ANGRY residents are calling for a Wythall hostel for the homeless to be closed, saying they have had enough of vandalism, graffiti and verbal attacks from its tenants.

People living near Wythall Lodge Hostel, Alcester Road, met on Thursday at Wythall Village Hall after a spate of antisocial incidents they claim are linked to the hostel.

Wythall Parish Council clerk Pat Harrison joined other parish representatives, Bromsgrove Council and Bromsgrove District Housing Trust (BDHT), which runs the hostel on behalf of the council, at the meeting.

She said: "Residents have had enough of people hanging around outside the hostel at all hours, drinking and hurling bottles around and shouting abuse.

"The location of the hostel is totally unsuitable for an expensive residential area."

Bromsgrove Councillor John Gardener, of Wythall South ward, lives in Gorsey Lane and said residents were becoming increasingly intimidated by tenants and their visitors since the trust took ownership of the hostel a year ago.

He added: "My neighbour regularly has to put up with verbal abuse and rubbish thrown over the fence."

BDHT chief executive Mike Brown said the trust was working with the council, police and residents to address alleged antisocial behaviour from a minority of hostel residents.

"If solid evidence proves any of the tenants are committing antisocial behaviour, we will take necessary action, including attending court and evicting them, to ensure this is stopped," he said.

But he added the council had a moral obligation to ensure vulnerable tenants had safe and secure accommodation.

Residents were told to document future incidents before they meet with the council's community safety officer.