Therapist's hilltop home left teetering on edge of sheer 9ft drop after 'builders triggered a landslide' - destroying her vegetable patch and having to cancel her daughter's birthday party over safety fears

Charlotte Winfield, 38, said builder 'dug against bank' which caused 'fault line'She was then told by the developer: 'You have to crack eggs to make omelettes'

A therapist's hilltop home has been left teetering on the edge of a sheer 9ft drop after 'builders triggered a landslide' which destroyed her vegetable patch and forced her to cancel her daughter's birthday party over safety fears.

Charlotte Winfield has become embroiled in a 'really frustrating' planning row after excavation work was carried out on the plot of land that sits at the bottom of her garden in Southampton.

The work, which began last August, saw a builder 'dig against the bank' which caused a 'fault line' at the end of the garden, according to the mother.

A wooden fence along the edge of her garden then began bowing and part of it collapsed towards the end of 2023.

The 38-year-old added that the remainder of the garden was held up by a tree root.

Charlotte Winfield pictured in her garden which has suffered subsidence after 'builders triggered a landslide'

Ms Winfield's house pictured above the subsidence which she claims was caused by excavation below

Ms Winfield said: 'It seems to be collapsing more every day now. We have got my house, a little patio, some grass then it's gone'

Now Ms Winfield, whose three bedroom home is on a steep hill, said her garden is 'collapsing more every day' following the groundworks.

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The therapist said that the builder has returned and is causing further issues.

'He came back a couple of weeks ago and has gone up and dug where the fault line is,' she said.

'It seems to be collapsing more every day now. We have got my house, a little patio, some grass then it's gone.

'The land has fallen away and it's a sheer 9ft drop from the edge of my garden.'

The homeowner said that no one was willing to take responsibility for the landslide and that, when she raised her concern about subsidence, one developer told her: 'You have to crack eggs to make omelettes.'

The mother said he also threatened to put a caravan on the patch of land if she continued to complain.

Ms Winfield believes a 'group effort' is needed to confront the problem and said 'there's got to be some legislation'.

Rail fencing pictured blocking off the affected site. The work, which began last August, saw a builder 'dig against the bank' which caused a 'fault line' at the end of the garden, according to Ms Winfield

Ms Winfield, a therapist, pictured standing above the 9ft sheer drop below her home

The 38-year-old believes a 'group effort' is needed to confront the problem and said 'there's got to be some legislation'

The homeowner said that no one was willing to take responsibility for the landslide and that, when she raised her concern about subsidence, one developer told her: 'You have to crack eggs to make omelettes'

She said: 'My daughter was supposed to have her third birthday here in in the garden in early June but now we have to cancel'

'It's just really frustrating,' she said. 'We are trying to read different things, we are quite stressed, it's really time consuming.'

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According to planning records, an agent from ET Planning sought permission to build a three-bedroom home on the land near Ms Winfield's home in November, 2021.

A decision notice was issued in July 2022 which approved the plans if the developer adhered to a number of different conditions and work began in August 2023.

The mother has been unable to identify who is actually responsible for the development and said 'it's all very suspicious'.

She said: 'My daughter was supposed to have her third birthday here in in the garden in early June but now we have to cancel.

'I have not been able to use that part of my garden since August. It's unbelievable.

'We have called the police to register it as criminal damage. That's a very difficult thing to claim against someone whose name we don't know.'

ET Planning said they have not been involved with the physical works on the site, and are unaware of any issues regarding the grant of planning permission itself.

They said: 'Subsidence in general would be a matter for building control to address under separate regulations rather than an issue that planning would address.'

Southampton County Council said the matter is a civil matter between the two properties and is not within the authority of the council.

The therapist's home pictured from above with the subsidence seen at the bottom of her garden

Ms Winfield added: 'We have called the police to register it as criminal damage. That's a very difficult thing to claim against someone whose name we don't know'

In a statement, a council spokesperson said: 'Works have been undertaken by the landowner to clear vegetation from the site to maintain its appearance, which does not require consent'

ET Planning said they have not been involved with the physical works on the site, and are unaware of any issues regarding the grant of planning permission itself

In a statement, a council spokesperson said: 'Works have been undertaken by the landowner to clear vegetation from the site to maintain its appearance, which does not require consent.

'The planning permission does include the requirement for a retaining wall on the boundary, and this must be implemented if the development is to go ahead.'

The landowner has been approached for comment.