Childminder locked in dispute with millionaire Labour donor over garden trees
By Robert Firth, Local Democracy Reporter
A Lewisham childminder is locked in a dispute with a firm owned by a millionaire Labour party donor about trees overhanging her back garden.
Cathy Erskine claims she has been asking AA Homes to remove several trees on land backing onto her property since November 2024, when she claims a branch from one of them crashed into her garden and destroyed a shed during a storm.
Despite Ms Erksine’s repeated attempts to get the firm – owned by Anwar Ansari who has previously donated £20,000 to Mayor of London Sadiq Khan – to remove the trees, she claims they are still overhanging her garden five months later.
Fearful branches could fall from the trees at any time, the 61-year-old says she has reluctantly banned kids she looks after from using her garden until the overhanging trees are removed.
She said: “The children in our care can’t use the garden because it’s dangerous. We’re talking about big trees. We don’t know when the trees are going to fall. We’ve had nicer weather but we can’t let the children play in the garden.
“When it’s a hot day, it’s the best place to be. We are wondering how long it’s going to go on before someone does something about the trees.”
Ms Erskine admits that AA Homes quickly removed a branch that landed in her garden in November last year after she complained. AA Homes said it removed the branch within four days and paid Ms Erksine £100 in compensation for damage to the shed.
Croydon-based property developer Ansari’s company, AA Homes, acquired the 400-year-old woodland behind Ms Erskine’s property in 2004. The company surveyed the woodland in 2017, which local campaigners suspected was in preparation to submit plans to build on the land. But the application was never filed.
In 2018 following a community campaign, Lewisham council designated Gorne Wood in Brockley an Asset of Community Value, meaning AA Homes would have to give first dibs to community groups if it sold the land.
The Fourth Reserve Foundation, a charity which campaigns to protect wildlife in the area, said there had been ‘ongoing issues’ with the management of Gorne Wood, including several arson attempts.
A spokesman said: “This is another example of why woodland needs to be properly managed by people who care about protecting nature.”
AA Homes said it had to get permission from Lewisham council before chopping the trees down because they are in ancient woodland and protected. The firm blamed council bureaucracy on the delays in removing the problem trees.
A spokesman said: “On April 14 we finally reached an agreement with the local authority as in terms of the permitted scope of work and we are waiting for the tree surgeon to return to site as soon as next week, although a date is still pending.”
Pictured top: AA Homes said it paid Ms Erskine £100 in compensation for the damage caused by the branch (Picture: Cathy Erskine)
