An 85-year-old widower has been left devastated after discovering his beloved family home, sold to HS2 for £1.2 million, was transformed into a cannabis factory producing 184 plants worth tens of thousands of pounds.
Alan Wilkinson was forced to sell his four-bedroom property in Whitmore Heath, Staffordshire, under the controversial high-speed rail scheme’s special circumstances programme in 2019. The pensioner has now learned the luxury home, where he lived with his late wife Gillian for three decades, became a drug production site after being rented out by HS2 Ltd.
The shocking discovery came to light when two Jehovah’s Witnesses knocked on the door of the property and detected the unmistakable smell of cannabis. Police subsequently raided the premises, uncovering a sophisticated growing operation spread across five rooms within the house.
Tragic Loss Before Move
The Wilkinsons had purchased the property in the 1970s, transforming it into their dream home complete with a swimming pool and upgraded kitchen. When HS2 announced plans to build twin tunnels beneath the hillside village, the couple reluctantly agreed to sell under the special circumstances scheme.
“I feel awful, truthfully, about what’s happened,” Mr Wilkinson told reporters, describing the emotional toll of seeing his former home’s fate.
In a cruel twist of fate, Gillian Wilkinson died from pancreatic cancer just two weeks before the couple were due to complete their move in 2019, leaving her husband to face the upheaval alone.
Police Raid Uncovers Drug Operation
The illegal cannabis farm was discovered after concerned neighbours alerted the property’s unusual visitors. “My old neighbour saw them walking out of my old drive and he told them ‘You won’t find anyone in there’,” Mr Wilkinson explained.
“They replied, ‘No, but there’s cannabis’. Turns out there was 184 cannabis plants growing inside. They could smell it.”
Staffordshire Police confirmed that Darren Pinnington, 32, of Gomville Road, Liverpool, was charged with being concerned in the production of a controlled drug of class B in May. He pleaded guilty at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court in July and is awaiting sentencing.
Village ‘Destroyed’ by HS2 Plans
The scandal has highlighted the devastating impact of the now-scrapped Birmingham to Manchester route on communities across the proposed line. Whitmore Heath saw 35 of its approximately 50 homes sold to HS2, with many now sitting empty or converted to rental properties.
“HS2 destroyed our village,” Mr Wilkinson stated bitterly. “It was a fine community where people who had made it had gone to live. But the plans for the line tore it apart.”
The pensioner revealed the human cost of the prolonged negotiations: “More than a dozen people died while waiting to sell their homes. I can’t bear to go back. So many memories with my wife, all gone.”
£633 Million Wasted on Scrapped Route
The abandoned Birmingham-Manchester section resulted in £633 million spent on property acquisitions, part of total HS2 property purchases reaching £3.79 billion across the entire project. Security costs for the empty properties have reached £1.9 million in 2023-24 alone.
Despite the northern route being cancelled in October 2023 by then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, hundreds of purchased properties remain under Department for Transport ownership, creating what critics have labelled a “national scandal.
Parish councillor Ian Webb described the situation as “far from ideal,” noting that several homes have been left empty for extended periods whilst taxpayers foot the bill for round-the-clock security patrols.
HS2’s Response to Cannabis Factory
An HS2 spokesperson condemned the illegal use of the property, stating: “We utterly condemn the illegal use of property acquired by the project being used as a cannabis farm. It was let on the open rental market, and managed by property agents, to help recoup costs to the taxpayer.”
The rail company confirmed that the property cannot be re-let due to extensive damage: “We have been unable to relet the property since the farm was closed down by police because the costs of returning it to a lettable state are too great.
HS2 emphasised that the planned tunnel would have run up to 30 metres beneath Whitmore Heath and that no homeowner was compelled to sell their property for the railway to be built.
Property Now Faces Demolition
Mr Wilkinson revealed he has heard rumours the property may be demolished entirely: “I hear rumours it’s going to be knocked flat and rebuilt.
The spokesman added that the area is now “patrolled by our private security teams who work closely with Staffordshire Constabulary” to prevent similar incidents.
The property had undergone significant changes after the sale, with Mr Wilkinson noting that HS2 had removed the swimming pool and re-roofed the building before placing it on the rental market.
Health Impact on Families
When asked about the impact of HS2 plans on his family’s health, Mr Wilkinson was unequivocal: “Yes, of course it did have an impact. HS2 was the worst thing that could have happened to Whitmore Heath.”
The case has become emblematic of the wider failures surrounding HS2’s property acquisition programme, which has left communities fractured and taxpayers facing ongoing costs for maintaining empty homes along the cancelled route.
As Mr Wilkinson approaches his 86th birthday, he remains unable to return to the village where he spent the happiest years of his life. The home that once symbolised his success and provided sanctuary for his family now stands as a monument to the devastating human cost of Britain’s most controversial infrastructure project.
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Image Credit (Shortened):
HS2 track bed and overbridge at Berkswell (7 Jun 2025) – by Sludge G, licensed under CC BY‑SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
