A FLOCK of pigeons have turned a family home in Port Glasgow into a scene from Alfred Hitchcock film 'The Birds'.

Henry Black, his wife Helen and their grown-up son and daughter have had to put up with around 40 of the birds descending on their property every night for months on end, leaving behind a disgusting mess and their constant cooing keeping them awake.

The family have lived in the former school house next to the old St Stephen's High site in Southfield Avenue for 21 years but feel they have been forgotten about by landlords Inverclyde Council since the school was demolished earlier this year.

Pigeons which had occupied the empty secondary building have relocated to the roof and window sills of their property and the one next door, which is currently empty.

The grounds around the block of two are also wildly overgrown, the pavements and access roads are in a bad state, there is no street lighting and a hose pipe within the former school site has to run 24/7 to ensure the family has a clean water supply.

Mr Black, 53, a janitor of St Stephen's until three years ago, said: "With the pigeons, it's like the film 'The Birds'.

"We've been left here and forgotten about, more or less."

The presence of the birds is the main cause of concern for the family, particularly following the pigeon droppings scandal at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow.

Mrs Black, 52, said: "They all descend in the evening and you can hear them throughout the night.

"We've been here 21 years and we really don't want to give up our house but we want it to look half-decent and for the pigeons to go away.

"I don't think that's too much to ask."

The couple tried to buy the house outright several times over the years but were knocked back on each occasion.

They have been told they are not a priority for a move elsewhere so they are now at the mercy of their landlords.

The council has come up with some temporary solutions to some of the problems, such as spotlights on the side of the house to provide visibility when it is dark, although the family have to pay the energy bills for them.

Mrs Black said: "You can't see your hand in front of your face out there, especially in the winter.

"The council don't want anything to do with this house because they don't deal with properties any more and they are in the process of transferring it to RCH.

"They're not maintaining anything.

"This is the last resort because we're getting nowhere at the minute."

The former school site is now owned by RCH and is earmarked for 224 new homes.

Local authority officials say everything is being done to support the Black family.

A council spokesman said: "Living beside a demolition site and a construction site will, inevitably, result in some level of disruption.

"Everyone involved in any construction or demolition work will always try to be a good neighbour.

"We have been in touch regularly about and tried to resolve some issues and will continue to work with the family on anything we can control up to the point the property is transferred to our partners at River Clyde Homes."

Work began in September last year to clear the site and finished in March.

The land is now owned by RCH and earmarked for 224 new homes.

St Stephen's and Port Glasgow High occupied the Southfield Avenue building until moving into a new shared campus just up the road in December 2013.

In recent years, it was used as a temporary home for Lady Alice and Kilmacolm primaries - and was also a set for the zombie musical film, 'Anna and the Apocalypse', three years ago.