A PENSIONER came out of hospital to find that the pond he had dug in his back garden had been removed.

The home, in Booth Road, Little Lever, is owned by Bolton at Home, and officials have said that the pond presented a safety risk and had to be dug up.

George Hewart, aged 84, had been living in the home for 30 years and had installed the pond, in a communal garden area, around the same time he moved into the property.

He was in hospital following a heart attack when the pond was removed and has now gone back into hospital because of an ongoing heart condition.

The pond had also had fish in it which were removed when the area was dug up and rehomed by Bolton at Home officers.

Little Lever councillor Sean Hornby said Mr Hewart was a “well-known gentleman in the community” and complained about the state that the garden had been left in after the man returned to his home.

He was contacted by Mr Hewart during a surgery with fellow councillor Rees Gibbon.

He added: “I’m absolutely fuming and I think that there should be an apology to this man for what has happened.

“It’s never been flagged up over the years and then, all of a sudden, when he’s in hospital after a heart attack he gets a phone call from the enforcement team at Bolton at Home saying it needed to be removed for safety reasons.

“But, they have left it more of a mess than it was before.

“Normally, I am very supportive of Bolton at Home, but I think on this occasion they have overstepped the mark.”

He also said that the man had not been made aware that his pond would be removed.

However, a Bolton at Home spokesman said their customer was no longer able to maintain the pond and that it was contrary to the tenancy agreement signed by the tenant.

They said: “We found the pond during a garden inspection and it presented a safety risk, especially as it was in a communal area and our customer had told us he could no longer maintain it.

“Ponds aren’t allowed under the terms of customers’ tenancy agreements. In this case we have removed the pond, rehomed the fish for our customer and filled-in the area.

“We are returning imminently to lay turf on it and we genuinely wish our customer well.”

Concerning ponds, Bolton at Home’s tenancy agreement reads: “You or anyone who lives with or visits you must not build a pond in your garden.

“If you or someone who lives with or visits you builds a pond, you must remove it and fill it in at your own expense.”