RESIDENTS of a block of flats in Leamington say they are afraid to step outside their front doors after dark.
Drug taking and boozing in the stairways at Ashlawn House on Forfield Place is making life hell for tenants who say landlords Orbit are not doing enough to combat the problem.
One resident, who wished to remain anonymous, told The Observer: “I am afraid to step outside my flat door at night – and I’m not the only one.
“You can always smell cannabis in the stairways and corridors. The only answer I get from Orbit when I tell them about this is that they are liaising with the police.”
And tenants say the intercom entry on the front door is often broken allowing anyone to walk in any time of night and day.
Orbit is now making regular visits to the flats on the corner of Radford Road to monitor the situation, and say it is happy to meet tenants away from the flats to allow them to talk freely.
Area manager, Natalie Robertson said: “Orbit does not tolerate anti-social behaviour and we will take action against customers if their behaviour doesn’t change.
“We have a clear ASB procedure and we need the co-operation, patience and help from residents to resolve these issues by collecting information on nuisance behaviour and keeping incident logs. We cannot act on hearsay or out-of-date information.”
Warwickshire Police echoed the request for co-operation, patience and help from residents to tackle the problem..
A spokesperson said: “Anti-social behaviour can have a far reaching impact on the community and we take all incidents reported to us seriously.
“We liaise regularly with Orbit to help to tackle ASB, and will continue to do so with any future issues.”
