Holyland residents have called for landlords to do more to stop anti-social behaviour after a "sex doll" was left outside a property yards from a nearby primary school.
The object was spotted on Tuesday morning after it had been placed on a sofa that had been lifted on to a first floor ledge on a property on Agincourt Avenue.
Videos on social media show the sofa being carried on to the ledge.
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Local residents have said that families going to the nearby Botanic Primary School were disgusted to see the 'sex doll' so visible in the street, with one parent having to explain to their 10-year-old what it was.
Brid Ruddy said: "This is a new low for the area and it is sad that young families will have had to walk by this as they took their children to school this morning.
"Having a settee sitting on one of the upper levels is also a dangerous health and safety hazard.
"Residents should not have to put up with this behaviour constantly. HMO landlords are bound by law to have an ASB plan and 24/7 call out for complaints. What are these landlords doing?"
A Belfast City Council spokesperson said: “Belfast City Council continues to work in partnership with the PSNI, Universities and other statutory agencies to tackle and address concerns around anti-social behaviour and noise which impacts residents in South Belfast.
"Our cleansing teams, safer neighbourhood and alcohol enforcement officers are working in the Holyland area and are responding to requests for service. Our night-time noise team is operating a full service and is available seven days a week, 8pm-4am. We engage daily with other statutory and community partners to manage the area and to plan our collective working arrangements.
"In addition to responding to immediate priorities, Council is working in collaboration with city partners to consider long term solutions that will improve the quality of life for communities in the area.
“The council has a number of enforcement powers in relation to anti-social behaviour. These include powers regarding statutory nuisance related to noise, breach of alcohol bye laws and littering. Officers implement a graduated approach to enforcement, initially offering advice and delivering warnings before issuing fines.
"Under the Houses in Multiple Occupation Act which came into force in April 2019, landlords of HMOs are required to have a plan in place to deal with anti-social behaviour which may be linked to their property, and which is caused by or affects their tenants.
"If a verified incident of anti-social behaviour occurs, staff from council’s HMO team will contact the owner or managing agent of the property asking them to investigate and provide information on what reasonable practical steps they intend to take to prevent a re-occurrence of issues in the future.”
The Landlord Association of Northern Ireland has been contacted for comment.
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