Drainage work risks child's life, warns Ampthill councillor

A councillor has warned a child could drown in water-filled ditches exposed by drainage works.

Trees were felled on the A507 at Ampthill to clear roadside ditches and reduce the risk of flooding.

But Steve Addy said only a fence now separated a playground from deep water and there was a "real risk of drowning".

Central Bedfordshire Council has agreed to a meeting where safety issues can be raised.

Mr Addy, an Ampthill town councillor, told the authority's scrutiny committee that cutting the trees down had left the area an "absolute shambles".

He said all the ditches contained standing water, adding: "Plastic safety fencing is still up near a children's playground where there's a real risk of drowning because of this excess water."

Mr Addy urged Central Bedfordshire Council to inspect the site.

When the council's contractors began felling the trees, Ampthill residents complained they had not been told of the extent of the work.

They said the trees, planted more than 10 years ago, screened their houses from an industrial estate.

Susan Clinch, an Ampthill green party councillor, asked the committee to review the decisions taken by Central Bedfordshire Council, adding that the mental health of some residents had been "destroyed".

Simon Ford, an independent councillor who is the authority's executive member for highways, issued another apology for a lack of communication with the town council and ward councillors before the work began.

He said: "We've agreed to meet town councillors, the residents' association and ward councillors next month to discuss all the points being raised.

"An issue such as the safety fencing is something I can definitely raise at this point."

When the work began last year, the authority said the trees needed to come down because some were unstable and had fallen onto the road.

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