A RESIDENT says their neighbourhood has been infested with rats due to a six-feet high pile of waste which has been dumped at a derelict former pub site.

The rubbish is near the Grade II listed former Wheatsheaf pub on Lionel Street, Sutton.

Residents say the area has been a mess for much of the past 12 to 18 months and is causing disruption to their daily lives.

One resident said to the Star: "There are rats everywhere, it's shocking.

"This has been going on for 12 to 18 months.

"People have vandalised and fly tipped on this derelict property to the the point that the waste is now more than six feet high, and the whole street is infested with rats.

"They're in our gardens, alleyways and residents have even had them in their house. It is like living in the 1900s with all the squalor and filth."

St Helens Star:

A picture of a rat in a nearby property

She added: "We have written to the council and environmental health for a year now and still nothing has been done.

"We've been in lockdown fro the past 12 months and I can't even go out to my back garden.

"The pile is six-feet high, all the rats walk along the walls, it's disgusting.

"I shouldn't be living like this. I cannot stress enough how many rats there are.

"It is terrible."

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When asked about the issue, a St Helens Borough Council spokesman said they are aware of complaints over the issue and are working with the site developer.

He said: “We are aware of complaints of flytipping at this site, which is not council land, and are working with the developer – who has already cleared the land of waste several times – to redevelop and improve the appearance of the area."

The spokesman added: "Given the content of the waste is predominantly inert material - mostly garden and building waste - the accumulation is unlikely to provide a food source to sustain rats although pest control will continue to monitor the situation.

"Anyone who witnesses anti-social behaviour like this should report it to the council online, report via the mobile app found by searching ‘St Helens Borough Council’ in your app store, or call 01744 676789.”