An appalled mum filmed human waste flowing through a new-build family estate - which developers have blamed on nappies being flushed down the toilet.

Leigh Hawkins says excrement, soiled loo roll and other potentially harmful mess have been repeatedly pumping through the streets of Whitstable Heights, attracting rats to her home.

The mum-of-two, who lives next to the unfinished housing project off the Old Thanet Way on the edge of the coastal town, says the problem has plagued residents since construction began in 2019.

Developer Hyde Homes apologised this week and says it is “advising” people of the correct way to dispose of rubbish.

Southern Water, which helped with the recent clear-up, says the developer and housing firm responsible for the estate are in charge of maintenance.

Ms Hawkins said: “It’s disgusting. There are literally lumps of human poo in the road – the smell was just rank, as you can imagine.

“It's pure, raw sewage running down the road. It was running all down into the rainwater drain as well. There was tissue all up the road.

“I’ve lived here for 12 years and this never happened until the estate went up.”

Ms Hawkins says she was visiting a friend who recently purchased a home on the estate when the vile scenes in St Luke’s Close stopped her in her tracks on Sunday.

“That's when I come across all of that, all over the road and all over the floor,” she said.

“My friends said that it's happening all the time. Every six weeks her drains are blocked.

“It seems to be a massive issue and it's getting worse and worse.”

The 42-year-old has a 10 and 15-year-old and says many children live in the estate, which is used regularly by dog walkers, including herself.

“Luckily it was a rainy day so the kids weren’t playing outside,” she added.

Ms Hawkins believes the effluent has attracted rats to her home nearby.

“My sewage drains have also been blocking up and they've had to come and rod them out,” she said.

“There's also a massive influx of rats.

“It's disgusting. They're coming up through the drains and everything.

“I've never seen so many.

“They're literally running rampant through the sewage system.

“I think it's flooding one end, then they're trying to escape the water.

“I've never known it to be this bad with the rats and the sewage. Never.”

Once complete, Whitstable Heights is expected to be made up of 400 homes ranging between two, three and four bedrooms.

Hyde Homes says the drainage issues have been caused by blockages of nappies, wipes and sanitary products.

A spokeswoman for the developer stated: “We know how distressing this has been for customers, which is why we’ve investigated this issue quickly when it happened at the weekend.

“Southern Water dealt with the initial clearance, and on Monday morning our site team then jet washed and disinfected the affected area, leaving everything clean and tidy.

“We can reassure our residents that the drainage system is in good order and has sufficient capacity for the entire development.

“The flooding was localised to one part of the site and the cause was traced back to a specific blockage caused by nappies, wipes and sanitary products.

“Once cleared, the drains are now free-flowing and functioning normally.

“Unfortunately, there have been three similar incidents over the last couple of years.

“We’re working with the community, advising them of the issues caused, and reminding them of the correct way to dispose of rubbish.”

Southern Water does not have responsibility for the drains but assists in the clean-up.

A spokesman said: “The manhole isn’t one of our assets.

“It is a private manhole so the housing company and the developer are responsible.

“However, we helped resolve this issue as it was polluting our surface water network and impacting the local area.”