A woman claiming to be the daughter of a dementia sufferer living in a council-managed “bed bug infested” sheltered accommodation has hit out at the authority.

Jessica Johnston Schoon says her 68-year-old father lives in Dowler Court residential home, which she says has been riddled with blood-sucking mites for 18 months.

Mrs Johnston Schoon said her vulnerable father has lived at the Burton Road home made up of 26 self-contained studios for almost 13 years.

She said: “My father caught bed bugs from another tenant in the home some months ago and we were advised to privately contact pest control.

“We did, and assumed each tenant had done the same. They haven’t, and now the home has an infestation.

“The bed bugs have been there for 18 months on and off. All they seem to have done is removed the chairs in the communal areas and put plastic ones in.

“My father has been diagnosed with dementia and this is very disturbing for him.

“I must swallow my pride and admit that I saw a bed bug actually crawling over my father’s hand.

“It was an awful experience; and one which I will not allow to be repeated.”

Kingston Council confirmed that it did have a problem with bed bugs at the homes, but said cleaning it did not come under its remit.

Mrs Johnston Schoon said: “We are talking about frail elderly people unable to care for themselves – many of them suffering with vision problems or other elderly ailments.

“I was talking to a carer who visits one resident and she was worried that she could pick the bugs up there and spread them to patients in other homes.”

Mrs Johnston Schoon said she had been disappointed with the quality of the sheltered home in the past year.

She said: “I am currently making arrangements for my father to move. Unfortunately I don’t feel that the other tenants have this opportunity and I am genuinely worried about their wellbeing.

“There has been a change in the system recently and there is no onsite warden anymore.”

Floating wardens moving between residential homes were introduced by the council at the beginning of 2015 as a cost-cutting measure.

Reg O’Neil, who lives in Sobraon House, another sheltered housing building run by the council said he “rarely” sees his warden now.

He said: “When I moved in I signed a contract that I would be seen three times a week but I’m lucky if I’m seen once.

“A few people are not happy bunnies with the new system, but what can anyone do?”

Roy Thompson, director of place at Kingston Council, said: “Although infestations like this should be dealt with through tenancy agreement, on this occasion the council decided to send in pest controller officers.

“The property was treated accordingly, however, a further inspection showed that the infestation was not fully cleared and a second treatment took place.

"We will continue to monitor the situation closely and act again if needed.”