DISABLED residents are appealing for help from local companies to create individual gardens outside their Bournemouth homes.

They asked their landlord, the Shaftesbury Housing Association, to carry out the work at their Talbot Avenue bungalows, but have been told no money is available.

The association was criticised by the Audit Commission in September for its poor services to tenants, record on repairs, resident involvement and value for money. It was the first housing association in the country to receive a second zero star rating.

One of the residents, Harry Scrivener, said: "We have had a letter saying the association wants tenants to be more involved. We want to be able to do a bit of gardening and just have our own bit of space.

"People who have been here since the places were built have been asking for eight or nine years. Most would say they are being treated like second-class citizens. This is their home, but they can't go beyond eight feet from their doors because they'll sink into the grass."

Shaftesbury Housing Group spokesman Sean Cahill said: "The communal garden at Talbot Avenue was built into the original design to enable us to provide residents with an attractive open space which could be easily and economically maintained by our contractors.

"While we have no objection in principle to residents having individual back gardens, the stumbling block is finance. Given the not inconsiderable demands of our budget, this is not something we could reasonably undertake as a responsible housing association. Residents would have to fund the work themselves, but we realise this is expensive and we can understand why they feel unable to do so."

Mr Cahill added: "We take all the residents' concerns very seriously and we are working with them to resolve the various issues they have raised, including the maintenance of the communal area.

"We have resident participation on estate inspections and we are in consultation with the gardening maintenance contractors to identify problems and recommend workable solutions for the future."

First published: November 3, 2005