Revell Rise Plumstead trees and bushes too overgrown

Revell Rise sits in Plumstead in Greenwich borough.

The area has become known among residents for its large number of tall trees surrounding houses, but some locals claim the council’s lack of maintenance has caused issues for their gardens.

Debbie Phillips, 57, has lived on Revell Rise for 27 years.

She said residents of the road have always had issues with overgrown trees in their back gardens, with the problem becoming more severe for her home earlier this year.

The mum told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): “I noticed it in January. I came out to clear the leaves from the tree and I couldn’t open the shed door, and then I realised the fence was leaning forward.”

Debbie Phillips

Ms Phillips said the roots from the trees behind her garden had caused her fence to collapse and completely warped her shed.

She said she has been unable to store items in her shed all year and feels like she’s “suffocating” in her own home.

She said: “It’ll be a year in January and still nothing’s been done. I can’t get into my shed. The council are just making excuses…They’ve cut the trees back a bit, but the roots have pushed the retaining wall down. It’s ruined my garden.”

Ms Phillips said her family were told by the council it was unsafe to go into her garden until the issue was fixed, but she has received no indication of when the issue will be resolved.

The trees as seen from houses on Revell Rise

She has since started a petition to ask the council to take immediate action on maintaining the trees, field and hedges on Revell Rise and the surrounding area. She claimed the council had failed to address complaints from residents in the area for the past 20 years.

Patricia Davis, 85, has lived on Revell Rise since 1958 and also signed Ms Phillips’ petition.

She said she thinks the trees in the estate look lovely in the summer and would not like to see them go, but recognises the damage they cause to homes.

She told the LDRS: “The branches were coming right over, almost touching the roof, and we used to have to put our lights on early in the afternoon because you couldn’t see anything, it was too dark… I’m a pensioner. I can’t afford too much electricity, but I was having to put my lights on even in the summer at around two o’clock in the afternoon.”

The resident said several trees had been pruned by the council since the petition was started and felt the work had made an “enormous” difference.

However, she added that residents have had several other issues in the estate and not received help from the council, such as anti-social behaviour on the steep hill behind her home.

She said: “I’ve had two car tyres roll down the hill. There were teenagers messing about and they came smashing through my fence.”

The hill on Revell Rise

She added: “The police told me to contact the council for health and safety reasons because the fence needed reinforcing. Twice I rang the health and safety department, and I never had any response.”

Greenwich Council documents from December 6 said that the authority was sorry to hear of the concerns of residents on Revell Rise.

The council said the housing tree officer could not find any trees in the area with significant defects in a recent assessment, but that seven trees were recently pruned on the road to prevent branches falling down.

Assia Guernouti, 53, has lived on the road for 15 years and said that while the council regularly maintains the green areas of the road in the summer, work is rarely done on the back of people’s homes.

She said she is often worried branches from the trees in her garden will fall and that she might slip from all the leaves.

She told the LDRS: “The back garden is always dirty. It’s not my dirt because it’s not my site… It’s unhygienic. We have a lot of mice as well because of the bushes. If they cleaned, there would be less.”

David, who did not wish to give his surname, said he had lived on Revell Rise for three years.

He said people on the road felt more vulnerable when their fences collapsed due to animals and fears about potential burglars.

He told the LDRS: “They did trim the trees this year but there is an accumulation of rubbish. They don’t clean up, down this particular street for some reason.

"It’s built up and also a wall has collapsed in multiple gardens out the back and I know many neighbours are suffering with it.”

He added: “The council have done absolutely nothing. They constantly pass you around from department to department. I’m talking about hours of phone calls and probably 30 or 40 emails.”

The authority said in its response to Ms Phillips’ petition that a new mower had been bought to cut the ground in Revell Rise.

The council said that work on the area would be regularly done as part of the maintenance team’s schedule, with additional pruning when needed.

The response said: “The housing team have currently commissioned engineers to complete topological surveys of the area and will be drilling boreholes to understand any work needed to the banking. This will be a major project to complete therefore surveying correctly to understand the work required is key.”

It added: “Please be assured, the council is committed to maintain its green spaces to a good standard, within the budget limitations of the service.”

A Greenwich Council spokesperson told the LDRS: “We’re aware that residents around Revell Rise live in an extremely green part of the borough surrounded by many mature trees. These trees provide benefits such as helping to remove pollution from the air, storing carbon, mitigating extreme heat and protecting against flooding.

"Wherever any concerns are reported about trees or their roots, we will investigate and address the problem. We’ve commissioned engineers to complete topological surveys of the bank who are drilling boreholes to understand if any work is needed. We’ll keep residents updated on any planned works.”

The spokesperson added that the council’s Parks, Estates and Open Spaces team are responsible for the maintenance of the lawns and hedges.

They said the team had recently pruned several overgrown shrubs and bought a new mower to cut the grass on the road, which will be regularly maintained.

They said: “If you feel threatened by anti-social behaviour or witness an incident that creates a danger to the public, report it to the police by calling 999. If you’d like to report a non-urgent incident, call 101. Our Safer Estates team will be visiting the Revell Rise area to investigate the anti-social behaviour and ensure residents know how to report it.”

The spokesperson said the council has removed five fly tips from the area in the past year and will continue to monitor the road.

They said residents are asked to take ownership for their behaviour, with tenants being responsible for their own gardens including the maintenance of trees and clearing litter and leaves. Any future issues can be reported on the council website.