"Frightened Residents Face 'Lord of the Flies' Nightmare as Gang of Feral Youths Break Into Homes Armed with Golf Clubs"

TERRIFIED residents on a doomed 1950s estate say they are living in fear of a ‘Lord of the Flies’ gang which is breaking into empty homes armed with golf clubs.

Just a handful of residents remain on the 122 home on Ekin Road, Cambridge, with all but 14 of the properties earmarked for demolition.

Residents on a rundown estate say they are living in fear of lawless youths Credit: SWNS Residents living on the housing estate due to be demolished say they’re terrified by a ‘Lord of the Flies’ gang of youths smashing up properties Credit: Tapo

The after said residents said they would refuse to move should the council press ahead with development plans.

The scenes on Ekin Road now, with some captured on video, have been likened to William Golding’s novel ‘Lord of the Flies’ where a group of boys stranded on an , descend into .

Cambridge City Council wanted to demolish all 122 homes and rebuild the area with 78 new council houses and 56 private properties.

Just a handful of residents remain on the 122 home estate on Ekin Road, Cambridge, with all but 14 of the properties earmarked for demolition Credit: SWNS The estate hit headlines three years ago after said residents said they would refuse to move should the council press ahead with development plans Credit: SWNS Residents are calling on the council to secure buildings to prevent further upset Credit: SWNS Locals have reportedly seen teenagers clambering up on top of sheds to enter the flats Credit: Tapo

Dr Maurice Chiodo spearheaded the Save Ekin Road Campaign, saving 14 homes from , and said the were “roaming around with impunity”.

The remaining 108 properties are due to be demolished and rebuilt.

Dr Chiodo said: “Youths are using abandoned bins to jump onto shed buildings and balconies.

“They’ve broken into and smashed up interiors.

“These are very large groups, sometimes up to twenty, coming in with golf clubs and targeting everything they can find, pulverising it to dust.

“It’s a Lord of the Flies type-scenario.”

Residents began to move away from Ekin Road in July 2024 following the council’s redevelopment plans, with now just around 15 households remaining.

Dr Chiodo said the street was “obviously very empty” making it a target and the spike in began in February.

He said: “The youths come every Thursday and Friday afternoon, even in their .

“Then last week we had a first adult break-in.

“We’ve had households come to us who have lived here for 20 years and said this is the first time they’ve felt unsafe in their own home.

“It’s really sad to hear.

“This is an engineered problem and the council have brought in spades due to poor management.

“Bins have been left here for two years – the flats are sitting ducks.

“One flat which is on the ground floor and has been empty since 2024 was boarded up ten days ago.

“A lot of people here are scared. The could be up to 18 months away.

Residents at the estate have complained of overgrown hedgerow Credit: SWNS Teenagers have allegedly been spotted climbing into now vacant properties, breaking windows and “pulverising everything to dust” Credit: SWNS

“We want a semi peaceful street to live on while this project is ongoing.”

Residents are calling on the to secure buildings to prevent further upset.

Mrs Sandra Ellis, 71, lives in one of the houses protected from demolition but said residents had been left in “limbo” on the ghost estate.

“The estate hadn’t changed over the 16 years I’ve lived here except since they’ve moved everybody out.

“Now the trees are overgrown and there’s all over the place.

“The kids think they can do what they like.

“The council have left us in limbo and we should not be forgotten.”

Chris Workman, 38, lives in one of the flat blocks hit by the antisocial behaviour and said people were able to access the buildings “too easily”.

The council has urged residents to continue reporting antisocial behaviour Credit: SWNS Residents say antisocial and violent behaviour is affecting their well-being and mental health Credit: SWNS

Mr Workman has lived alone in the building since November, having moved there in 2018.

He said: “There has been extensive to vacated properties which has attracted interest with the local youths who think it’s a game to smash everything up.

“We’ve been assured there are security patrols but we haven’t seem them.

“On several occasions, groups of children have been wandering around at leisure and we’ve had to call the – but it takes up their valuable time and resources.

“It is unsettling and affecting my sleep because anyone could come in and do anything.

“They’ve removed the scanning equipment on the rear entrance so I can’t enter that way, they urinate on the floor and use golf clubs to smash windows.

“It’s not been taken seriously because they are children.

“It’s easy to say the estate is run down but we need to try and empathise with those still living here.

“I recognise it is difficult to manage but more could be done to help us.”

Mr Workman said he was largely supportive of the developmentand the council been good at responding to emergency repairs.

But he added: “It’s just so simple the things that could have been put in place to prevent this.”

Meg Gadja, 63, has lived on Ekin Road for 14 years and is also the only remaining in her block.

She said she wanted to see visible patrols in the area and engage with “positive and constructive” communication with the council.

Ms Gadja explained: “I live here alone in the whole building and it’s not safe for me.

“My flat is in pristine condition because I care about it and have put a lot of money in to make it brilliant and suitable for me.

“Now it’s an awful place to live. On a council estate, you can expect some antisocial behaviour but it was nothing major.”

Ms Gadja said the youths were climbing up on sheds to access balconies on the first floor – but when she asked if her balcony door could be boarded up, she claimed they told her no because it would damage it.

She said: “What’s the problem if it’s going to be demolished anyway?

“It’s very easy to spot if I am at home or not. I am most concerned someone could steal something from my property.

“If it’s bolted, people will still know I am not at home because my car won’t be in the car park.

“They could empty my flat easily over five or six hours and no one would see it.”

A Cambridge City Council spokesperson said: “The Ekin Road estate was identified as a site for possible redevelopment by the council due to serious maintenance and structural issues in some of the existing homes, which were built in the 1950s and 1960s.

“Doing nothing was not an option because of the serious issues in the buildings, meaning our tenants were living in that didn’t meet our standards.

“Residents who needed to move out to enable the redevelopment have been supported to relocate sooner rather than later, so that they haven’t had to live in limbo waiting for the redevelopment to start.

“The downside of this is for those who will remain living on Ekin Road, and who are facing the problems often seen on sites with multiple vacant homes.

“We recognise this is a frustrating and sometimes frightening experience and we are committed to reviewing our security measures as required during this phase.”

The spokesperson added they had mobile patrolling the area as well as alarm systems and motion sensors.

They have urged residents to continue reporting incidents to the council’s antisocial behaviour team or the police.

A Cambs Police spokesperson said: “We are aware of the issues on Ekin Road and are working with partners and councils to tackle ASB in the area.

“Local sergeants and officers are regularly patrolling the area to ensure the addresses are secure.

“All empty have been boarded up and security teams carry out regular visits to prevent further damage.

“We would encourage anyone who experiences anti-social behaviour where they live to report this to us, so we are able to build up an accurate picture of what is happening in an area and act accordingly.”