HOUSEHOLDERS and tenants who endured a ‘five-year nightmare’ after a steep riverbank and retaining wall close to their homes disintegrated finally face relief after plans were put in place to repair it.

Residents in Melbourne Street, Padiham, own and rent properties backing on to Green Brook, where over a period of years a retaining wall alongside the river bank has crumbled.

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The wall collapsed completely during the 2015 Boxing Day floods.

At the end of the back yards, a 12ft gap has appeared and rubble from the collapsed wall can still be seen at the side of the brook.

It has left cracks in their walls, a precipice at the end of the back yards and erosion under the concrete at the rear of the properties.

After a prolonged wrangle between Lancashire County Council, the Environment Agency and landowners over who would be responsible for repairs, LCC has now agreed to foot the bill to the badly damaged area.

As part of the council’s capital spending schedule for 2017/18, £33,500 has been allocated to the project and work is expected to be underway in the coming months.

It is believed the council may later attempt to recover the costs of the repairs from the landowner, who is not identified in the documents which set out the project.

Resident David Healy, 35, said: “It’s been a five-year nightmare which has cost me sleep, made me anxious and often fearing the whole house could collapse into the brook.

“Melbourne Street has been a street tied up from top to bottom in red tape with nobody taking responsibility while our homes literally teetered on the edge.

“Every time I hear the slightest noise for the house I think it might be getting worse and worry is even more when it rains hard.

“I’m glad something's being done but it’s overdue.”