FAST food chain KFC has gone from finger-lickin’ good to litter picking bad as a large colony of seagulls feeding off leftovers is causing noise, nuisance and damage to Worcester residents’ property, says a leading councillor.

With KFC’s customers leaving behind litter and filth on Elgar Retail Park and the streets around it the company is being investigated to see if it really is doing all it can to keep the area clean.

Meanwhile, the managers of the retail park have been served with a 28-day enforcement notice or face legal action if they do not plant four new trees and put in place a system that prevents boy racers from using the car like a racetrack at night.

Ever since KFC opened in Worcester nearly three years ago residents have been angry with the amount of waste customers discard and their perceived lack of effort from staff to clear it up.

City and county councillor Alan Amos, who represents Warndon, said: “The bins are usually left full overnight which has caused a dreadful problem for residents such that a very large colony of seagulls has now taken up residence.

“They cause noise at all hours, their droppings have caused enormous damage to cars and property and they spread filth and disease.”

Coun Amos said at the end of October he accompanied senior environmental health officers on a site visit to see what the area looked like on a typical day – previous site visits had been conducted in conjunction with KFC but this particular one was not.

As a result Worcester City Council and Worcestershire Regulatory Services is investigating and enforcement action could be taken.

A KFC spokesman said bins are provided inside and outside restaurants and it encourages customers to use them.

“We also conduct up to five litter patrols each day in the car park surrounding our Worcester store including an additional litter pick between 7am and 8am before the store opens,” he said.

“We are in regular contact with the environmental health officer, who on a recent visit was happy with the measures we have in place, and we will continue to work closely with the council and landlord.”

The city council has already served an enforcement notice on Workman, the firm that manages Elgar Retail Park for owner Hermes, and a spokesman said it is working to plant four Italian alder trees and strengthen the overnight car park barriers outside KFC “within the next 14 days”.

Coun Amos said: “I hope the managing agents and KFC now act in a much more consumer-friendly way and no longer assume they can continue defying the council and residents with impunity.”