Paul Seville, a resident of Ross-on-Wye, who lives near to the wall which is eroding in Gloucester Road, is delighted that the matter has now been brought to the attention of Ross Town Council by Mrs Joyce Thomas.

Mr Seville told the Ross Gazette that he has been corresponding with Councillor Phil Cutter for some time. He showed the Ross Gazette emails dating back to July 15th which raised his concerns about the safety aspects of the wall.

He said: “I have been really worried about this wall for a long time and despite my best efforts I’m still no wiser than I was four months ago.”

In July Mr Seville wrote to Cllr Cutter and said: “With the current plague of vandalism continuing I hope these teenagers (assuming they are) don’t see potential fun here. The wall could easily be knocked down.”

He asked Cllr Cutter when the wall was last inspected. Cllr Cutter replied that he had spoken to the Locality Steward and an officer from Building Control.

However, although Mr Seville asked for an update on their findings he did not discover any more until the issue was raised at the Town Council meeting on Monday, November 13th.

When he spoke to the Ross Gazette he said: “I wish Joyce Thomas and the Town Council the best of luck. I just hope we don’t have to wait for someone to be injured before anyone takes responsibility.”

The Ross Gazette asked Herefordshire Council if Cllr Cutter reported the wall to the Locality Steward and an officer from Building Control on, or around July 15th, and whether his concerns were acted on by Herefordshire Council,

A spokesperson for Herefordshire Council said: “The wall was inspected by Herefordshire Council on November 14th and no further significant deterioration was noted.

“The safety of the wall is an ongoing issue and the council has been liaising with Ross Town Council and The Chase Hotel to try to establish ownership, as it is not recorded by Land Registry.

“The wall is currently fenced off on the pavement to mitigate any danger to passers-by and if ownership can’t be proven, the council may need to demolish the wall to remove any future risk.”

The spokesperson added that they do not keep records of when Councillors raise issues so cannot confirm when the issue of the safety was first raised.