Villagers are kicking up a stink over a chicken slaughterhouse, which they claim is blighting their lives with “horrendous” smells.

Fed-up residents in the hamlet of Harecroft, near Wilsden , say they cannot go outside in hot weather, open their windows or hang out washing because of odours from Chesterfield Poultry Limited, in Station Road.

David Driver, 67, of Old Allen Road, said: “It has just got worse and worse and worse.

“The stink is horrendous, it makes you feel sick.

“Everybody is sick of it all and nobody listens down there. They say they are spending this and that to stop the smells, but there is no point spending millions if you can’t cure it.”

Production increased at the slaughterhouse, on The Haven Poultry Farm, when Chesterfield Poultry Limited became the operator in 2009 and continued to increase until it had to be regulated by the Environment Agency, which issued a permit in May last year.

Under the permit, it is allowed to operate 24 hours a day, with the “kill line shift” – the poultry slaughtering process – running from 7am to 3pm.

An Environment Agency spokesman said since the permit was granted, there had been a “high volume” of complaints, mostly about smell from the farm. There have also been complaints about the number of wagons using country lanes and the noise of a public address system used at the farm.

Residents have complained to Bradford Council, which regulated the slaughterhouse before its expansion, and told Shipley MP Philip Davies about their concerns.

Bradford councillor Michael Ellis (Con, Bingley Rural), has urged Chesterfield Poultry Limited to take action “as a matter of urgency.”

He said: “It is just not acceptable. The company, under its licence, has to come up with an odour management plan and, at the moment, they seem to be dragging their heels.

“Nobody wants to see the factory shut down, but the equipment they have got to stop smells doesn’t seem to be able to cope. They need to get this sorted out as a matter of urgency.”

Tim Shaw, of the Environment Agency’s pollution prevention and control team, said: “We’re working with the company to identify potential improvements which may reduce the frequency and severity of odours. Our regulatory powers do not allow us to restrict hours of operation or the timing and frequency of vehicle movements. These are planning issues.”

No-one at Chesterfield Poultry Limited was available to comment.