OVERGROWN bushes and rampant foliage are spoiling a pretty Royal Wootton Bassett neighbourhood.

One neighbour who has lived in the area for 11 years is fed up with the state of the greenery that runs along the roadside and fears that the unkempt trees cause a safety risk by limiting visibility for drivers turning right out of Cherry Brook.

Chris Blaszczyk blames David Wilson Homes, which is responsible for maintaining that street and others on the estate.

Chris said the developer did the job for eight years as stated in the deed of sale but has been lacklustre at keeping up with its duties during the last three. Emails and calls he has made about this have had no response.

He said: “Until the road is adopted by Wiltshire Council, the developer is responsible for its upkeep.

“But there are so many weeds along the roadside and tree branches and sticking out onto the paths at eye height, it’s extremely untidy.

“If you’re driving out of the estate, you can’t see traffic on one side of the T-junction because the shrubs have grown so much. 

“They know how unhappy we are about it and do a cursory trim now and again but it has not been properly tidied up for a long time.

“This will make it more difficult for people to sell their homes because it impacts the look of the place. The developer is not fulfilling its side of the bargain and is not doing a good enough job.

“They would not want to live in a badly maintained estate, where they had paid good money for a property and been assured that the estate would be maintained until adoption. 

“This quality of work is not acceptable.”

A spokesperson from Barratt David Wilson Homes said: “The policy of the maintenance team is to carry out visits twice a month in the summer and monthly in winter. 

“Our contractor has encountered some difficulties in carrying out the work due to parked cars.

“However, we have instructed them to immediately prioritise the maintenance of the area, including the particular location highlighted by the local resident. This is scheduled to take place in the next few days, subject to access.”

Since the Adver approached the developer, work to resolve Chris’ concerns has begun.
He added: “There has been some progress. A team of two started with a hedge-trimmer in Cloately Crescent and have trimmed part of it. 

“In the region of the safety issue, they have thinned it out so you can, at least, see oncoming traffic. 

“No attempt has been made to de-weed, but this may come later after the cutting or may be a pipe-dream.”