Six homes on a newbuild estate which were demolished after a teenager hijacked a JCB and went on an ‘utterly mindless’ rampage causing around £2.5million in damage have now been painstakingly rebuilt ahead of tenants finally moving in.
Images obtained by the Daily Mail show bare foundations of what was once newly-constructed council housing in Darlington, Durham.
Several of the completed homes are inhabited by families but the estate looks more like a demolition site than an suburban community.
The project, consisting of 150 homes, was meant to be finished early this summer but after the yob rammed into seven homes, construction was severely delayed.
In April, the 16-year-old stole the digger and drove into the homes leaving gaping holes in the walls, windows and doors.
Piles of bricks, which have since been cleared, were left strewn across brand-new patios on the Neashom Road estate.
Structural engineers told the council six of the seven semi-detached homes were left damaged beyond repair and pictures show they were later knocked down.
The Hurworth Moor estate was intended to give low and middle income families quality homes in a purpose-built development built by a local authority, its first such scheme in decades.
Pictured: One of the homes that the teenager rammed into while driving a JCB
A row of newbuild houses were left in ruins after a ‘teenager’ was seen driving into them with a JCB
Piles of bricks, which have since been cleared, were left strewn across brand-new patios on the Neashom Road estate
Images obtained by the Daily Mail show bare foundations of what was once newly-constructed council housing in Darlington, Durham
Pictured: Two of the the six bare foundations of what was once brand new semi-detached homes
The properties are still being rebuilt but Darlington Borough Council say tenants should be able to move in by the end of the year.
One phase of the development on the edge of the County Durham town is now complete, however, and families have started moving in.
Lewis Park, 35, and wife Sam, 36, moved to Hurworth Moor from the town’s Firth Moor estate, which has suffered from crime and deprivation.
Lewis said: ‘We love it here and one of the reasons was that there was a lot of crime around our previous address and we knew it would be quieter here.
‘Then the next thing we knew there was a kid driving around on a JCB smashing up the houses, it was a shocking incident.
‘But thankfully it’s also a rarity because we’ve found the place to be quiet and peaceful and when it’s completed it will have loads of green space for kids and families to spend time in.’
Another new resident said: ‘It’s unbelievable that one teenager could cause so much destruction, but he did get locked up for it so justice has been done.
‘We were promised less crime when we moved in but then I read about that and thought ‘oh my God, it’s going to be even worse.’
‘It hasn’t been though, the estate it very nice and I think more councils should be building homes for people who would not ever be able to afford to buy houses in a nice area like this.’
A woman who lives in the estate told of how she rang the police as soon as she saw what looked to be a teenager driving the JCB.
She told the Daily Mail: ‘We saw the digger out the back here. He was right out the back of our fences, we thought he was going to come through there. But luckily he didn’t.
‘I was watching telly and I saw through the window and thought ‘that’s a bit strange that the workmen are around the back at this time of night.’
‘Then I thought ‘hold on it’s a weekend, they don’t work weekends. So I went out and spoke to the neighbour next door and she said ‘are you seeing what I’m seeing?’ I said ‘Yeah, it isn’t the workmen is it?’ and she went ‘no’.
‘And then as I phoned the police the digger disappeared but then we saw him at the back where those houses are.
‘Well at this point we couldn’t see but we heard it. You could hear the smashing, it was horrible.
‘But there was nothing we could do apart from call the police.‘
The JCB was initially being driven around on empty land behind the occupied homes, but was then driven round the back to the houses on the construction site before being rammed into the newbuilds.
A few day after hijacking the JCB, the boy stole another dumper truck from a housing estate in Middleton St George and was arrested by police.
After a teenager hijacked a JCB and rammed into seven homes, construction was severely delayed
Structural engineers told the council six of the seven semi-detached homes were left damaged beyond repair and pictures show they were later knocked down
Several of the completed homes are inhabited by families but the estate looks more like a demolition site than an idyllic community
A woman who lives in the estate told of how she rang the police as soon as she saw what looked to be a teenager driving the JCB
The unnamed teen was later charged with criminal damage, driving without a licence, no insurance and two counts of aggravated vehicle taking.
He pleaded guilty to all the offences at Newton Aycliffe Magistrates Court and returned for sentencing.
Speaking after the boy’s court appearance, Chief Inspector Jim O’Connor, from Darlington Police, said: ‘This was utterly mindless vandalism which has caused extensive damage to much needed new homes in Darlington.
‘The boy is incredibly lucky not to have injured himself or other innocent members of the public during these incidents.
‘His behaviour was completely unacceptable and will not be tolerated.
‘A thorough investigation by officers in Darlington CID has resulted in the boy pleading guilty at the earliest opportunity.
‘I hope he uses the time between now and his sentencing to reflect on his actions and the devastation he has caused.’
Another couple who live in the estate also said they witnessed the scene from their windows.
The unnamed teen was later charged with criminal damage, driving without a licence, no insurance and two counts of aggravated vehicle taking
In April, a 16-year-old commandeered a JCB and drove into the homes leaving gaping holes in the walls, windows and doors
The project, consisting of 150 homes was meant to be finished early this summer
They said: ‘We looked out the window and saw someone stole the digger truck.
‘Obviously it’s a Sunday so you don’t really expect the construction workers to be out, they never work the Sundays.
‘So we thought someone had just nicked one and were going to take it off to pinch, but obviously then we’ve seen what damage they’ve done with it.
‘We just saw the digger go past the house but then obviously he’s gone round back there and destroyed all those houses.’
Although most people were delighted to have moved into their new homes, James Briggs, wife Melissa and their four kids are struggling due to the £1,100-a-month rent.
Asda security worker James, 46, said: ‘We had no choice but to move here because otherwise we’d have been homeless.
‘Melissa has been recovering from Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and we were living in a private rental which was so damp there was mould on the walls.
‘In her vulnerable state we could not stay there and ended up being put in temporary housing by the council.
‘When these houses became available we were told we had to move in otherwise we would be making ourselves homeless.
‘It’s a four bedroom house and it’s in a decent area but the £1,100 a month is killing us, I don’t earn a fortune working for Asda, so most of my wage is gone in rent.
‘There are also rules about not drilling walls and putting up your own blinds and curtains, which is the way that you make a place your own. We’d move if we could.’
There was fury after the vandalism in April.
There was fury after the vandalism in April however the houses have now been rebuilt
Families are set to move into the new properties at the end of the year
Matthew Roche, cabinet member for Health and Housing, said: ‘I am devastated by the mindless damage, especially because it will delay the completion of much needed new good quality council homes and is a blow to the dedicated team who are building such excellent houses.
‘Work is ongoing on assessing the damage and security has been increased on site. The council is working closely with the police, who are investigating. I continue to urge anyone with any information to speak to the police.’
And Conservative leader councillor Jonathan Dulston added: ‘What saddens me the most about this is that these homes were about to house some of the most vulnerable people in our town. Sadly the waiting list just got longer.’
The whole development, described as the council’s biggest new-build project in decades,will see construction of 150 homes with a rent-to-buy option offering a first step to affordable home ownership for residents.
The site will have a total of 64 two-bedroom apartments, 24 two-bedroom houses, 43 three-bedroom houses and 19 four-bedroom houses.
A Darlington Borough Council spokesman said: ‘The damaged houses have now been demolished, and work is underway to rebuild them. We hope that they will be complete and ready for residents to move in early in the new year.’
