Litter louts are causing upset in roads close to St John’s Academy in Marlborough and a new residents’ association is determined to tackle the problem.

The Cherry Orchard and Isbury Road Residents Association (COIRA) has reformed after disbanding more than a decade ago and rubbish is one of its main concerns.

Members say the problem, also an issue in Orchard Road, is particularly prominent during school term time when students from St John’s use the nearby field as a cut-through to Tesco and Subway.

COIRA chairman Sara Daw said: “A lot of the students are very polite and well behaved but every lunchtime the area is flooded with students and it’s being littered on an industrial scale.

“The other day I was taking my dog for a walk around by Cherry Orchard and there was broken glass everywhere. If a child had fallen there it could have been very dangerous.

“We are very fortunate to have such a beautiful area around here but it’s being blighted by litter.”

Mrs Daw, who has lived in Orchard Road for 27 years, said several attempts had been made to ask the school to take action but nothing has been done.

She said: “We would like to build a relationship with the school so we can try to sort the problem but despite regular emails from myself and many others who live in the area, nothing is ever done.

“Our most recent emails have just been ignored and I really don’t know what else we can do.”

Principal Patrick Hazlewood said: “St John’s students are regularly reminded to show courtesy to our local community. We have strict policies on littler within school and expect our students to observe these rules outside St John’s.”