20-05-2025
Furious locals blame 'earthquakes' from diggers on newbuild estate of leaving cracks in their homes
Furious locals say they have been living in an ' earthquake ' after drilling works on a newbuild estate have left their homes with cracks on their walls.
Residents of Northfield Terrace said developers and Cheltenham Borough Council 'didn't care' when they approached them about the cracks, noise and the dust from the works.
They claim that since the building works started for the 147-home Wavensmere Homes scheme, vibrations have caused 'a lot of cracks' to appear in their homes.
Others have explained how the works left them 'distressed' and 'desperate' to be out of their homes during construction hours.
Emma Chetwynd Stapylton, 55, was one of the residents who first raised concerns about the works as she started noticing cracks in her walls at the end of February.
She and her partner Rory, 61, work from home during building hours and therefore have no time to escape the reported banging and shaking.
Emma, who works as a marketing consultant, said: 'The ground works have been incredibly noisy and very dusty and more recently they have started doing the pilling preparations for the 147 houses they are going to build.
'My house is actually on the end so I think there is an element of a shockwave that is coming down the house. I have got significant cracks in every room but one.
'My neighbours have had cracks and things falling down the walls - the vibration work has been literally unbearable.
'Every day we find new cracks. I wonder around the house thinking 'what is going to be next?'
Emma said both the developers and Cheltenham Borough Council are telling residents to claim on their insurance for the damage to their properties.
She added that the council told her that what they are doing is 'all legal' and 'all under the monitoring levels'.
Emma added: 'The developers said ''sue us claim on your insurance' but my excess would go up and my premiums would go through the roof.'
'They have categorically told me they will monitor noise and vibration but any damage to the house is my responsibility.
'I can't bare injustice and I think it is unfair that we will end up having to pay for the damage to our houses.'
Emma and her partner fear the next lot of pilling work may potentially cause damage to the Grade II listed buildings on St Margaret's Terrace.
She continued: 'My underlying feeling is that the council didn't access this area properly to see if all buildings or houses could cope with modern day techniques.'
Mike Harris, 41, brand manager explained how the cracks appeared in his home from 'day one' when works started.
He said the cracks have 'gone worse'.
'The cracks are frustrating,' he said. 'They are in the main bedroom, the second bedroom where the girls sleep, on the landing and downstairs in the hallway.
'They progressive got longer and bigger. The cracks weren't there to start with.'
Mike lives with his wife and three children aged 11, seven and two. He said they have been worried with the noises and vibration 'caused by the development'.
He said: 'It should be a safe place to live in and they have been worried with noises and vibration.
'It is not like a home comfort when you go home. My wife and my youngest are at home a lot more. Sadly we have got to get use to it now.
'Everything is vibrating and the objects are moving in the surface of the kitchen. It is like a mini earthquake just vibrating.'
Mike claims he has got in touch with the council and the builders but haven't had a response back. He said the whole situation is 'pretty sad'.
He said: 'I sent an email with no response and it has just been ignored by the council and the builders. MP Max Wilkinson he replied saying that they would be interested to see what happens next.'
Rory Parsons explained how the dust 'caused by the construction works' is leaving all the cars on the street 'filthy'.
He said: 'We can clean our car at 9 o'clock in the morning and by lunchtime it is filthy.
'As you go down the street everybody's cars are completely filthy.'
Terry Stevens, 80, retired, agreed with Mr Parsons adding that the dust is the 'biggest issue' in his house.
He said: 'The dust is horrendous - it is like being in the Sahara desert in a sandstorm.
'We have had an ornamental clock come off the wall. We took a big mirror out because we were worried it was going to fall off.'
Ms Abraham, activities coordinator, said it is impossible to stay in the house.
She said: 'My main concerns are the stability of the house and the back wall and the chimneys.
'It is impossible to stay in bed after 8 o'clock because everything shakes - the whole house rattles.
'It is impossible to stay in the house all day with that going on.'
Bernadette Reed, public and environmental health manager for Cheltenham Borough Council, said: 'The work required at the development will be noisy to some degree and for a time, disruption is to be expected.
'However we have reviewed the results from monitoring equipment installed on site and confirmed that appropriate steps are being taken that will ensure these effects are minimised as far as possible.
'We will continue to monitor this site throughout the project and will take appropriate action as necessary to try and ensure that the developers keep any disruption as minimal as possible.'
Craig Gee, construction director of Wavensmere Homes, said: 'We sympathise with the concerns raised by residents local to our Arkle Court development site in Cheltenham, regarding the ongoing enabling works carried out by our appointed specialist groundwork contractor.
'All construction activities are being conducted in accordance with the approved Construction Management Plan (Condition 9) and Noise Mitigation Scheme (Condition 5), both approved by Cheltenham Borough Council before site clearance began.
'These measures are designed to minimise disruption, whilst ensuring the project to deliver 147 much-needed new homes progresses safely and efficiently.
'In response to residents' feedback, additional measures beyond those required by the approved conditions have been implemented on-site to further reduce noise disturbances during the final stages of site clearance. This includes the use of different machinery to negate the use of louder 'breaker' type machinery.
'The development is being delivered sequentially from the eastern boundary with North Place, running anti-clockwise to improve the site frontage. The initial phase of any development typically involves the most intrusive work. Given that the removal of hardstanding elements is nearing completion, noise and vibration levels from the site will decrease significantly.'
