'Dangerous and abandoned' Wiltshire estate making lives a misery

The MoJ is responsible for the roads, public spaces, pavements, sewage and streetlights at Victoria Park in Great Cheverell, which used to house prison officers at HMP Erlestoke, while the estate’s 50 homes are privately owned.

Plans have been put forward to transfer ownership to Wiltshire Council, but the community claim these have been put on hold because “decades of neglect” mean the area has not been brought up to the required standard.

Concerns have been raised over the quality of the roads and pavements in Victoria Park, and there is a lack of working streetlights.

Chairman of the residents’ association, Des Read, fears the estate has become a “hazard” for those that live there.

Potholes at the Victoria Park estate (Image: Newsquest)

He said: “Some people can’t even walk the pavements safely, two years ago we had no streetlights and a lot of people were worried about personal safety.

“Because of the state of the pavements and roads, and the fact it was pitch black, there have been some accidents and people have fallen… it’s hazardous to walk on.

“There are all those human risks but there’s also a financial one because house prices have certainly dropped.”

Meanwhile, the MoJ began a project to build a temporary road across the village green two years ago, before abandoning the project and burdening the village with an unsecured building site on their green space.

There is a brownfield site on the estate (Image: Newsquest)

Mr Read added: “It just shows how chaotic planning has been. The green was used by people but that’s just stopped.

“Nobody with any sense would come up here now… the site is not secure, and it is yet another hazard.

“We’re falling between all the holes in the net and it’s the residents who suffer.”

On top of concerns the estate has fallen into disrepair, Mr Read claims the sewage system is also an issue, and that some locals have had sewage backing up onto their properties, causing “a hell of a mess.”

The building site on the green. (Image: Newsquest)

The MoJ insist work is ongoing to bring the area up to Wiltshire Council standards which will include repairs to key infrastructure such as roads, pathways and street lights.

A spokesperson said: “We apologise to the residents of Victoria Park for the issues they have faced and are working at pace on plans for maintenance and repairs to the estate.”