Chesterfield pensioner, 87, barricaded inside her house for three weeks due to 'essential' works

Mary Hubbard, 87, has been unable to leave her Inkersall home for three weeks after ‘essential’ works left her practically barricaded inside her own property.

The works, which were being carried out by Yorkshire Water, saw a 30-meter piece of sewer pipe replaced and a sewer alarm and telemetry monitor installed as a part of proactive flood prevention efforts.

The works were planned in advance and Mrs Hubbard, who has lived at her house for over 60 years, was promised that she would be able to access her property while contractors were on the site.

But contractors dug up the driveway and the land to the side of Mrs Hubbard’s house at the same time, leaving a ‘massive hole’ and ‘unsafe’ surface behind.

This has left the grandmother, who relies on a wheelchair to get about, feeling isolated and distressed as she was unable to leave her house or access her beloved garden.

The situation escalated even further when the former dinner supervisor at St Joseph’s Church of England Primary School in Staveley, missed a vital hospital appointment due to the works.

Mrs Hubbard’s daughter Julie Coleman, 59, said: “They left a massive hole in my mum’s driveway and it was unsafe for anybody to access the house.

“Even the district nurses were concerned about coming in and out of the house when visiting my mum.

“It was a risk for everyone but they (Yorkshire Water) didn't seem bothered about any of that.

“It's all had an impact on my mum’s health and well-being.

“She wasn’t able to get out of the house for three weeks.

“Yorkshire Water promised me that they would do the front of the house first so I could get my mum outside on the side of the property in a wheelchair.

“Then once they'd done the front, they would backfill the front, so my mum would be able to get out of the front of the property.

“But they've done it all all in one go.

“My mum had suspected fluid in her lungs and she had a vital X-ray booked on Friday (October 16) at the hospital and she missed it.

“The next appointment they have available is on November 4, you can’t book these appointments any day.

“I told Yorkshire Water when we had the hospital appointment and they just didn't seem bothered about my mum’s health and well-being.”

Julie said that she called Yorkshire Water several times but the company was unable to confirm when the access would be provided.

She said: “I've been phoning them all week and they kept saying it’s going to be done.

“When I had heard nothing by Saturday and told my mum, it got her in tears.

“She was crying. She was looking at the garden, her pride and joy and couldn’t get out.”

Julie said that this was not the first time her mum has faced issues with Yorkshire Water. Last year raw sewage was left on Mrs Hubbard’s garden after the company carried out repairs to blocked pipes.

After Julie contacting the Derbyshire Times, Yorkshire Water contractors came out to complete the works.

Now access has been provided to the property.

Julie added: “ It’s amazing that when I contacted the media they came out straight away.

“But this shouldn’t have been this difficult or take three weeks.”

Now Yorkshire Water have issued an apology for the distress caused.

A Yorkshire Water spokesperson said: “Our contract partners, Lanes Group, have been working in the area to replace a 30-meter piece of sewer pipe and add sewer alarms and telemetry monitoring as part of our pro-active flood prevention work.

“This was completed 10-days ago and the reinstatement request has taken longer than we would usually expect.

“It was escalated over the weekend when we were made aware of the resident’s concerns and has now been completed.

“We would like to apologise for any inconvenience or distress this has caused the resident affected by the delay, it has fallen below our usual standards, and we are working to improve this process in the future.”