The worst fears of those concerned about 71 families including pregnant teenagers and at-risk families appear to have been confirmed after a spider infestation, broken heating, anti-social behaviour and safety fears have been leaked from a former office block.

Tower Hamlets Council housed the families including mothers and babies in a converted block next to Homebase in Weir Road, Wimbledon earlier this year but some tenants have reported serious concerns about the conditions since they moved in.

From October: Pregnant teenagers and premature babies among 71 vulnerable families housed in former office block

A council spokesman said they had received mainly positive feedback and they are confident living conditions are decent.

One whistleblower says there is an extreme spider infestation, with more than 50 spiders counted outside one of the flats.

Wimbledon Times:

Apparently they have laid thousands of egg sacks around the block, and made nests inside too.

Reports to Merton Council and Tower Hamlets Council have fallen on deaf ears according to the tenant, who did not want to be identified.

The partner of a woman with a young child who has been re-homed there said he travels for several hours from his home in east London to reach them.

He said there are people congregating outside the block on a regular basis smoking and drinking, lighting fires and being very loud, and that there have been problems with heating not working.

He said his partner had been given a faulty temporary electric heater that sparked at the plug, making it unsafe to have around the child.

A Merton Council spokesman said they had not been made aware of any problems, but could help if they were approached by the landlord.

A joint letter to Tower Hamlets Council from three Wimbledon Park ward councillors Janice Howard, Oonagh Moulton and Linda Taylor in October called for a re-think of the location and raised concern about the mental and social well-being of the new residents.

The lack of easy access to shops and other facilities near the site has been raised by the partner of the tenant as well. He said: "There are no adequate facilities close and the nearest real shop is a co-op that is across a bridge that has a very small pavement and extremely fast moving buses, lorries and various traffic and this is all the time day or night."

He added: "My partner has no local connections either.

He said: "No-one in their right mind would house people here, let alone across the other side of London and the fact the owner of the property has said it is "five star accommodation" or something similar is a joke. Clearly money is the main thing and not the safety of residents who are vulnerable."

Landlord Ravi Kumar did not wish to comment on the claims but did say if there were any issues he would look into resolving them.

He urged residents to contact Tower Hamlets Council.

Merton Councillor Moulton, said: "I am shocked and extremely concerned about reports of a spider infestation at Vantage House.

"It appears to confirm the worst fears of ward councillors that this building is not appropriate accommodation for the vulnerable residents currently being housed there, including many children. Both Tower Hamlets and Merton councils need to take urgent action to deal with this worrying infestation and address ongoing concerns about the welfare of these families."

A Tower Hamlets Council spokesperson said: "On the whole, we have received mainly positive feedback from the families living in Wimbledon. We are therefore confident that the housing provided to these families provides them with decent living conditions.

"In regards to this one complaint, we are looking into their issues with the property, and will liaise with the landlord to get them sorted as soon as possible.

"Tenants who may be experiencing any issues should firstly contact the landlord. If they hear nothing back or are not satisfied with the response they should contact their Housing Officer here and we will sort any issues out."