Complaints over 'intrusive' piling work noise

People living close to the site of a new housing estate have complained of "constant and intrusive" noises caused by building work.

The noises are understood to be caused by piling work at land off Cork Lane in Glen Parva, Leicestershire, which is earmarked for a 165-home development.

Developer Vistry Group East Midlands said the work, which involves foundations being driven into the ground by a machine, needed to take place before construction work started because the land was unstable.

A spokesperson for the firm said it was "taking seriously the concerns of the local community".

Plans for the housing development, located on land previously used as a landfill, were approved in January.

Helen Ross, who lives next to the site, said the piling work had caused noise, vibrations and dust most days since it began in August.

She described one moment as being "like an earthquake".

The 74-year-old added: "The noise in the summer, when it was really hot, we had to keep our doors and windows shut.

"We couldn't use our garden.

"In addition to the noise, there was huge quantities of dust caking everything."

Lisa Ellis, 55, lives across the road from the site and said she often worked from home.

"It's an intrusive, constant, pounding noise which you can't ignore," she said.

"Where I'm situated which is further down the road, I almost get two beats, so I get the beat [of the piling] and an echo, so from my point of view it's a very intrusive, echoing, pounding noise."

Andrew Rushton's home backs on to the site.

The 67-year-old said: "Eight hours a day, it moves along and you can't have a conversation in your house with the windows open, so the windows have to be shut all the time and there's the vibration as well for those houses nearest to where it is."

Vistry said the work was being carried out in accordance with planning permission agreed with Blaby District Council.

A spokesperson for the company added: "We take seriously the concerns of the local community and are keen to foster positive relationships throughout the project and would encourage anyone impacted by the work to contact our customer service team.

"Our site manager will continue to keep in touch with our site neighbours to update them on progress.

"We are taking all necessary precautions during the early groundworks and are carrying out continuous noise and vibration monitoring on site to ensure there is no risk to neighbouring properties."

A spokesperson for Blaby District Council said the authority had received a large number of complaints.

In a letter to residents, it confirmed it would continue to monitor the development during construction.

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