Anger as maintenance fees ‘double’ on new Warsop estate - with homeowners demanding 'value for money'

People living in the new King’s Park in Market Warsop and new homes in Warsop Vale have raised concerns over rising maintenance costs and say there is a ‘lack of quality services’, despite bills rising.

The Bellway Homes estates use Meadfleet for maintenance to public spaces. Meadfleet is responsible for grass cutting, edging beds, borders, weeding, moss removal, pruning, litter picking, emptying bins, and additional maintenance service when required – according to the company, maintenance work features within a covenant signed upon purchase of each new-build house, with residents charged six months in arrears.

Meadfleet says it provides “value for money and excellent customer care to residents as evidenced by our 4.5-star Trustpilot ‘excellent’ rating”.

However, residents say they were dissatisfied with the service and worried about rising maintenance costs.

Sharon and Mike Cleaver, of Waterfield Avenue, said their six-month fee had doubled.

Mrs Cleaver said: “We were told £84 a year and it is already up to £168.92 and there is no cap. We have no control over what we could end up paying in the long run.

“We want this to be a caution to others, that when you sign the covenant you pass up many of your rights as a homeowner.

“For instance, you cannot sell your home unless you get the buyer to agree to take on the covenant. Also, what you are told when you first sign up, might not be what you end up paying.”

Fiona Wilson, of Ocean Drive, a resident of the estate since 2015, said: : “All we want is a good quality of service that is value for money and to be consulted before extra costs.”

Residents said a new fence on green space at the bottom of Wood Street had recently been erected, with the old fence dismantled and left as a ‘bug house’ for ecology purposes.

However, they said they were “furious” to find out that they were charged for what they said was a ‘poor quality’ service and potentially posed a risk to children, residents, and dog walkers.

Mrs Wilson said, since multiple residents complained about the fence, they have been told it will be removed on Thursday, February 17.

Coun Andy Burgin, Mansfield Council member for Warsop Carrs, has been supporting residents. He said he has offered help with correspondence between residents and Meadfleet, assisting residents' concerns and arranging meetings.

A Meadfleet spokesman said: Meadfleet’s routine maintenance contractors visit both developments weekly all year round. We have recently donated and planted a memorial tree at Kingswood Park to mark the Queen’s reign at no cost to owners.

“Meadfleet encourages the creation of residents groups on the developments we manage and work positively with these to create good relationships. We have been working with groups on both developments to provide additional information and seek their feedback into the management of their open spaces.

“We understand customers are concerned about the cost of living and may be experiencing financial pressures. As a result, Meadfleet have limited increases in costs to our customers to 3 per cent per annum in relation to our fees and routine maintenance elements of our invoices irrespective of the costs that we bear. 3 per cent is considerably lower than the rate of inflation over the last 12 months of more than 13 per cent.