TWO Haslemere families, who claim their homes have been blighted by a new pavilion erected just 12 metres from their front doors, are this week considering their options.

Michael and Annie Spilberg from 24 Bartholomew Close, and their next-door neighbour Jean Cook, were distraught when they received a letter from David January, the director of housing at Waverley Borough Council, last week to say the council had decided not to buy their homes, following negotiations by council officers.

"We had not originally expected the council to buy our homes, but help us to move," said Mrs Spilberg this week.

But they are flabbergasted and upset by the decision, which they claim came after Mr January had been authorised to offer to enter into negotiations with the affected house owners and the council, with a view to the council buying their homes to enable them to move elsewhere

"It was an initiative made by the council, not sought by ourselves," claimed Mr Spilberg in a letter last week to Mr January.

"We will take action and do everything we can, write a formal complaint to the council and more, and we are talking to our solicitors," declared Mr Spilberg.

"We feel very aggrieved by the shabby treatment we have received."

Last week, members of the council's decision-making executive were believed to have decided in secret session to go against a recommendation by Waverley officers to buy their homes and rent them out to key workers.

It has come more than nine months after watching the "ugly" building mushroom, blocking out their light and wiping around £30,000 off the value of each of their homes.

Both families claim that the building had been sited in the wrong place after major changes in proposals to regenerate Kilnfields and build new homes.

They say that following a public consultation four years ago, they had not been consulted on the new plans which followed, giving them no opportunity to object.

But when building started in February this year, the families were outraged to find the new pavilion slap bang opposite their houses, tight to the pavement and with just the width of the narrow road and pavement separating it from their front gardens.

So infuriated are they by what they see as Waverley's "negligence and lack of care", that they are now also considering going to the Ombudsman, claiming maladministration by Waverley Borough Council over the matter.

"Nobody in their right mind would want to live here and buy our homes. I feel in absolute despair and I don't know how we can ever move," said Mrs Spilberg.

"This pavilion could not have been uglier if the architect had entered it in an ugly building competition - he should come and live here," she continued.

And added Mr Spilberg: "Nobody in their right minds could think it is a good thing to put so large a structure and community centre a yard from a road and 10 more from two front doors."

Next-door neighbour Jean Cook, who lives with her infirm husband and 98-year-old mother, said she felt the council "had done the dirty" on the families.

"They should compensate us for what we have lost; nobody has said sorry and we have been left in the lurch," said Mrs Cook.

Mr January told The Herald following the decision not to purchase the homes that the matter had been "extensively considered".

"I don't think there was anything that went wrong, it was just unfortunate that the planning process wasn't taken advantage of."