Residents turn up the heat as they try to take over the running of their housing estate in Harborough

Activists are stepping up efforts to run Farndon Fields themselves after blasting maintenance agency bosses in a bitter row over fleeceholding fees.

Lara Raffaelli, 53, of Angell Drive, Farndon Fields, accused Chamonix Estates of “ripping off” scores of householders.

And she also urged Northampton-based Barratt Homes to hurry up and fulfil their promise to transfer the land over to them.

Lara told the Harborough Mail: “It’s extremely frustrating, very infuriating and totally inexcusable.

“Both Chamonix and Barratt are letting us down at every turn.

“We all just want to wrest control of our own estate now, our own homes, our own backyards, and make a totally new start.”

The South African-born editor, who’s spearheading the campaign, has spoken out after launching a residents’ rebellion against Chamonix Estates.

“We have set up our own residents’ association to manage Farndon Fields and to fight hidden fleeceholding fees.

“We’ve also started management committees for both phase one and phase two of this estate,” said Lara.

“Now we want Chamonix to call an extraordinary general meeting to hand over the reins to us.

“We have been forking out a lot of money to this company over the years and they have done very little in return.

“We are determined to manage our own affairs here.

“We can draft in our own grasscutters, electricians, cleaners and other contractors to look after Farndon Fields.

“And they’ll all be local rather than coming from miles away so it will be mush better for the environment.

“I’ve just spoken to one of my neighbours and he’s shelling out over £1,000 in fees every year to Chamonix.

“That’s just scandalous.

“We’ll do a much better job than them and at a much more reasonable price.”

She said Chamonix Estate were “dragging their feet” after pledging to stage a special EGM at a special residents’ meeting at Harborough’s Robert Smythe Academy on February 4.

“I can’t understand what the hold-up is.

“More and more local people are entirely disillusioned with Chamonix and are backing our campaign,” stressed Lara.

“And we won’t pay them another penny in the meantime because they don’t deserve it.”

She’s also calling on Barratt Homes, one of several developers at Farndon Fields, to jolt into action.

“They vowed at the same meeting to transfer this land over to us within days.

“We have written to them and emailed them but we’ve still heard nothing back from them,” said Lara.

“It makes me very worried and anxious that these companies cannot seem to do what they have pledged to do.

“Just please give us the land and the right to run our own estate and we can all look forward to a bright new future.”

She is urging everyone on Farndon Fields to get behind her quest for “justice, honesty and integrity” by contacting her at the estate’s Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/FarndonFieldsResidents/“The more people who support us the stronger we’ll be – and the better it will be for everyone living here on Farndon Fields,” insisted Lara.

A Barratt Homes spokeswoman said: “We would like to reassure residents that all of the necessary steps have been taken towards the transfer of the land and the residents’ committee will be able to decide on a new management company at their next meeting on 24th March.”

Katie Stainsby, an associate director of Chamonix Estates, said: “At the residents’ meeting Chamonix Estates explicitly advised the residents that an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) would be called as soon as the land transfer between Barratt Homes and the Management Company had taken place. “It was explained that this may take two weeks to transfer.

“Letters have been issued this week (Tuesday 25th February 2020) inviting residents in both phases to their own EGM for the phase they live in.”

Ms Stainsby added: “Alongside the invites was an accompanying document inviting Members to contact us so that we can assist them in providing as much information to support them if they choose to become a Director of the Management Company.”

She denied that residents had “got nowhere” trying to contact Chamonix.

“This is absolutely untrue.

“We have received no contact from Members about the EGM prior to the invite being issued or post issuing them,” insisted Ms Stainsby.