A POOLE housing block is facing a “disgusting” rat problem after reportedly going two months without a bin collection.

The bin store at Kittiwake House has been packed so high that rubbish bags are spilling out the door.

Residents have complained of rats, foxes and an “awful smell”, with one woman saying she has “never seen anything like it” in the 16 years she’s lived there.

The housing block off Norton Way is owned by social housing provider Stonewater.

Louisa Bearne, who has lived at Kittiwake House for nine years, said: “We haven’t heard anything about a collection from Stonewater. 

“We just report it and are told it would be sorted but nothing happens.

Bournemouth Echo: The rubbish pile outside Kittiwake House The rubbish pile outside Kittiwake House (Image: NQ)

“There’s rats and foxes, and I keep thinking they’re going to get in my car because we park near the bins.

“It’s embarrassing and it’s disgusting. This block is already bad enough - it’s not very well maintained.”

Carol Talbot, who has lived at the housing block for 16 years, agreed she was “embarrassed” by the situation, and had stopped having people round because of it.

She said: “It smells, and it’s a health issue. It has happened before but not for this amount of time, and nothing like this. It's been eight weeks now. 

“We’ve had rats before too, they were coming up the drains and into the flats.”

Bournemouth Echo: Kittiwake House Kittiwake House (Image: NQ)

Another resident, who asked not to be named, moved into Kittiwake House with her young daughter earlier this month following a flat viewing over video call.

She said she was not aware of the situation with the bins, adding: “It’s so disgusting. I have to walk past it every day with my baby. I’ve never actually seen the inside of it [the bin store].

“A lot of people have said they’ve seen rats, and you can see maggots. I worry because I know a lady had rats in her flat before.

Like Louisa and Carol, this resident says Stonewater is doing nothing to deal with the situation.

“It’s my biggest regret moving here”, she added.

A Stonewater spokesperson said: "We’re really sorry to hear that our customers are having problems with the use of the bin area at Kittiwake House. 

"We did have contact from one of our customers about the problems with the bin area earlier in November and had arranged for our specialist cleaning contractor to visit. 

"We have escalated this as an urgent matter and expect them to have completed the clearance and cleaning within the next two days.

“We’re speaking with the local authority to find out why there hasn’t been a consistent  fortnightly collection of rubbish at Kittiwake House and will work with them to find a solution to improve the bin store for our customers.

"“We’ve also increased our inspections in this area to match the rubbish collections so we can monitor activity and take targeted action to address any problems.

"We’ll be sending out letters and displaying posters in the bin area too, to encourage customers to be mindful of what they are throwing away."