DISGUSTED residents were shocked to find they had new metal neighbours at the weekend when floodlights were put up in view of their houses.

Residents of a row of affected houses in Warren Close were surprised when the lights appeared on Saturday, as they say they were not notified of plans for The Langley Academy’s new third-generation pitch.

Warren Close resident Robert Dudley said: “We are disgusted and we feel let down.

“This is a very, very quiet close, we are quite away from the main road and the school noise is not an issue because it finishes at 4pm, now we are going to have the added noise and light pollution. It’s going to disrupt us.”

A planning application document from February stated that houses in Langley Road, Harrow Road, Cockett Road and Forsythia Gardens were notified of the plans. Only one letter of objection was received, with concerns about traffic.

But Mr Dudley says this is not the case. He is a builder and is concerned that the new pitch will bring late night noise with it that will disrupt his sleep.

Slough Borough Council planning officers have said that houses in Warren Close were consulted and no objections were received, a claim Mr Dudley He added: “Being an early morning worker I am usually in bed early.

“Now the football pitch is really close to our house and the problem is they are synonymous with foul language and shouting so it might not just be noise and light pollution, that behaviour might come with it.”

The council has said that the use of the lights will be restricted at night and will have to be switched off no more than 10 minutes after the use of the pitch ceases, which has to be 10pm Monday to Saturday or 6pm on Sundays and bank holidays. Langley Academy have been advised to fit light reflectors, which would significantly reduce the impact of the lighting and the council says that the affected properties will experience light spillage varying from the equivalent of normal street lighting to that of a typical city centre car park, prior to the fitting of the reflectors.

The new floodlights are clearly visible from everywhere in Mr Dudley’s house and garden.

He said: “We used to be able to look at loads oftrees and the church from our bedroom, through a window but now that view has been completely destroyed.

“I am disappointed that tThishas happened to us, it’s is going to cause an underlying level of stress that we would never normally have in our life.”

The residents of Warren Close will be making complaints to the council and are prepared to take it further.