Grantham man who returfed communal area for local children says he was told to remove it
A man who returfed the communal area outside his rented home has been instructed to remove it by the housing group which owns his property.
Scott Fendley, who lives in Beck Gardens in Grantham, decided to returf the communal area out of his own pocket to give his neighbours’ children somewhere safe to play.
Scott has lived in the Longhurst Group-owned property for seven years, but claims that “there’s been no ground upkeep for the last four years”.
He decided to act by purchasing new turf to improve the communal ground.
However, Longhurst, which owns the land, has instructed Scott to remove the turf on the grounds of health and safety concerns, he said
Scott said: “I’ve been told to take up the turf. It looked like Beirut before!
“It’s for everybody. There’s a concrete manhole in the middle of the grass which has been fenced off to keep children safe while they play.
“A neighbour of ours has a three-year-old daughter with severe epilepsy, so I decided to start doing something so she could go out and play safely. We think it’s an improvement to the area.
“I’ve also had potholes filled in because Asda and Tesco would refuse to deliver to the street.
“We’ve lived here for seven years now. We don’t want to cause trouble but it’s getting beyond a joke.”
Emma Bright, who lives nearby, said that “a surveyor who came out here said the grass looks fantastic”.
Another neighbour, Lucy Tales, said: “The communal area is a much better place for the kids. Having a child with autism and ADHD, it is a safe area for her to play, with a seating bit to watch her. It also covers the drain so it’s not stuck out, that my four-year-old has tripped and hurt herself on numerous times.”
A Longhurst Group spokesperson said concerns had been raised that “items had been placed in the communal area without permission and that posed a fire risk”.
They added: “To be clear, our main concerns are around these items and the associated health and safety implications.
“We have asked for these items to be removed but we absolutely have not threatened anyone with eviction in relation to this issue or asked for the turf to be removed.
“Our priority is to ensure we are doing everything we can to keep our customers safe.
“It is vitally important that any customer who is thinking of either undertaking work on, or using personal items in a communal area at their scheme contacts us in advance.”
