PLANS to put a dove cote in the Priory Gardens in Marlborough to woo pigeons away from the town centre's listed buildings have run up against a grans' army.

The council's plans have ruffled the feathers of pensioners living in The Priory, a sheltered retirement homes scheme run by Sarsen Housing.

They say they have enough to put up with from gangs of noisy teenagers in the public gardens behind their homes, and a resident flock of pigeons as well as a raucous roost of rooks that wakes residents as early as 3am.

Last week Marlborough Town Council members decided to look into providing one or two pigeon cotes around the town.

They have borrowed the idea from the city council in Chester, which halved its pigeon problem by luring the birds to the municipal pigeon lofts with food and then removing their eggs.

However, residents in The Priory think the idea is bird-brained.

They told the Gazette that while it might reduce the pigeon problem in the High Street it would add to the host of nuisances they already face.

They say they have to put up with abuse from groups of teenagers who congregate in the public gardens.

Hazel Stobbs, 64, who has lived in The Priory for about 18 months, said: "You get as many as 20 teenagers at a time. Those who have left school and don't have jobs are here all week.

"They climb up the trees and over the walls. We frequently see them relieving themselves against the trees."

She added: "When we read in the Gazette that the council is thinking about putting a pigeon loft down here that was the final straw.

"All it will do is move the problem from one place to another and we have enough problems down here already."

Mrs Stobbs said the residents would get militant if the council proceeds with the suggestion.

She said: "They are not going to put it here without a battle. We will all get our Zimmer frames out and have a protest march if we have to."

Widow Vi Kerton, 84, and Bessie Trew, 95, who has lived in The Priory since retiring as a domestic at Savernake Hospital, are also against the pigeon loft, complaining that they already had to suffer jibes from some of the youngsters when they walked in the gardens.

Mrs Kerton, who has lived in the Priory for about three years, said: "If we walk down there with our Zimmer frames they think it's clever to make fun of us. The behaviour we have to put up with is dreadful."

Town clerk Graham Gittins said no decision had been made yet about where to site the pigeon lofts.