A WOMAN has won her 18-month battle to get a crumbling road repaired outside her home.

Gill Denman, 45, of Castledon Road, Wickford, feared it was only a matter of time before a pothole on a disintegrating road surface surrounding a large manhole cover caused an accident.

Now it has finally been repaired after she enlisted the help of the police.

She said: "The road surface was really cracking up and there was a dangerous pothole surrounding the steel cover.

"It got to the point where I was worried to look out my window, as someone could easily have tripped up and been knocked down by a car. I would like to thank the police for sorting this out. It's just a shame it got to the point where they had to get involved."

Mrs Denman claimed she had seen numerous close calls caused by the pothole and surrounding cracks, including a neighbour who tripped over in the middle of the road.

She raised the problem at a Wickford neighbourhood policing panel, led by neighbourhood specialist officer for Castledon, PC Pete Pettet, three months ago.

PC Pettet said: "It's a perfect example of something that could be considered a minor problem by the big agencies, but to the local people it is a big problem."

Neighbourhood policing panels, held on the first Thursday of every month at Wickford Community Centre, allow residents to meet local officers, and discuss what they think are the biggest problems in the area and how to tackle them.

Scott Wilson, spokesman for Essex County Council, said: "We prioritise repairs according to how much of a danger it causes to the public, and act on all reports we receive."

To report a problem road, call the council's repairs hotline on 0845 6037631.

To find out more about the Wickford neighbourhood policing team, call 07875 003503.