Over the past few months, residents living on The Colleys (Queen Eleanor Avenue and surrounding streets) have raised growing concerns about the unfinished state of the estate — from uncompleted roads and pavements to missing landscaping and green spaces.
To help clarify what’s going on, I’ve been in touch with Lincolnshire County Council Highways, who have now confirmed the current position on both the estate roads and the Barrowby Road junction.
🛣️ Section 38 – Estate Roads Still Awaiting Completion
The County Council has confirmed that a signed Section 38 agreement covers the entire development.
That means the developer — Countryside/Vistry Group — has legally committed to build the estate roads to the standards required for adoption into the public highway network. Once adopted, Lincolnshire County Council would become responsible for its long-term maintenance.
At this stage, however, the site hasn’t progressed far enough for adoption.
LCC say the following works are still outstanding:
- Streetlighting and electrical connections
- Final landscaping and verges
- The binder and surface course on roads
- Footway completion (pavements)
In addition, Anglian Water has requested that some remedial works be carried out before the highway work can resume. These are expected to take priority over the coming months.
County Highways officers have said they’ll be meeting Countryside/Vistry shortly to agree a programme for completing the outstanding works. Their current view is that the estate remains “some way off adoption”, but that the legal bond covering completion remains entirely in place.
This bond acts as a financial guarantee — so if the developer fails to finish the job, the Council can step in and use the bond to complete the works.
🚦 Section 278 – Barrowby Road Junction Signed Off
There’s better news on the junction.
The Section 278 works — which cover the new access onto Barrowby Road — have now been completed, with only minor remedial items left to tidy up. Once those are completed, the County Council will be able to close the project formally.
🏡 What This Means for Residents
For now, The Colleys remains a private development, which means the roads and open spaces remain the developer’s responsibility until adoption.
However, with both the legal framework and the financial bond already in place, there’s a clear route to completion — it simply needs Countryside/Vistry to finish the remaining work.
I’ll continue to stay in touch with both Lincolnshire County Council and South Kesteven District Council (who oversee the planning and open-space conditions) to make sure residents are kept informed about progress and timescales.
If you live on the estate and notice new issues — such as damaged surfacing, unfinished pavements, or safety hazards — please do report them so that they can be logged with the relevant council teams.
💬 In summary
- A signed Section 38 agreement covers the estate roads but has not yet been adopted.
- A bond remains in place to guarantee completion.
- Highways officers are arranging a meeting with the developer to agree on a completion plan.
- The Barrowby Road junction is finished and will soon be signed off.
- Residents will stay informed as further updates are received.
It’s good to see some clarity emerging, but the key now is delivery. Residents deserve to see their streets, footways, and open spaces finished to the standard promised when the homes were sold — and I’ll keep pressing for that outcome.