Two streets to be demolished in mining subsidence village

Residents of two streets in a Clackmannanshire village facing mining subsidence have been told their homes will have to be demolished, BBC Scotland has learned.

Meetings were held with residents of Coalsnaughton on Thursday evening where 97 properties have been evacuated due to ground movement.

Officials from the local council and the Mining Remediation Authority (MRA) told them that 60 houses on two streets, Benbuck View and Dunmoss View, would have to be knocked down.

Remediation work will be carried out on two other affected streets to make them safe, the residents were told.

Homeowners will be offered compensation payments but some of those who attended the meetings told BBC Scotland News there was uncertainty about how much they would receive.

The MRA confirmed that there had been a meeting with people affected by the subsidence, and said it would be releasing a more detailed statement on Friday.

Some 256 residents in four streets in the former mining village were moved out of their homes after ground movement was discovered in May.

An eight-week investigation by the MRA confirmed that the issue, which saw cracks appear in roads, paths, and homes, was related to historical mining work.

Alan Cameron, chairman of the Coalsnaughton Evacuees Residents Group, said residents had now been told that 46 properties in Benbuck View and Dunmoss View, the worst affected streets, were damaged beyond repair.

Another 14 properties were likely to be further damaged by future ground movement, he said, and so they would also be demolished.

The ground movement is considered less serious in two other streets, Langour and Nechtan Drive, and the officials believe it will be possible to repair them.

One resident said they had been told it was likely to take about 12 months for stabilisation and repair work to be completed.

The displaced residents include a mixture of private owners and Kingdom Housing Association tenants.

Alan Cameron, 40, said his family had moved between 13 different hotels over a 12-week period after the street was evacuated, before finding a rented property.

He has a daughter and a son whohad been badly affected by the disruption," he said.

"The trauma is absolutely unreal. Nobody, absolutely nobody, gets the trauma that you're going through as an individual and as a family trying to keep this together for everybody," he said.

Simon Woodward, whose home is in Benbuck View, said some residents were very upset and left in tears by the news, but that it was an outcome he had been expecting.

He said that while residents had been told their homes would be bought from them, many unanswered questions remained.

"All I know is that they're going to demolish our houses at some time, and some time they will give us a bit of money to try to buy another one - and that is the sum value of everything I know," he said.

He said he had lived in the house continuously since it was built 17 years ago until he was told by police that he had to move out in May.

"You just think someone, somewhere along the line, has just not done their job properly," he added.

UK Energy Minister Michael Shanks promised support for those affected, working "side by side" with the Scottish government and Clackmannanshire Council.

He said: "This is a deeply challenging time for the families who have had their lives turned upside down.

"My thoughts are with those who have received extremely difficult news this week that their home is not safe to return to.

"I want to reassure these families again that no-one will be left to shoulder the burden alone."

Many residents had become resigned to the fact that some homes would have to be demolished.

However, the fact that so many will have to come down will still be a shock.

The evacuated area includes both housing association and privately owned properties.

The details of the compensation scheme for residents have still to be made public.

But it is expected that owners will be offered compensation which, at a minimum, would be equivalent to the value of each property before the evacuation.

But will the compensation be enough to help them find a suitable new home?

Property prices in Coalsnaughton were relatively low.

Some residents have said that finding a new property of the same size could be expensive.