Warminster flats 'too old to be repaired' will be demolished

Selwood Housing says the scope and cost of repairing the flats it manages at Alcock Crest and Westleigh in Warminster is too great and that they will need to be knocked down and the site redeveloped.

The decision will affect 43 homes occupied by tenants of the Trowbridge-based housing association, plus four leasehold flats and five flats that are unoccupied.

Selwood said it has been consulting specialist structural surveyors and keeping residents informed while investigating the works required to repair balconies and replace walkways at three blocks of flats in Warminster.

The investigations revealed the scope and cost of works required to ensure longer-term safety was much larger than anticipated, and that a programme of repairs and replacement is no longer a practical option.

The 52 homes affected are flats at 43-60 and 61-78 Alcock Crest and 39-54 Westleigh in Warminster.

Selwood Housing says that flats at 43 -60 Alcock Crest in Warminster, are to be demolished. Photo: Trevor Porter 70529-2 (Image: Trevor Porter)

Flats at 39-54 Westleigh in Warminster will also be knocked down. Photo: Trevor Porter 70529-3 (Image: Trevor Porter)

Having considered the limited options available for these blocks, which were built in the 1950-60s, while ensuring the safety of residents, Selwood made the decision that the flats will need to be demolished and the sites redeveloped.

Selwood said it will support everyone who lives in one of its homes at these blocks to move to another home this year. Until then, residents can continue to live where they are.

Mrs Hazel Brooks, 70, lives in Alcock Crest and says Selwood Housing hand-delivered letters to residents on Monday, saying it had no alternative but to demolish the blocks.

"It's all down to money," she said. "I have only lived here for 18 months but I knew from the get-go that these buildings would have to come down. There is no way of saving them.

"I live on the ground floor and I have some wonderful views at the back to trees  but that would not compensate for the fact that the balcony upstairs could land in my lap."

Some of the elderly residents in the blocks have lived there for more than 20 years and Mrs Brooks knows of one who has just had a new kitchen fitted at his own expense.

But residents are now being told they will have to leave by the end of this year and are being invited to a drop-in sessions at Warminster Civic Centre today (January 26).

They will each receive a statutory homeless payment and a disturbance payment to help them to move to a new home.

Verena Buchanan, group operations director at Selwood Housing said: “This has been a very difficult decision and our focus right now is on supporting the people who live at these flats in Alcock Crest and Westleigh.

“I appreciate that this news will have come as a huge shock, and we have a team of colleagues supporting residents over the coming weeks and months.

“My team will be meeting individually with each resident to explain the next steps and answer questions. There are also a series of drop-in sessions and a dedicated phone line.

“The safety of our customers and homes is our top priority, so we’re taking this action now, to allow enough time for the rehousing process to take place.”

Selwood Housing says it aims to redevelop the sites to provide secure, modern affordable homes, as part of the group’s commitment to Warminster and the surrounding areas.

The group owns and manages more than 7,000 homes for rent and shared ownership across Wiltshire, Bath & North East Somerset and the Mendips.

Last year it secured £55 million of cash from Lloyds Bank to build 1,700 more affordable homes by 2034 to help tackle the local housing crisis.