THE owners of Tavistock homes threatened by bank erosion on a tributary of the River Tavy can sleep easier in their beds.
West Devon Borough Council, as riparian landowner of the Tiddy Brook at Bishopsmead, approved funding to carry out urgent repair work last week.
It was only recently that the council discovered it was responsible for maintaining the bank and not the Environment Agency as was thought.
Sycamore Avenue resident Stephen Morgan, whose house would be threatened by a breach of the bank said the relief the news brought was 'unbelievable'.
'It was a big Christmas present and I'd like to thank Suzi Allen, the council officer, for helping us out,' he said.
Mr Morgan said the brook had been eroding the bank for the last three or four years, but much more so recently.
'The stream is eroding the bank on a daily basis now. Everyday I check on it, it looks a different shape every time,' he said.
The rushing waters have been eroding the opposite bank too, threatening to topple the trees onto nearby houses.
Councillors at West Devon's policy and resources committee last Tuesday heard from Ms Allen that the matter was urgent and the council had engaged Teignbridge Council to come up with a suitable design — Teignbridge has an engineering department with expertise in this area.
She said they were close to securing approval for the work from the Environment Agency and when that was forthcoming the matter would go out to tender.
Work is estimated to cost in the region of £20,000 to do this small section.
Councillors approved the release of money for the repairs and an in-house survey on the remainder of the council-owned banks of the Tiddy Brook. Recommendations for other remedial works and landscape improvements could then be considered at a later date.