ELDERLY residents in Benfleet want their full-time warden back.

Council-run Gowan Court, in Gowan Close, will no longer have its own warden and residents will have to make do with two, hour-long visits each day.

If there is an emergency residents must use the Careline.

Nearly 30 residents have signed a petition, which also complains about a lack of maintenance that residents claim has left the 1960s building dilapidated.

Resident Hilda Jones, 71, is co-ordinating the protest and will present the petition to Castle Point Council.

She said: "We have been told a warden will only come in twice a day.

"We got used to our warden, but they moved her away.

"Now if there is an emergency we will have to rely on Careline. It is not good enough and we are very upset about it.

"The building is also in a very bad condition following years of neglect and it is about time the council did something about it."

The council hoped its tenants, including those in sheltered housing, would choose to be taken over by a housing association in a recent ballot, but they opted to stay with the council.

The council has warned it can't afford to bring its properties up to the Government's required decent homes standard and there could be some job losses.

Alan Longford, corporate director for community, said: "We have every sympathy with the tenants, but unfortunately we are now feeling the repercussions of the housing ballot result.

"Swallow Housing guaranteed to maintain full-time wardens at all sheltered housing schemes and had plans to make big improvements to schemes like Gowan Court.

"However, the majority of tenants chose to stay with the council and as a result we will have to make savings of around £300,000 per year to avoid an illegal deficit in the housing fund."