There goes the neighbourhood: 'Wayne Rooney is busy and I've never seen him'

Freda Clowes knows more than most about the drawbacks of living two houses down from Wayne Rooney. For one, there is no letterbox at the footballer's imposing 8ft gates through which to post her charity envelopes when she's collecting for the church. And neither can her famous neighbour be prevailed upon to pop in to feed the cat in her absence - as many others have done in the 30 years she has lived on leafy Collar House Drive, in the Cheshire village of Prestbury. "He's busy and I've never seen him," said Mrs Clowes. "He obviously goes to Manchester a lot."

But evidence of the biggest drawback is visible on the skyline as she walks among her rows of lettuce and runner beans in her erstwhile rural idyll. A crane is hoisting materials into place for what, on the other side of Mrs Clowes' hedge, will be the fourth, Rooney-style, purpose-built multimillion-pound mansion to go up on sites where detached homes once stood.

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Demolitions like these, carried out in preparation for the made-to-measure luxury of footballers and other super-rich, are known as the "Rooney-effect" in these parts, and the anger they are causing among established residents became clear when the parish council found itself with a major protest on its hands at its recent AGM.

"Architecturally, you might say Rooney's house is not too bad," said Thelma Jackson, Prestbury's Conservative councillor, and deputy mayor of Macclesfield, who is fielding scores of protests from constituents. "But there are huge, three-storey houses being built in place of bungalows, with trees being pulled down in the process. It's ruining the character of the village. It's a mess and an eyesore."

It is the company Mrs Clowes misses most as the neighbours whom she once knew are replaced by those who choose to live behind security cameras and fences. "We used to pop in and out of each others' houses," she said. "A pilot once lived in the house knocked down to make way for Rooney's. I called around with a charity envelope once and left with lemons he'd just brought back from the Caribbean."

Feelings are mixed about the mansion - including neo-Georgian pillars, six en-suite bedrooms, three garages, indoor pool and cinema - which Rooney created behind surrounding fences for himself and his then girlfriend, now fiancée, Coleen McLoughlin. Mrs Clowes, 79, certainly loved the pool when she was granted a look by a security guard as building work reached completion. But while Rooney's home is at least out of sight, the same cannot be said of "Owl's Hoot", a mock Georgian mansion built in place of an old property down the lane, which few would say is the height of good taste. The drive's other famous resident, singer Noddy Holder, also raised eyebrows with his extension at The Lodge, though no one was willing to talk about the work yesterday.

That said, celebrities are not the only cause of a demolition spree which has brought destruction to nearby Macclesfield Road and seen one-quarter of Withinlee Road's 40 dwellings bulldozed. A moratorium on the construction of new properties until 2011, introduced by several borough councils in Cheshire, prevents new sites being found but permits the construction of "replacement dwellings" on sites where demolition has occurred. The VAT regime makes it more financially viable to demolish than refurbish in some instances.

Prestbury has received more bulldozers than most because many of its large detached houses, built early in the last century, are less to current tastes than older houses built in the equally glamorous Alderley Edge, which are considered more sacrosanct. But if Rooney does ever venture beyond his gates, he will find himself in one of the most historic villages in the south Manchester commuter belt. Prestbury's whitewashed central street, originally an estate village for the Leghs of nearby Arlington Hall, remains within a conservation area and much of it is listed, included the White House restaurant, which attracts visitors from far and wide.

Unfortunately, the footballers tend to like what they see on the cobbled main street, according to Ms Jackson. "Since Wayne Rooney moved into the village it's been like a snowball effect, and there seems to have been more development with all his footballer friends moving in," she said. "We've got people like Wes Brown, Michael Carrick and Mark Hughes living in the area. It's these types that the developers are targeting."

In the village, postmaster Mick Keighron, the latest in a line going back to 1851, said locals spoke of little but demolition. "People are just wondering 'which house are they going to knock down this week?'" he said.

Nicholas Stratford, another councillor, feared for the fabric of village life. He said:"People who are born into the village are moving away because they can't afford to buy a house, and what makes it worse is that the new people just aren't integrating."

Developers claim some of the houses being built are of better architectural merit than those demolished. "All developers should not be tarred with the same brush," said Johnathon Hill, of Hillcrest Homes. "We are prevented from building on brownfield sites in town centres, so we have to rebuild in places like Prestbury to stay in business."

But as long as the super-wealthy have money to spend, more demolition seems inevitable. In Withinlee Road, resident Michael Rusbridge was meeting the fifth developer to have expressed interest in buying his £1.25m house. He expects it to be demolished. Meanwhile, at Macclesfield Borough Council's offices there were ominous plans for a huge replacement house on a demolition site in Prestbury's Macclesfield Road "drawing [on] influences of the French château and Scottish castles." Construction continues apace in Mrs Clowes' lane, where the latest plans were publicised in a yellow planning notice: "W Rooney esq - detached triple garage". It will take the footballer's quota of car spaces to nine. IH

Prestbury, Cheshire

* MP: Sir Nicholas Winterton, (Conservative)

* OTHER FAMOUS RESIDENTS: (past and present)

Eric Cantona, footballer, philosopher and actor; Wes Brown, professional footballer; Trevor Brooking, former football player turned manager, pundit and administrator; Alan Green, BBC Radio 5 Live football commentator; Noddy Holder, former frontman of rock band Slade

* HOUSE PRICES: Average house price: £660,000. A detached family house on an estate costs from £500,000. A standalone family house could cost £3m or more.

* SCHOOLS: CoE Prestbury Primary School; All Hallows Catholic High School; Fallibroome High School; Henbury High School; Poynton High School and Performing Arts College; King's School.

* IMPORTANT BUILDINGS: St Peter's church Prestbury is one of the oldest parish churches in the country, and houses a Saxon cross in its graveyard. Other attractions include the Priest's House and the Admiral Rodney pub.

* EATING AND DRINKING: Other great pubs include Butley Ash and the Legh Arms. The Bridge Hotel is good for Sunday lunch; the Marco Polo restaurant on New Road is good for dinner.