes an equal share towards the service charge. Along with the landscape maintenance that is carried out regularly to the public open spaces over the course of the year, provisions are included in the service charge for ad-hoc repairs, statutory risk assessments, professional fees and a reserve fund."