New school construction causing homes to 'shake' say frustrated neighbours

Frustrated neighbours in Elmgrove Close in Bridgwater have become thoroughly fed up by the disruption being caused by the building of the new SEN school off of Bower Lane.

The new school, which will have capacity for 160 students, is being built by Wilmott Dixon on behalf of Somerset County Council, although Wessex Water are also involved in work on site.

Susan Godfrey, who lives at No. 20, said: "The vibration is constant from 7.30am and goes on all day. It has been particularly bad the past few weeks.

"This is a quiet cul-de-sac with good community spirit but we are facing months of disruption and we cannot escape because we are in lockdown."

Liz Akerman, who lives at No. 11 which backs on to Bower Lane, said the work was so noisy she was unable to concentrate on studying during the day.

She was one of several residents who allege the vibration is damaging their properties.

"The noise means we are unable to hear if each other if we want to speak over the fence, and you can't hang your washing out because it just gets covered in dust from the site," Ms Akerman said.

Michaela Fletcher, who lives at No. 18, added: "None of us have any problem with the school being built - it is a worthwhile project, but something needs to be done about the impact on our homes during construction - at times it is like an earthquake."

Justin Simpson, who lives at No. 21, said the residents in Elmgrove Close were a close knit community and didn't complain lightly.

"The strength of feeling about this issue is really strong along the whole street," Mr Simpson said.

"We have had the care home and community hospital built close by before and never faced these kinds of problems.

"I think another part of the problem has been the communication - we were not consulted or forewarned about any potential impacts of construction."

Having reported their concerns to Somerset County Council and Wilmott Dixon, Mrs Godfrey said a representative from the council's  environmenal health department was due to come out this week to investigate the complaints.

Andrew Gaskell, group communications manager for Wilmott Dixon said: "All works are undertaken as per the agreed method statements.

"Works don’t start until 7.30am and our groundworks contractors are finished by 5pm.

"I would like to reassure you that the project is working within the hours stipulated under the Planning Conditions and the noise limits set out in the conditions of the Section 61 (of the control of pollution act 1974) which we take very seriously.

"This is a notice that we voluntarily imposed on the project to minimise disruption to the community.

"We understand the implications of dust and are keen to reduce the impact as much as we can.

"The dust at the site is a result of the soil type and the exceptionally wet conditions we experienced over of the winter.

"We currently have a bower sprinkling water onto the dust, and will be supplementing this with an environmentally friendly dust suppressant moving forward.

"Further to these measures, our senior environmental manager has visited site today to conduct a full assessment.

"We will be installing a vibration monitor this week and are working closely with the Sedgemoor District Council Environmental team to ensure compliance."