Residents of a block of flats in Lordshill are "frightened for their health" after rats and maggots were left to fester when their bins were left uncollected for seven weeks.

In June, the Echo heard how council tenant Sherry Brett from Lundy Close had been left with a mountain of rubbish for more than seven weeks.

The bins were collected the day after the Echo contacted Southampton City Council and Sherry thought that was the end of her woes.

But now, after another seven weeks without a bin collection, Sherry and her neighbours have been left frightened with rats and maggots metres from their homes.

The bins were again collected the day after the Echo contacted SCC.

The 68-year-old said: “We are frightened for our health – we have rats and maggots just a few feet away from where we live.

“Even in a heatwave, I have not been able to sit in the garden once this year, the smell coming from the bin is unbearable.

“My son has taken five to six huge sacks of rubbish to the tip for us - all out of his own pocket.”

Eight residents live at the block of flats so rubbish bags can build quickly.

Sherry continued: “My son picked up one bag and it was riddled with maggots.

“We have been forced to keep rubbish in our flats – us residents have piles of bags of rubbish in our rooms.

The bins went uncollected for seven weeksThe bins went uncollected for seven weeks (Image: NQ) “The rubbish was piled so high outside that we struggled to get in the back gate.

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“We want the council to stick to their pledge to empty the bins. I have tried to report it to the council several times, but each have been left on hold for over an hour with the phone cutting out.

“If the council is urging residents to report the missed collection, they need to make sure we can reach them to do so.”

In response to Sherry’s complaints, a spokesperson for Southampton City Council said: “Since we cleared these bins on Saturday, June 15, we have not had any reports or complaints regarding Lundy Close.

“Although our rounds in Lordshill have been running smoothly, we have identified that a collection was recently missed.

“We have sent a crew out to the location and can confirm we now cleared any backlog in Lundy Close.

“We will also monitor this collection closely in the coming months to ensure that these bins are emptied on their scheduled collection day. 

“We encourage residents to report any missed collections through our online form or call 023 8083 3005.”