A DEVELOPER has apologised after defective rendering has taken more than a year to replace on new build bungalows.

Residents in Margaret’s Place, Bradfield, have complained to Granville Homes about problems with the new bungalows since moving in.

Work has been carried out, but the retired residents say some work has had to be redone and other work is not yet finished.

Trevor Wear, 65, said he has had the render on his home taken off for the second time after recurring problems.

He said: “I moved in on December 8, 2017, and problems started in January 2018.

“In June it was getting worse and the said it must be water and in October they decided to take it off.”

But the render came away for a second time and last week was taken off again.

Mr Wear added: “It’s very slow on getting things done.

“It’s been over a year now and the homes aren’t finished.

“It’s the builder who has to put things right in the first two years.”

Neighbour Cheryl Dust, who has heart disease and whose husband has Parkinson’s disease, has also had her rendering removed due to problems.

Neighbour Shirley Leech is concerned the problems with her home won’t be fixed before she dies as she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in January and told she had six months to live.

Her front window is twisted and is awaiting a replacement to be installed, and her new render still has large black marks on it months after being done.

She said: “I’m very disappointed in the reaction from the builders and the time it has taken to get anything done.

“I’m still waiting for my bay window to be replaced.”

A spokesman for the NHBC said: “We are sorry that Mr Weal and some other homeowners have experienced issues with their new homes.

“We investigated Mr Weal’s concerns under our resolution service and we are currently in contact with the builder to ensure that these problems are resolved.

“We are also in regular contact with Mr and Mrs Weal.”

A spokesman for Granville Homes said: “I cannot apologise enough for the ongoing issue with the render - the issues are now being resolved.

“This has taken longer than we would have liked due to a combination of factors, including ensuring that we understood why the render defects had appeared.

“All the works were properly approved and supervised by the NHBC and it was their recommendation that they were carried out in ideal weather conditions.

“We have a long and proud history of over 40 years of developing throughout Essex and East Anglia, employing many local people, and whilst issues do occur from time to time, we maintain a generally very high standard, and always have.”