RESIDENTS are demanding action to clear bags of rubbish, fridge freezers and televisions dumped in the yards of houses.

Concern has been raised about items that have been left in several yards in Eldon Lane, near Bishop Auckland, in recent months.

Some yards are piled high with rubbish and residents are calling on Durham County Council to take action to clear the junk.

The streets most affected are High Street, Regent Street and Wilson Street where tyres, broken glass and food waste, which is attracting rats, have also been left.

Retired teacher Vicky Collinge, 62, recently moved to Wilson Street from Bournemouth, in Dorset.

She said: “It’s been a bit of a shock to see so much rubbish outside of properties.

“This is an on-going problem. I have a terrier, called Nugget, who I take out for walks and I regularly see piles of rubbish.

“Last week someone dumped a fridge freezer in the alley between the houses and there’s a mattress there this week.

“People seem to think that it’s some sort of dumping ground and they leave rubbish and fly tip.

“We don’t know if it’s someone local or if someone is coming in from further afield to do this. There could be rats running about there.

“The county council comes and takes stuff away for us but the council isn’t doing anything long-term to solve this.

“I felt quite upset about it and I wanted to try and do something about the problem.”

Ian Hoult, the county council’s neighbourhood protection manager, said: “Having been made aware of possible rubbish and household items in the backyards we will be arranging for our wardens to visit and inspect the area in the near future.

“If there are any issues we’ll speak to the owners to request that this is cleared up and will consider further action, including possible legal notices, if there is no improvement.”

Anyone with concerns about rubbish or items dumped on streets and alleys should contact the council on 03000-261000.