Angry residents left in despair as hopes of regeneration vanish

In a recent survey, adjacent Aylesford Street came third in the lowest house prices in the country – and that did not count the nearby boarded-up terraces.

This year should have seen the start of consultation on an ambitious regeneration plan, featuring a new £20m sports academy, under whose grounds some of the dilapidated housing would have disappeared. But there’s little chance of that now Government money has disappeared and an £8m grant to developer Keepmoat has been directed at the Newington end of what until recent times was the “Newington and St Andrews” regeneration area.

Residents, like Mrs Chadwick, a teaching assistant at Chiltern Primary, who has fought a campaign since 2002 to improve the area, along with neighbour Evelyn Blackburn, 70, feel betrayed.

She said: “You have to live among gated-up alleys; it’s like being in a prison. Living amongst it you get used to it, but when my family comes down they say: ‘It’s just so depressing.’ My family think why do you have to live like this?”

In nearby Chester Grove just three of 13 houses are occupied, the rest boarded up. A smashed TV and mattress have been dumped in front of a house empty since 2003 – Mrs Blackburn said: “The landlord lives in Bermuda or somewhere like that”.

Of the diminished pot of regeneration money, Mrs Blackburn said: “It’s terrible. I don’t know how they dare. Everything is going to Newington. We hear about Orchard Park, Hawthorn Avenue – it is time someone realised how we live.”

Karen Griffin lives next to a boarded house on Crescent Avenue, where there were three fires in 24 hours.

She said: “I was so excited at the prospect of moving. You can’t even sell your house – as much as we’d love to move, we’d lose too much money.”

Labour ward councillors Nadine Fudge and Daren Hale say all the area has been left is a “few crumbs”, claiming the decision to channel money into Newington – where Lib Dem regeneration portfolio holder Coun Rick Welton is up for election – was politically-motivated.

Coun Hale said: “Whilst we are pleased for Newington our residents in Airlie, Albermarle and Aylesford Street feel completely betrayed by the Gateway funding cut. The money was there for all these areas under the Labour Government’s Gateway project for all of Newington, St Andrews and Ings – under this scheme there are a few crumbs.”

Coun Welton said Keepmoat Homes led the bid.

He said: “The Regional Growth Fund bid was led by Keepmoat Homes and the reason why Keepmoat chose specially to put the bid round the Newington end of the area was to build on the success of the development of Woodcock Street and the west side of Hawthorn Avenue, completing a project they’d already begun.

“We took Robert Napier, chairman of the Homes and Communities Agency, round Albemarle and Airlie Street to impress on him how important the need was for investment in the area.

“There were areas of Newington we’d love to have seen included in the bid as well and frankly it wasn’t possible for Keepmoat to stand the project any more than they have.

“St Andrews has had significant investment with Junella Fields funded through the Affordable Housing Programme and that scheme is ongoing as is Woodcock Street.”

FUNDING BLOW CREATED SPLIT

SincE plans for regenerating east and west Hull were first announced “Newington and St Andrews” has been spoken about in one breath.

But the decision to pull Government funding last year put paid to all that. This week’s announcement of £8m funding from the Regional Growth Funding for Keepmoat Homes has been good news for Newington – but bad for St Andrew’s and the Ings estate.