Residents in Mawnan Smith are facing issues with a recently built estate in Lowenna Fields nicknamed 'Colditz', just as developers Taylor Wimpey get ready to build another estate on Bickland Water Road in Falmouth.

Mawnan Parish Council are taking Taylor Wimpey to the planning ombudsman for supposedly breaching the terms of their original planning permission and building houses on a higher level to give them a sea view, according to councillor Rex Sadler.

According to a letter sent to the Packet offices, the estate has also earned the nicknames 'Colditz' and '50 Shades of Beige'. In a letter to Cornwall Council's Chief Planning Officer, a member of Mawnan Parish Council said that the new builds were "disproportionately large and alien to the vernacular of our village."

Residents of the new estate Malcolm and Elaine Leather have also been facing a range of issues including flooding and insulation problems due to the developer apparently rushing through the completion of the project to meet a December deadline. As well as flooding and insulation problems, the fence in their back garden was not properly secure which allowed their dogs to escape.

They said that communication with the company was poor, and that contractors will show up to the house with no prior notice to fix issues that should have been resolved months ago.

Elaine said: "It is like sitting on a train that stops and nobody tells you what's happening. They turn up out of the blue."

David Rigby, another resident of the new estate, claimed that residents had been facing a "variety of issues".

He said that among other things, the developer failed to install the carpets he had chosen and instead put in different coloured carpets in different rooms.

He said: "We are waiting for contractors day in day out, and we just want to get on with our lives.

"We expected snags in a new property, that is life, but the issue is with responding to snags. In a nutshell, we are just frustrated with the response."

The main issues with the new estate are to do with a specific design of house known as the 'Mawnan' house. The last houses to be built in the estate were 'Mawnan' houses and were built along the estate's northern edge, and these houses are the ones with the most issues. Originally, the development was spearheaded by Project Director Shaun Marsden, who won a National Housebuilding Council award for his high standards in housebuilding, but he stopped working for Taylor Wimpey just before the project was completed. A replacement was brought in to finish the project and residents say that they were told not to try and contact him. The last few houses to be built faced significant issues that have still not been resolved four months on.

A representative from Taylor Wimpey said: "We are aware of the issues some residents of Lowenna Fields have experienced with their homes, and we are working with them to resolve any outstanding problems as quickly as possible. We will keep our residents up to date throughout this process and continue to provide support and feedback as we resolve their concerns."