Comment by Cllr Antoinette Nestor (Castle) following recent news of the demolition of 36 new homes being built on the Darwin Green:

As a mum with a young family sending my children to school in Castle, I know the challenges young families face finding their feet in Cambridge today. Perhaps no challenge is greater than getting on the property ladder.

We’re chronically short of homes in this country, and particularly in Cambridge, the most unequal city in the UK. The rise of nimbyism and the scandalous abolition of house building targets by the Conservative Government had only fuelled this crisis. The result is skyrocketing house prices, pricing young people out of homeownership and forcing them into dodgy renting.

Which brings me to yesterday [7/6/23]’s devastating news that 36 new homes being built on the Darwin Green site will have to be demolished because they have been found to have unsafe foundations. Although these houses are empty, residents in phase 1 of the development have already moved in, leaving them wondering if their properties also face the same issue. People’s lives and dreams suddenly become shattered.

This represents a broader slap in the face to anyone trying to buy their first home in Cambridge. We’re desperately short of houses, and developers like Barratt David Wilson can’t even seem to do it properly. This is just part of a broader pattern of failure at both the corporate and governmental levels, and the plight of young people who want nothing more than to own their own home.

I echo the calls for an independent review of the development process, so it can be absolutely clear how this was allowed to happen, and so we can ensure that this is never allowed to happen again. This needs to involve residents and begin as soon as possible, so it doesn’t get kicked into the long grass. But I want more than that. I want Barratt David Wilson Homes to pay the full costs of the redevelopment work, and the necessary compensation to residents. And I want a full apology to residents accompanied by transparent communication of what the developers knew when, and what will be done to prevent future failings.

I hope this represents the moment when we realise how broken the property system is in this country, and Cambridge isn’t immune from that. But I really hope this heralds real change, and a turning point not just for Darwin Green but for all young people dreaming of owning their own home everywhere.

Labour councillors in Castle ward will be holding a Public Meeting on June 29th, 7-9pm at Storey’s Field Community Centre, CB3 1AA to discuss the issues regarding the Darwin Green foundations issue and the implications of it. See invite below.

For further information, please contact us on: antoinette.nestor@cambridge.gov.uk or simon.smith@cambridge.gov.uk

Darwin Green BDW2 Foundational Failures Press Comment:

Cllr Simon Smith, City Councillor for Castle Ward, stated:

“I was shocked to hear about the foundational failures on the Barratt David Wilson Homes’ Darwin Green Development. It is a terrible waste to demolish dozens of recently built and part-built houses as a result of this error. It is even more shocking given the widely known issues with the plasticity of soil conditions in the area.

As a local ward Councillor I’ve called on planning and environmental health officers to take every available regulatory step to protect residents from the loss of amenity and threats to their health and the environment that may arise from demolition works. In addition, I have further called on the building control service as a regulatory body to investigate any possible breaches of building regulations.

Residents of existing homes in Darwin Green are understandably concerned about their homes in light of these findings, and as ward Councillor, I will make sure to work closely with residents to navigate this distressing situation. Primarily, I will be calling on Barratt David Wilson Homes to take responsibility for this and provide residents with their records of the soil layers and as-built foundations.

Unfortunately, this event reminds us the risks of deregulation of standards and procedures that were put in place to secure high standards of development and avoid failures that present danger to the public and harm to the environment.”

Katie Thornburrow, Executive Councillor for Planning and Infrastructure stated:

“Residents of new homes should be able to relax and enjoy them without worrying about major construction issues like faulty foundations or having to cope with the disturbance caused by demolition and construction.

Finding out that newly built homes have to be re-built is deeply concerning. Not only must nearby residents be kept fully informed, but it is imperative that the soundness of their own homes is confirmed at the earliest opportunity. 

Our planning and building control officers are meeting with the developers to stress how seriously the Council are taking this matter and we will continue to be proactively involved.  I will be kept informed by officers and will meet with residents.”