THURROCK Council has closed a footpath linking a new housing estate and Stanford-le-Hope Town centre, saying it has become too dangerous following vandalism.

The authority is responsible for maintenance of the path, which is used as an access by young people travelling to and from school or to reach public transport and residents on the Stanford Meadows estate walking into town.

The footpath is designated No36 and runs alongside the Hope tributary, with two crossing points.

However, the waterside paths are now deemed to have deteriorated, largely through vandalism, to an extent they are unsafe.

The walkway has now been deemed unsafe.

The condition of the path and a lack of lighting was raised with the council by ward councillors Ross Byrne and Neil Speight in December last year, and it was hoped that remedial work would take place.

However, little appears to have been done in the interim and today (Friday, 13 June), a notice has been posted confirming the temporary closure of the footpath, which goes under the c2c rail line. A lengthy walking diversion will include Victoria Road, London Road and Stanford Road.

In the long term, following work linking up a new water crossing and creation of a footpath to the new adjacent Hope Green residential estate, which is being built by developers, Footpath 36 will be formally rerouted and redesignated.

Last month the councillors were updated when a council officer said: "Footpath 36 has been closed between Victoria Road and Stanford Road Stanford-le-Hope on a temporary basis. This means the occupants of the Persimmon Home site fronting Stanford Road will have lost their short cut to the shops and to the station. 

"Footpath 36 has a narrow section, which is falling into the watercourse. We have tried to secure it with gabions but the pins which hold the structure in place are now protruding through the surface of the path, causing a possible trip hazard.

The crossing with the Stanford Meadows homes in the distance.

"An alternative route which takes the public across the watercourse onto the Resi Homes site, will be available at the end of June. Bridges have already been built to divert the public across the watercourse and Resi Homes have been constructing a path through their site to meet the bridges.

"The bridges which have been vandalised are to be made safe in the meantime.

"Our intension is to divert Footpath 36 on a permanent basis onto the Resi Homes Site, closing the hazardous narrow section."

The public notice:-