A pensioner living next to a care home which burned down in April, killing one person, says the insecure building is “an accident waiting to happen”.

Pamela Mitchell says the site in Connington Crescent, Chingford, is no longer guarded by security personnel and the open access could be seen as “an adventure” for local children.

The 68-year-old who lives in a ground floor one-bed flat alongside the home run by Sequence Care Group is calling for immediate action before someone gets hurt.

“It’s coming up to the school holidays and it’s not safe for it to be left open.

“You may have them in there drinking and smoking or pouring something and starting a fire – it could be seen as an adventure.

“Or there may even be homeless people who go in and sleep there.

“We (the neighbours) are all a bit worried.

“There’s no security and they’ve even taken away the metal fences around the building. It’s an accident waiting to happen.”

A woman in her 30s lost her life in the huge blaze which engulfed the home for people with learning disabilities in the early hours of Friday, April 20.

Ms Mitchell claims security guards protected the site from intruders day and night during the three weeks after the tragedy.

But she says guards are no longer on duty and barriers erected around the care home have been removed, making the site a “free for all”.

She added: “I have spent the past four weeks emailing Sequence Care Group about my concerns.

“But at the end of the day we can only say what we can and if they’re not going to take any action we can’t go above them.

“The scaffolding is up high against our block of flats. Our other concern is if people get into the building and go onto it, it could fall down and put us at risk.

“This is urgent – we are now in mid-June and nothing has been done.”

A spokesman for Sequence Care Group said: “We will always try to engage with residents and ensure any safety concerns they have are properly addressed.

“Security was on site to ensure that while the police were carrying out their forensic investigation there could be no access to the building by anyone else. This investigation has now finished.

“There is no evidence of anyone having accessed the site illegally although we are aware of some small security issues regarding windows and doors not being fastened properly.  

“We are reviewing security arrangements to ensure that the building is completely secured when building work is not being carried out.”

MP for Chingford and Woodford Green, Iain Duncan Smith, said: “Ms Mitchell contacted my office recently with concerns regarding the site of the care home, damaged by a fire a few months ago in Connington Court.

“As a result, I wrote to Waltham Forest Council and the reply was passed on to Ms Mitchell last week (June 15).

“I have also written to the Health and Safety Executive passing on all of Ms Mitchell’s concerns and we are awaiting a response from them.

“I will continue to monitor the situation with the residents in Connington Crescent.”