RESIDENTS in Colchester’s New Town want an alleyway which has become a haven for burglars, drug dealers and arsonists to be closed off.

People living in Kendall Road say the alley, running behind their houses down to the Aldi supermarket, no longer serves a purpose.

They say in the past year it has been used as an entry route for burglaries and a place to deal drugs.

A garden shed was set on fire, while cars in the Lookers Ford garage, in Barrack Street, have been hit by bottles and bricks thrown from the alleyway.

Stephanie Tewn, 36, said she was too scared to be at home alone after an attempted break-in last year, when she was woken up and scared off the burglars.

She said: “I got broken into and they got in through the alley. It’s easy access in and out.

“I can’t stay in the house on my own any more. I’ve had an alarm fitted, but it’s not ideal.”

She added: “It’s a waste of time because no one wants to use it as it’s not lit.

“It’s just a place for people to get up to no good."

Neil and Mandy Simpson, also of Kendall Road, are to start a petition calling for either the alley to be closed off, or for the introduction of cameras and lights.

Postman Neil, 53, said drug dealers used a public phone in Kendall Road before carrying out their transactions in the alley.

Mandy, 55, added: “There’s been a good half-a-dozen robberies which have stemmed from there.

“To be quite honest, the alley serves no purpose to anybody. I think years ago it used to be for the dustmen, but they collect it from the front now."

A Colchester Council spokesman said officers were working with the police to tackle problems in the area through the New Town Neighbourhood Action Panel.

She said Essex County Council would be responsible for closing the alley, while Colchester Council’s street care team had been getting rid of syringes and graffiti.

Insp Jim White, of the Colchester central neighbourhood policing team, said he would ask a crime reduction officer to go to the scene to see if changes, such as CCTV or extra lights, would work.

He added: “We’re aware of the alley and we have got plans in place at the moment to deal with any offenders we find down there.”