Disabled tenant, 51, says she's made prisoner in own home by BADGERS

Disabled tenant, 51, says she has been made a prisoner in her own home by the BADGERS causing chaos in her garden

• Rae Boxley, 51, from Stourbridge, West Midlands, has spinal myelopathy
• She is at risk of fatal injury from even a gentle fall, meaning she can’t leave home
• She also can’t use her garden as badger activity has left the surface uneven
• Dudley Council said it had investigated but its options are ‘very limited’
• Having moved in in 2011, Ms Boxley said she feels ‘like I’ve lost 10 years of my life’

A disabled woman has said she has been made a prisoner in her own home for a decade – because badgers have been causing chaos in her garden.

Rae Boxley, 51, has spinal myelopathy, which leaves her at risk of fatal injury from even a gentle fall and means she is unable to leave her home.

But the 51-year-old, from Stourbridge, West Midlands, said she has not even been able to use her garden for years as badger activity has left the surface uneven, causing her to ‘feel like I’ve lost 10 years of my life’.

Despite alerting her local council to the issue on multiple occasions, she said little has been done to help her.

Dudley Council said it had investigated but, because badgers are protected by law, its options are ‘very limited’.

Spinal myelopathy, typically a gradual degenerative process, is a disorder that results from severe compression of the spinal cord.

A disabled woman has said she has been made a prisoner in her own home for a decade – because badgers have been causing chaos in her garden

Rae Boxley, 51, has spinal myelopathy, which leaves her at risk of fatal injury from even a gentle fall and means she is unable to leave her home

 Dudley Council said it had investigated but, because badgers are protected by law, its options are ‘very limited’

Ms Boxley said: ‘If I was to go out the back on my crutches and my legs gave way, I could fall.

‘It doesn’t matter if it’s gentle or heavy, I could end up paralysed or dead.

‘If there’s a fire, I’m not going to be able to get away from it either way.

‘I can only stand on the step and I can’t even leave the back door open as [the badgers] come right up to the door.

‘I feel suicidal because of this, I feel like I’ve lost 10 years of my life and I’m only fifty-one.’

Ms Boxley, who does not work due to her disability, moved into the council property in February 2011 and said she noticed no issue at the time.

But a few months later she said she spotted a dip in the lawn – approximately two-feet in diameter – and notified Dudley Council of the issue.

Ms Boxley said they advised her not to go on the lawn after officials saw the damage.

The 51-year-old, from Stourbridge, West Midlands, said she has not even been able to use her garden for years as badger activity has left the surface uneven, causing her to ‘feel like I’ve lost 10 years of my life’

Ms Boxley’s garden is pictured before the badgers wreaked havoc, forcing her to stay confined to her house

A few months after moving in, Ms Boxley said she spotted a dip in the lawn – approximately two-feet in diameter – and notified Dudley Council of the issue

Over time, she said the dip in the lawn became bigger and additional holes and trenches began to appear in the garden.

Ms Boxley said: ‘It gradually started from that hole and because they used that trench often it was just getting more worn away.

‘I noticed that parallel with the bungalow there was another dip and there were holes in the grass where it was dropping.

‘The council advised me not to go on the lawn as it was too dangerous.’

Ms Boxley said she was then forced to live with the problem for years while the council looked into the issue.

But an ecologist said in 2019 there was nothing that could be done to remove the badgers from the garden, she said.

Ms Boxley said she was then told the council would make a small area of her garden safe for her to use in 2021.

Over time, Ms Boxley said the dip in the lawn became bigger and additional holes and trenches began to appear in the garden 

Ms Boxley said she was then forced to live with the problem for years while the council looked into the issue

Ms Boxley’s spotless terrace is pictured, before the badgers’ decade of chaos

But she claimed no work has started, leaving her confined to a small chair positioned next to the back door.

Now, Ms Boxley said she is desperate to get outside and cannot bear to spend a tenth year confined to her home.

She said: ‘Because of a spinal injury my spinal cord is getting smaller and smaller and eventually if it’s not treated or I have a bad enough fall I’ll be paralysed.

‘I’ve got no way to escape if there’s a fire – I keep explaining to them that if there was a fire I couldn’t go on the path as it’s sinking and there’s nowhere I’m safe.

‘I stepped on the path once and it sunk by about a foot.

‘It’s affecting my mental health – I don’t even open the curtains because the sight of the sun upsets me because I know I can’t sit out the back.

‘I’m seeing a psychologist at the minute and am on two different types of anti-depressant.

Ms Boxley said the council advised her not to go on the lawn after officials saw the damage

Flowers pictured in Ms Boxley’s garden, before the badgers caused years of mess

Ms Boxley said she is desperate to get outside and cannot bear to spend a tenth year confined to her home

‘I have to take extra vitamins because I don’t get to go in the sun and I can’t go to the park as due to my disability I have to be near a toilet.

‘I’m not asking for Kew Gardens – all I want is them to section off part of my garden to make it safe.

‘I know they couldn’t cope if they had to spend ten years sat in one room and not be able to go outside.’

Councillor Steve Clark, deputy leader of Dudley Council, said: ‘We are aware this is a long-standing issue and fully appreciate how frustrating it must be.

‘We have had several meetings with the tenant since it was first brought to our attention but the difficulty is that badgers are protected by law and are very difficult to move.

‘We paid for two different ecologists to carry out surveys to see what could be done but unfortunately the options we have are very limited.

‘We would of course be happy to meet with Miss Boxley again to discuss her concerns.’

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