Wibsey residents fear they are living on a 'ticking timebomb'

Residents of Beechwood Avenue in Wibsey have spoken of their dread at what could happen and have appealed to Bradford Council for support.

They’ve had concerns for some years, but these have been heightened amid the period of severe weather which has battered the district, resulting in a devastating landslide in Riddlesden, Keighley, which has rendered a number of homes “unsafe”.

The hillside Councillor David Green (Lab, Wibsey) has been in discussions with those living on Beechwood Avenue and said even if the Council is not legally obliged to act, it has a “moral duty” to assist.

The Grange school complex sits below at the bottom of the hill, making the situation all the more concerning.

Billy Welch, 63, told the Telegraph & Argus: “The issue has been going on for quite a while, there was a house here which was demolished due to the subsidence, it was collapsing.

“The whole hillside is affected by it. It’s only in the last three/four years that it’s started to get to a stage where it’s really noticeable and it’s beginning to fall away quite drastically.”

There are two ways to enter the houses on Beechwood Avenue and the issues centre on an unadopted road on land which runs down the side of St Enoch’s Road.

The street is lined by hedges and to explain the deterioration, Zeeshan Miran, 42, said he was once able to stand on the other side to cut them, but is no longer able to.

“There was at least a footing on the other side, the hedge here was quite tall and I cut it down on the other side, now there’s actually no footing,” he said.

Mr Welch said there is a crack on his driveway and fears it could further affect the house.

The residents said they are struggling to get anywhere with their insurers.

“When I discussed it with mine, I said it’s affecting the drive, when this goes, it’s going to start affecting the house, and the short reply is until it touches the house and affects the house, they will do nothing,” said Mr Welch.

“I said well surely if work was done now to stabilise things, it wouldn’t affect the house and it would save money.”

He added: “Where the cracks are now, when you bring the car out of the drive, it is a worry every time you go on.

“The Council said this was not their responsibility because they say it’s an unadopted road, so the houses which front onto it are responsible for it.”

Mr Miran said the situation could be “catastrophic” and added: “We are sitting on a ticking timebomb with everyone turning their backs on us, I cant even describe the impact this is going to have on the families.”

Environmental geotechnical specialists assessed the site for Mr Welch last year and said the initial view was that “the slope down to the school playing fields is overly steep and that there is significant evidence that the failure of the slope is in progress”.

It added: “Considering the steepness of the slope, together with the nature of the material visible on the slope face, it is considered that a catastrophic failure of the ground could occur at any time.”

It goes as far as to say one house, currently unoccupied, has “significant signs of structural distress” and would likely collapse if the slope in that area were to fail.

Cllr Green said he is working to get all relevant parties around the table and said he hoped the Council could be an “honest broker”.

“Everybody needs to come together to get this resolved,” he said.

“Clearly what residents want is some security. I do think we have a moral responsibility and a duty of care, even if it’s not up to us [the Council] to directly do something.”

Bradford Council was approached for comment on the situation and concerns raised by the residents, but did not respond by the time of going to press.