A man “sickened” by the sight of mounds of human waste outside his house is calling on the council to take immediate action.

Ron Devine of Springfield Road in Walthamstow said being greeted by excrement smeared across walls and pavements on his walk to work every morning makes him “feel ill”.

The 65-year-old’s back garden opens onto Markhouse Passage which in recent years has been turned into an open-air lavatory, causing neighbours to become concerned for their health.  

“It’s not nice to come out of your home in the morning and the first thing you see someone else’s doo-doo,” said Mr Divine. “It upsets me and my wife.

“It’s been going on for many years. It will happen and then go away for a while and then happen again.

“It’s especially bad in the summer when we are sitting out in the back garden and there are flies coming around. My wife puts out the washing and there are flies landing on it which may have been on the human waste before.

“I called the council on Friday to clean it up and I came out of my house this morning and it’s still there – four lots of it!”

Mr Devine, who has lived in the road for 35 years with his wife Janet, 60, has resorted to taking matters into his own hands after he claims repeated calls to Waltham Forest Council have fallen on deaf ears.

He is demanding regular patrols by environmental health inspectors and signs warning people against open defecation.

The Walthamstow-native said what was once a hotspot for dog fouling, the secluded alleyway has now become popular for those looking to relieve themselves while out an about.

He added: “When you think people are doing this outside your garden, it’s sickening.

“The wet weather we’ve had recently has caused some of it to be dispersed. It’s up against the walls. I don’t know if they’re squatting and doing it up against the walls but I put earth over it to cover it.

“I just feel ill thinking about it and I’m annoyed but what can I do? I can’t go out there and swear at them which I would like to do.

“I pay council tax and I want something to be done about this. They have sprayed ‘no dumping’ signs on the pavement to stop fly-tipping but people are still leaving human waste.”

A Public Space Protection Order (PSPO) is in place throughout Waltham Forest to prevent people urinating and defecating in public. This gives council officers and the police the power to fine and prosecute people if an offence is witnessed.

Cllr Clyde Loakes, Deputy Leader of Waltham Forest Council and Cabinet Member for the Environment, said PSPO signage which is in place across the borough will introduced in Markhouse Passage as well as CCTV.

He said: “The Council’s Neighbourhoods team currently work with Markhouse Passage residents to improve the situation there. The team carry out regular inspections in Markhouse Passage and we have agreed to install CCTV there. This is due to be in place this month.

 He added: “Markhouse Passage is scheduled to be cleaned weekly and we will check today to ensure it has been cleaned. We will also arrange for the area to be disinfected and deep cleaned after the snow.”