Alex Patterson, of Castlerig, said that the rhone pipes are now so clogged with soil and vegetation that they do not drain properly.

He said: "We asked the Council to replace the rhones with new pipes but they wouldn't. We're just fed up with them doing half a job."

"This has been going on for years. We eventually got our roof repaired, but they didn't do the rhone pipes. They told us they didn't need done, but we could see that they did.

"Water is coming out and the door is starting to swell up.

"The back close is all covered with damp and grass is growing up the pipes.

"We have plants growing out the rhones and coming down over the windows."

Mr Patterson added that a large chunk of guttering had fallen from the roof and landed in an area where children frequently play. He said that the rhones were now becoming a danger to passers-by.

He added: "If it had hit a kid it would have killed them. Talking to Fife Council is like banging your head off a brick wall.

"Except if it was a Fife Council brick wall I wouldn't bang my head off it, because if I did it would probably fall down and kill me."

A spokesman for the Council said that replacing the rhone pipes was on the Council's "to do" list.

Robert Young, housing coordinator, said: "We are very busy at the moment with repairs. The work has been programmed for before the end of the holidays. Everything is in hand."