Residents 'gutted' about homes demolition appeal

Residents said they would continue to fight plans to bulldoze their homes, after learning there would be an appeal against a decision to block a £250m regeneration scheme.

Fiona Kiane, who has lived on Thetford's Abbey Estate for 25 years, said: "I am gutted for everybody that they are putting us through this again… we won the first battle but not the war."

She is among the 550 households whose homes have been earmarked to be demolished through Bromford Flagship LiveWest's plans to regenerate the 1960s estate.

The scheme was rejected by Breckland Council in Norfolk in October, but the firm has appealed to the government to overturn the decision. It said it wanted the community to "thrive" in the long term.

Kiane told the BBC: "I feel sorry for the residents, especially the older generation who have been here longer. We are going through all the uncertainty, anxiety and stress again.

"People have avoided doing work on their homes and have put things on hold.

"It is horrible and not nice to have it happen all over again."

The social housing provider wants to raze and rebuild almost half of the 1,100 properties, and also build 500 more houses on the estate.

It owns 66% of the homes, which were originally built as council-owned housing. Many are now owned by long-term residents.

Kiane and other opposition campaigners celebrated as Breckland Council's planning committee refused permission for the project in October.

Councillors said the scheme, which could take 20 years to complete, would cause unacceptable harm to the mental health and wellbeing of people living there.

However, the housing association believes there are grounds to appeal.

It intends to call on the Planning Inspectorate – government officials that preside over planning disputes – to overturn the refusal.

"People at the Abbey have been telling us for years that the estate needs long-term investment," said James Payne, director of regeneration at the housing provider.

"We have a responsibility to them, and to the families who'll live here in decades to come, to make sure we try to deliver that.

"We want to ensure the Abbey remains a place where people can thrive for the long term."

The developer has continued to face strong opposition.

Kiane said: "They are determined to get their vision on the ground. It feels like we are back to square one again. There is so much uncertainty around the estate.

"If they are going to continue with the appeal they need to work with the residents."

Terry Land, a Thetford town councillor, said: "I am angry that having ridden roughshod over an entire community, Flagship are putting residents through this process once again.

"It is going to cause more anxiety, more distress and more alarm."

Terry Jermy, Labour MP for South West Norfolk, added: "It is disappointing that Flagship has not taken this opportunity to change course and instead work with local people.

"This is not over and we will continue to fight these plans, which are not right for the Abbey or Thetford."

Bromford Flagship LiveWest will submit its appeal in the coming days, but it could be several months or more before a decision is made.

Payne added: "We know that regeneration on this scale is unsettling, and nobody should have to just take our word for it that things will work out.

"That's exactly why an independent planning inspector matters here – they can look carefully at how change gets managed, and whether the right protections are in place.

"We're not going anywhere. Our focus is on working with the community and stakeholders to get improvements that make a genuine, lasting difference to daily life on the Abbey."

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