‘Some elderly resident are too afraid to go on their balconies when squirrels are there’

• AT St Luke’s estate, near Old Street, residents have for three years been complaining about squirrels climbing onto balconies, destroying our planting, and defecating.

Some elderly resident are too afraid to go on their balconies when squirrels are there and I’ve heard of squirrels entering apartments.

The reason is that Islington placed a perfect, vertical, climbing frame on the outside of our building, with the service cables and service pipes that have been installed to façades hard up against balconies.

A pest control consultant suggested residents should remove all planting from their balconies which will stop attracting the squirrels / vermin. But I think that is simply an unbelievable passing of responsibility.

The council clearly did not carry out risk assessments. They should remove external cabling and gas pipes. And squirrels need to be trapped at regular intervals.

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