When Ray Stevens opens the front door of the property he has lived in for 43 years, he is met with mounds of rubble, half-finished buildings and fences adorned with 'warning' and 'danger' signs. The view from his back door? Exactly the same. For two years Ray and his wife - along with a handful of pensioners - have lived in the middle of a construction site.
But for the last 15 months, no work has been happening on what is supposed to be the Glanffrwd development in Ebbw Vale. The project should have seen 27 social housing properties created. Instead, in July 2021 contractors WRW Construction went into administration. Workers downed tools and left the estate, with residents watching on wondering 'what now?'
Now, despite being assured work would restart in October, residents living around the abandoned wreckage - the majority of them in their 70s and 80s - are still none the wiser on what is happening. They say nobody from Tai Calon who is managing the site has visited in months and they've had little to no communication about the future of the development.
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The houses around the site are a mixture of privately-owned and social housing, with the majority of residents having lived in the properties for decades. Or in Ray's case, since they were built. He is a carer for his wife who is wheelchair-bound and has Alzheimers and says for a while, when work was ongoing, he was unable to get a wheelchair out due to the work.
Above all, he is frustrated that locals have been left in the dark about when they can expect work to restart. Tai Calon say they regained access to the site in January but "the current economic climate" appointing a new developer "has proved exceedingly difficult."
But for Ray and other residents in the area, this isn't good enough. He said: "They’ve been saying for 12 months that work would start in October. We were told that contracts would be issued in September and work to start in October, it hasn’t happened. They haven’t even issued any contracts.
"Over a year ago they went bankrupt and nothing has happened since. They haven’t got the people capable of overseeing this development in Tai Calon. Tai Calon are totally responsible for this mess. They are absolutely useless."
Speaking outside his home, Ray's anger is clear. He remembers when the land to the back of his house was sheltered accommodation - demolished to make way for this new development - and the back was a green where children would play. Now, both are fenced off, protecting half-built structures and piles of bricks.
"Wherever I look, front and back, is fencing. I can’t get a wheelchair out in some parts. It’s been left like this now for 15 months, absolutely nothing has been done," he says.
And Ray isn't alone in his frustration. One resident, who wanted to stay anonymous but is in his 80s, said that the work, and subsequent state of the development has "taken away three years" of the pensioners and vulnerable people who live in the area's lives.
He says that the eyesore of the apocalyptic-looking building site is putting "an enormous strain" on locals who have no idea when the land surrounding their homes will resemble anything more than a building site.
"It’s an utter disaster. It has really taken away three years of us pensioners' lives and at a time when we need peace and quiet. It’s put an enormous strain on people like myself but it has ruined the area completely," he said.
"What was amazing was, nobody came and said ‘you’ll have a site manager and you’ll be looked after’, they came and just started. They’ve got no idea what needs to be done when you’ve got elderly people living around here. They come in with their big machines, shaking all the buildings. One day it was on stop."
He says that local gossip aside, nobody has been given any indication about when they can expect the disruption to start up again. "That’s the other thing, we’re never told anything. You can only go by rumours. People have started to move away because of it, if they can."
Anne Cadwallader, 81, lives directly in front of the development. For 19 years she has kept her property and garden pristine. Now, her large living room window serves as a frame of a portrait of abandoned structures. Sitting down to watch her television, her peripheral vision is marred by a wall of metal fences.
"19 years I’ve been here, I look after my home. And then when you open your door and look at that out there. I pay full rent here to open my door to that and it’s wrong, I think it’s wrong. It’s not a nice sight," she despairs.
"It’s been going on a good few years now. They’re [Tai Calon] not getting anywhere with it. We haven’t heard anything, they were meant to start work again in October but we haven’t heard anything and work hasn’t started.
"It’s not fair for us here, we’re all pensioners. And nobody is helping us. They don’t seem to care whether we know what’s going on or not."
The work which lasted from November 2020 to July 2021 leaves a lot to be desired. While the drainage and ground foundations appear to be completed, the actual building work currently comprises only of a hand full of empty, incomplete, structures.
"It’s not even half done," says Anne, and she's right. "The grass is up to your waist up there." And perhaps understandably, looking how it does, the abandoned development has attracted fly-tippers and is starting to form a "dumping ground". "Well they’re going to do that aren't they?" said Anne.
Former steel worker, Derek Woodman's family have lived in their property on Glanffwrd Close since 1975. The 77-year-old says the state of the area and how it has been left now is "disgusting."
He said: "It’s gone on now well over a year since work stopped. It’s not moving anywhere. I think it’s disgusting, looking out and seeing how it’s been left. It’s not very nice at all. We don’t seem to hear anything other than an odd newsletter now and again."
A spokesperson for Tai Calon said: "After a great deal of work and involvement by the local community, Tai Calon was delighted when work started at Glanffrwd. The development will provide much-needed new affordable homes in Ebbw Vale. However, when WRW went out of business, it was intensely frustrating that the building work stopped."
Howard Toplis, Chief Executive of Tai Calon said: "We fully understand the residents' frustrations with the current situation. A frustration we share, and that is why we have sought to keep the residents updated, and if that has in any way been inadequate, then I would like to apologise."
A spokesperson continued: "Tai Calon eventually regained control of the site in January 2022. Since then, we have been working hard to appoint a replacement contractor. Given the current economic climate, that appointment has proved exceedingly difficult. The original hope was to award the contract in October, but there have been a few weeks delay. However, we anticipate being able to appoint a contractor very soon and then works can re-commence.
"Tai Calon would like to thank the residents for their continued patience and will continue to provide updates on progress. We look forward to welcoming local families to these new affordable homes for rent once the work is completed."
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