Squatters in disused Sleaford shop driving couple from home

Neighbour Ella Whitelaw raised the issue with The Standard after enduring months of problems with people squatting in the rear of the former Pizza Hot takeaway, off Southgate, which was previously named the Civic Trust’s Mess of the Year, until North Kesteven District Council boarded it up and repainted the frontage.

Ella said: “We’ve lived in our rented property for a little over a year, and these problems started about a month into our tenancy.

“Having faced homelessness before I know there are resources out there that should be utilised.

“My partner and I have been in contact with the police many times to the point it was almost every day for two months.”

She said the council were helpful and saw to it that the windows were boarded up, but soon after the couple found people tearing down the boards to get in. Despite calling the police, she said officers could not stop them breaking in and proceeding to live there.

She said: “It’s a hotbed for antisocial behaviour related to drug use. We have to put up with smoke billowing out of the windows, the residents defecating everywhere, the needles all over the ground and I genuinely stumbled across a woman injecting in a puddle of her own urine.“

Ella suffers from PTSD and they sadly feel forced to move out of the area, despite both growing up here.

NKDC Executive Member Coun Sally Tarry said their Community Safety team has worked with the police and the property owner in the past to secure the premises, leading to a reduction in antisocial behaviour.

Homelessness outreach workers can also be brought in to help, she said.

“We will continue to work together to address the issues raised and ensure the owner takes the necessary steps to secure the property,” she said, urging anyone to report anti-social drug incidents to the police via 101.