The pretty little villages set to be decimated by Heathrow's plans for a third runway

Daily Mail​

3 days ago

Three historic villages with listed buildings and residents who have lived there for four generations are set to be decimated by a third Heathrow runway.
Sipson, Harmondsworth and Harlington are the pretty little villages that will be destroyed once the government's plans to build a third runway at Heathrow airport begin.
Lying stranded in the one mile strip of land between the M4 motorway and Heathrow airport, the chocolate box towns will be mowed down and face constant pollution by yet another flight path encroaching onto their rural communities.
Around 750 cherished buildings - including some that were built in the 17th century - will be demolished.
Harmondsworth, a tight-knit village with a population in the mere thousands, will be cut in half by the proposed perimeter fence. Any remaining medieval cottages would be in the middle of an airport.
Harmondsworth's Grade I listed medieval Great Barn, its 16th century Sun House, and the Grade II listed Harmondsworth Hall will be among the buildings set to be lost to a third runway.
Sipson, which has a population of less than 100, could also lose its much-loved 16th century King William IV public house, a Grade II listed building.
The history at the heart of Roman village Harlington will also be obliterated by the Heathrow expansion plans, including St Peter and St Paul's Church, which have parts dating back to the 12th century.
The long-established residents will also be forced to move out and sell their beloved homes to the government under Compulsory Purchase Orders.
Jane Tyler, 69, grew up in Sipson and only left briefly to train as a nurse before she returned home and bought a house just around the corner from her mother, where she still lives today.
She told the Standard: 'It is criminal to take away people's homes when we are already in a housing crisis.
'We estimate that up to 17,000 people will be made homeless.
'We used to have beautiful gardens in Sipson...The roads and the houses have been decimated.'
Carol Dairiam, 57, and her husband Wolfgang Dahm, 69, have lived in Sipson for 15 years.
They are waiting to hear whether their 3 bed semi-detached home will be bulldozed. Carol said: 'This is the worst case scenario.
'If it is, we will have to find somewhere else but there is nowhere within a 20 mile radius where we will be able to afford a house like the one we have now.'
Another couple, who moved over to Sipson over a decade ago and have brought up a family in the village, felt politicians pushing expansion had no understanding.
'These politicians don't live in the area, they don't understand what it is like.
'They themselves are sorted, they don't give a toss about us.'
The once-quaint villages have constantly been plagued by looming plans of a third runway - but homeowners are now at breaking point as plans that were shelved during the covid-19 pandemic have now been reaffirmed by the government.
In January, Chancellor Rachel Reeves confirmed the government's commitment to building a third runway at Heathrow, arguing the project would boost the economy and make Britain 'the world's best-connected place to do business'.
Heathrow's Chief Executive Thomas Woldbye then announced funding plans for the expansion, showing the airport's confidence in getting approval for a third runway.
Local campaign groups as well as the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, have continued to oppose Heathrow's third runway plans.
The once-quaint villages have constantly been plagued by looming plans of a third runway - but homeowners are now at breaking point as plans that were shelved during the covid-19 pandemic have now been reaffirmed by the government
Khan said after Reeves' speech in January: 'Let me be quite clear and unambiguous - I remain opposed to a third runway at Heathrow airport.
'We've managed to improve the air in London because of our policies. One of the most polluted parts of our city when it comes to air pollution is around Heathrow, and this will make that worse, not better.'