Take a tour of the West Lothian ghost-town which should have been demolished with these incredible pictures

Of 240 houses on the Deans South estate in Livingston, West Lothian, only ten are occupied. The handful of residents clinging on have refused to sell up to West Lothian Council, insisting that they are not being offered enough cash for their homes, which were built in the 1960s as council houses. And while a developer has offered to rehome residents if they agree to sell to them so their houses to be demolished, it is dependent on all the homeowners agreeing to a deal - which has not happened. You can meet some of the remaining residents as they discuss life on the ghost-town estate HERE

The 15-year wrangle began when it was found that the homes were built with aerated concrete, Siporex, considered to be inadequate for heavy loads.

Two empty houses were torn apart to establish whether the concrete had been used, before all 240 homes were condemned.

Sign up to our daily newsletter The i newsletter cut through the noise Sign up Thanks for signing up! Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting...

Council tenants were moved out, leaving most of the estate uninhabited.

Some homeowners refused to accept cash for their houses, insisting they either wanted the market rate or a house swap.

Nearly two decades later, a handful of people are still living on the derelict scheme.

Kerry MacIntosh has lived on the estate for 17 years and shares the Baxters' hope that she could be given a new home rather than cash.

Kerry said: "There wasn't anything wrong with them except a defect with the roofs - they could have put in tiles and proper drainage and double glazing."

Kerry hopes this will be the last winter her family spends living in their house.

Joe and Isabel Baxter have lived in their house in Deans South for 53 years.

Joe said: "We have had this house for 53 years - for 20 years we rented it. The situation is demoralising. We love our house - there's nothing wrong with it."

The couple, who have one great-grandchild and eight grandchildren, have been offered a bungalow on the site of their current home, by developers Springfield Properties.

They have welcomed the prospect of a solution, as it will allow them to continue living near relatives, but the deal is dependent on the offer being universally agreed to, which has not yet happened.

If some homeowners refuse to agree to a deal with Springfield Properties, the local authority could be forced to see a compulsory purchase order (CPO).