HOUSEHOLDERS have once again hit out at a bizarre fly problem which they say is making life a nightmare in an area of Dursley.

The Gazette first reported on the problem two years ago.

Now residents have spoken out again, saying the insects are still a problem - and that no one seems to be able to find the cause.

John Fletcher, 74, who lives in Shelley Road on the Poets estate in Woodmancote, said that his home has been blighted by flies this summer.

The retired Royal Navy veteran, who has lived on the road since 2006, explained that such is the scale of the problem, he has been unable to sit in his garden.

“As soon as the sun comes out, we’re inundated with flies,” he said.

“You’ve got to keep your windows and doors shut, and you can’t open them because they get into the house.

“You can’t leave food out either.

“It’s not very pleasant.”

Mr Fletcher said that he had spoken to his neighbours and all of them had been experiencing the same problem.

“There’s not a lot we can do,” he said.

“I don’t want to hang fly papers up - they look disgusting.

“I’ve tried spraying the flies with disinfectant, but they seem to disappear for about 10 or 15 minutes and then come back.

“I would like to see the source of the problem dealt with.”

Other local residents have been reporting issues with flies in Woodmancote on social media.

One resident wrote on Facebook: “It’s horrible.

“You can’t sit in the garden or open windows or doors.

“My decking area is covered in them, and the back yard.

“It’s been going on for years.

“This year, it started early in April.”

Another local resident wrote: “There are so many of them.

“It’s disgusting.

“It’s always the same in the summer on the Poets estate.”

Another added: “It’s constantly bad in the summer all over Woodmancote.”

In August 2022, the Gazette reported that urgent action was being called for to tackle a plague of flies which was making life a misery in parts of Dursley and Cam.

Many householders said they were being forced to close windows and doors in hot weather, with some even avoiding cooking certain meals to try and keep the flies at bay.

Commenting on this year’s fly problem, a spokesperson for Stroud District Council said: “Following similar complaints in 2022, Stroud District Council employed a specialist entomologist to visit the Poets Estate area, including a premises reported by local residents to be the source of the problem. The entomologist reported that no one cause of the fly population could be identified and that there was no evidence that the reported premises was the cause of the problem. She went on to state that that “the local environment and changes in the weather patterns over the past decade have all contributed to increases in the fly population nationally.”

“Stroud District Council has since been following the advice of the entomologist, which was to make reasonable enquiry with local agricultural undertakings and smallholdings regarding fly control for animal pens and manure heaps. This advice was implemented in 2023 and, more recently, in 2024 when officers visited the site in August and patrolled the area, including the previously reported premises. At no point were any significant or concerning fly population sources witnessed during that visit and, where relevant, fly control and animal husbandry was satisfactory. Advice was also provided to residents to help reduce the likelihood of flies in their homes."