A FAMILY says work to restore the canal in Thrupp has caused their garden to collapse and slide towards the water.

But the trust behind the work claims that the landslide may have been caused by the family overloading the bank above the canal.

Caley Davis, 80, and his wife Rosemary, 77, say the end of their garden at Alpine Cottage in Ham Mill Lane has been slowly falling down a five-metre drop into the water since Cotswold Canal Trust began re-building the bank in November.

The bottom of their garden has sunk about three feet, a crevice has opened in the earth and cracks have appeared around their pond.

Mrs Davis suffers from lupus while Mr Davis, who used to work in construction and owned a skip company, struggles with arthritis.

The couple have lived in the property for about 45 years.

Their daughters, Tanya Davis and Sharon Lewis, want the trust to repair the damage and stabilise the bank.

Tanya, 50, from Cainscross, said: “With more rain at some point this section of the garden from the crevice will fall away completely.”

Sharon, 48, from Ebley, added: “They spend millions on this canal and they can’t spend the money to put right what they’ve done wrong.”

Tanya and Sharon have contacted their parents’ insurers to notify them of the situation, but have not yet lodged a claim.

Trust company secretary Jack Telling said: “We have taken this matter very seriously because we are aware that the residents of Alpine Cottage are elderly and for obvious reasons are very upset.

“This needs to go through insurers in the proper way. Under charity law we cannot spend our money unless there is proof that we are liable.”

However, he said that “a representative of the trust’s insurers is currently investigating the matter”.

He added: “Before beginning work we received advice from a professionally qualified engineer.

“Clearly heavy and persistent rain could be a cause. However there is evidence that the root of the problem is that over the years the residents of Alpine Cottage have built up the bank at the bottom of their garden and in doing so have overloaded the bank.”