One resident said she is paying more than £800 per year towards the upkeep of green spaces at the estate which she said are not being maintained
Residents who pay hundreds of pounds per year for the upkeep of communal areas on a newbuild estate have branded it a “living hell”. The first residents at the All Angels Park development in Highfields Caldecote moved into their homes in 2021.
They believed there were going to be beautiful green spaces, with a safe play park for children. However, the green space and play park have been left in a mess, with overgrown weeds and limited access to the park.
Despite paying hundreds of pounds a year for the upkeep, residents claim no maintenance is carried out on the spaces, leaving it in a state of disarray. Carol Bursey, one of the first residents on the estate, described it as a “living hell”.
“It’s not Angels Park, it’s hell,” said Carol. She added: “It’s a significant problem. No caring person would allow their children over there. It can’t be used.”
All Angels Park was developed by Linden Homes and the maintenance is overseen by First Port. At the moment, only 18 out of the 66 properties are paying for maintenance.
These 18 properties are the first phase of homes in the development and are overseen by First Port, while the remaining homes are overseen by Linden Homes. First Port and Linden Homes have both said that they plan to carry out repairs on the park “as soon as possible”.
When Carol was signing contracts to move to the area, she claims she was asked to pay £500 upfront and £250 a year for the upkeep of the communal areas.
She said: “It was a significant amount because I’m a widow. But I thought okay, it’s for the children.” Since then, the payment has gone up to more than £800 per year. Carol now refuses to pay the fee.
She added: “This has devalued my house. It was originally valued between £550,000 and £600,000. I had it valued and they said it would be lucky to get £550,000.”
Residents also criticised the maintenance of the estate when CambridgeshireLive first visited in October 2024. Since then, the playground has been completed, but residents still have concerns about the upkeep of communal areas.
Carol’s neighbour Fabio Madeira is also frustrated with the lack of maintenance at the estate. He said: “It’s pretty bad. My main complaint is the lack of maintenance. Some of us are being charged and they are not doing anything. They barely contact us and I’ve opened up so many complaints.”
Fabio has young children and can’t take them to the park. He added: “It’s terrible. There have been many times when we have gone to different parks because we can’t use it. It’s just not safe.”
Pieri Konstantinos, who also has young children, said the area is in a “bad state”. He added: “It’s a bit dangerous. They just ignore it and it’s a no-go area. If you got a house here, people may think where their kids are going to play, but there’s nowhere.”
Pieri doesn’t let his children play there. He added: “The kids just run around and play in the road. It’s quiet, but it doesn’t take much to cause an accident.”
Ana P, who was one of the first people to move to the estate in 2021, said the maintenance company has “done nothing”. She said: “My garden is at the back of it and it’s full of weeds. We try to make our gardens nice, but we can’t with the weeds.
“It’s been years and people are complaining about it, but nothing is being done. They have not done any work at all in terms of management. I think it’s just the state of what’s going on everywhere.”
Another woman, who wished to remain anonymous, described the park as a “safety hazard”. She added: “How can they expect parents to take their kids to a place like that. What are we really paying for if nothing is being done?
“Some of the play equipment is broken as well, so that isn’t even safe. We just want to know if they will do something, because it looks horrible to everyone who lives here.”
A spokesperson for First Port and the Vistry Group said: “Our priority is to keep the communal areas at All Angels Park safe, well maintained, and enjoyable for residents. The development is being built in phases. We currently manage phase one, consisting of 18 properties, whose service charge covers the maintenance of the communal areas within this phase, including the play area.
“We’re aware of concerns raised about the play area’s condition and the area is currently closed to the public whilst we arrange the relevant repairs as quickly as possible. We will keep residents updated as this progresses.”





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